On The Rebop

Guitarist George Cotsirilos picks up the rest of his trio for his sophomore album. The sound is somewhat what one would expect from a journeyman of Cotsirilos' experience, with slight influences from blues, pop, avant-garde jazz, classical, and Latin music. However, the music takes a direction all his own, tackling a mix of originals and classics. While the pieces covered are primarily of the usual songbooks (Johnny Mercer, Jerome Kern, Hoagy Carmichael), there's also a surprise from the bop era with Dizzy and Bird's "Anthropology," which gives Cotsirilos the opportunity to bubble his guitar through some faster lines and show off his virtuosity. While this album gives him room to shine, especially in his compositions, at the same time it feels somewhat flat. The tenderness of Silenciosa is only partially present, and disappears on occasion when he moves into more difficult passages. Pick up Silenciosa first, but this one is still worth plenty of listening.