When this Chicago-based trio first came together in 2005, the intention was to perform each other’s compositions. Over the years they’ve developed away from prescribed structures and motifs, however, towards a free-improv approach to music making. The result on this debut release is 10 ‘Songs’ (all the titles begin with the word ‘Song’, although the word is presumably deployed with ironic intent) in which the players avoid riffing off one another in any of the expected ways and instead empathetically embroider a floating dreamscape of chimes, scratches and skronks. No one provides an obvious beat: as one wise head has commented: ‘The drummer-less trio invites stillness as its fourth member’. When Dave Rempis’s sax is at its squawkiest and Jason Adasiewicz’s vibes are at their most bell-like, the results suggest a fogbound harbour and a mysterious crewless ship ominously coming in to land. ‘Song For’ sets off like a piece of off-kilter cocktail-lounge balladry, which is then exploded by some splendid Aylerish blowing. It’s clever, inwardly-turned stuff. Play it quietly at a dinner party so that it makes its assault on your guests’ subconsciousnesses subliminally and they’ll wake up the following morning feeling really spooked.