"One of the best new discs this year." (LA Times) - A band hailed for its sonic adventure and imagination. The bassist/composer is also the one-man orchestra and secret weapon behind Ani DiFranco's recent live shows.

8 MP3 Songs
JAZZ: Weird Jazz, FOLK: like Ani



Details:
Todd Sickafoose is an imaginative bass player with a composer's ear for melody and chops that the LA Weekly described as "technically indomitable". The San Francisco Chronicle called him a "captivating improviser and master of collaboration".

A Northern California native, Todd now performs and records with a ton of innovative folks and genre benders (instrumentalists and songwriters alike) like Ani DiFranco, Jenny Scheinman, Noe Venable, Nels Cline, Carla Bozulich, Scott Amendola, Will Bernard, Jessica Lurie, Etienne de Rocher, Adam Levy, James Carney, Tony Furtado, Mike Marshall, and Darol Anger.

The consistency of his personal voice within wildly diverse collaborations prompted the LA Weekly to call Todd "one of the most comprehensive musical minds of this coast" - and in 2003 & 2004, he was nominated for a California Music Award for outstanding bassist. As a producer, Todd has helped birth two critically-acclaimed records for folk iconoclast Noe Venable, "Boots" and "The World is Bound by Secret Knots". In early 2004, Todd embarked on a duo collaboration with ANI DIFRANCO, with whom he has toured the US, Canada, Europe, and Japan.

"Dogs Outside" is Todd's debut record as a bandleader, made entirely in 10 hours. It is an electrifying CD and features some of the best recorded playing of bandmates Peter Epstein, Mark Ferber, Alan Ferber, and Justin Morell.

Todd studied bass with Charlie Haden and composition with, among others, Wadada Leo Smith, Ian Krouse, and the late, great Mel Powell.

reviews:

"It ranks as one of the best new discs to be released so far this year." (LA Times)

"This young bassist-composer is developing in some very interesting directions. He's already served notice of his non-trad intentions by the company he keeps...now he's come out with his own CD, Dogs Outside (Evander). Unifying the diverse compositions is a gentle tension between rhythms: the loose back-and-forth...leaves the listener prodded and suspended in ways only certain Mingus tracks ("Pussy Cat Dues," maybe) can manage. You get an impression of spontaneity within structures that are actually fully thought out. Remarkable." (LA Weekly)

"A very strong and original statement...an excellent album" (Cadence)

"A bold and refreshing imagination." (East Bay Express)

"A savvy composer too adventuresome to be constrained by conventional jazz forms and colors, Sickafoose moves fluidly between a driving swing feel and dreamy abstractions, making full use of the textural potential of his fellow instrumentalists" (SF Bay Guardian)

"The music is rooted in the free jazz tradition...chaotic segments are alternated with pristine structures, throughout which the double bass constantly emerges at the forefront...altogether perfectly executed." (Auf Abwegen, Germany)

"Brooding interplay marked by soaring choruses and a commanding group sound. No doubt, Dogs Outside comes as a welcome surprise. * * * * (4 out of 5 stars)" (AllAboutJazz.com)