Roscoe Mitchell and the Sound Ensemble, Snurdy McGurdy and her Dancin' Shoes (side A)

1981's Snurdy McGurdy presents a nice cross-section of Roscoe Mitchell's thinking at the time. There are funky rhythms and sparse compositional sections, full bore blowing and pointillistic textures, often all in the same piece. The hard cuts aren't quite as jarring as became popular in Downtown New York a few years later, but there are definitely sharp turns in some of the pieces. The album exploits the versatility that characterizes the Sound Ensemble. There's a weird claustrophobia in the high-end without a clear cause—there's plenty of treble and presence, and the recording was done at two good studios in Chicago. The cover design is probably my least favorite part of the record—big block letters in an uninteresting font (though I do like the colors) alongside a small picture.