The "band" that plays on most of 'Freak In' hasn't played around at all. The post-Witness electroacoustic septet is only on two tracks. Dave constructed most of the rest with Jamie Saft in the studio, featuring contributions by Marc Ribot, Romero Lubambo, Chris Speed, Seamus Blake, Ikue Mori, Brad Jones, Joey Baron and Karsh Kale. The process was extremely different than anything Dave has ever done before; it falls somewhere between the Miles-and-Teo style of after-the-fact tune construction and the elaborate pop-craft of Radiohead and Bjork. That said, a version of the "new" band did hit the road yesterday in Vermont, and will close the birthday week here in New York in March. I'm probably a little too close to the project to comment further, but I have a great deal of sympathy for the review I read yesterday that calls the album Dave's best single project. I still hold Witness in that position, but I can see where someone might get that excited about 'Freak In.' Steve Smith ssmith36@sprynet.com NP - Jorge Antunes, "Contrapunctus contra Contrapunctus," 'Savage Songs: Early Brazilian Electronic Music' (Pogus)