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Frogg Cafe - Bateless Edge

On “Bateless Edge,” Frogg Café consists of Bill Ayasse (violin, mandolin, vocals, hand percussion), James Guarnieri (drums, glockenspiel, orchestral percussion), Andrew Sussman (bass, cello, acoustic guitar), Nick Lieto (lead vocals, keyboards, trumpet, flugelhorn), John Lieto (trombone), and features the triumphant return of co-founding member, Frank Camiola (guitar, string bass, banjo).

“Bateless Edge” is a stunning 78-minute statement, described by bassist/composer Andrew Sussman as a “reflection on incidents revolving around our own personal lives, as well as an integrated and newly formed sound that takes this band into realms that have been unexplored until now.” “Bateless Edge” sees Frogg Café fearlessly breaking new musical ground while crafting some of the darkest and most intense musical statements made thus far by this ever-evolving band.

In this elaborate journey, Frogg Café explores many new textures and colors that add great dimension to the contemporary jazz-fusion sound that is unmistakably their own. The band incorporates for the first time detailed orchestration akin to symphony music. Clarinets, mandolins, cellos, glockenspiels, bass clarinets, xylophones, string quartets and many other instruments all integrate to create a soundscape that will yield the listener infinite details on future listens. Classical Indian influences also find their way into the mix, along with new levels of intricate compositional complexity, including a track that boasts a 28-page musical score consisting of roughly twenty-five different instruments.

Many additional instrumentalists were recruited to record this latest opus, including Andrew Sussman’s father, Steve Sussman, on clarinet, Cardboard Amanda member, Dee Harris, on Indian Slide guitar and Tamboura, as well as fellow 10T artists, Vessela Stoyanova (Fluttr Effect), and Steve Kastikas (Little Atlas).