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It's no secret that Franco-American relations have been strained in recent years, but French filmmaker Klaus Tontine and New Orleans-based progressives Garage a Trois have little interest in wasting time on the perceived diplomatic stature of one nation compared to another. In that transcendent space where jazz and the cinematic arts come together, size is nothing more than a state of mind. Garage a Trois--vibraphonist/percussionist Mike Dillon, guitarist Charlie Hunter, drummer Stanton Moore, and saxophonist Skerik--have crafted a brilliant soundtrack to Tontine's Outre Mer, an understated cinematic masterpiece that spans the lifetime of a brave but solitary figure and subtly illuminates the alternating joys and sorrows of isolation, parental devotion, romantic love and other universal themes that reach out to every shore.

Producer/director Klaus Tontine, a longtime fan of GAT's eclectic, cosmopolitan approach to jazz, funk and other styles, first approached the quartet in the summer of 2004, when the film--still just an idea in his head--had yet to be lensed. GAT completely embraced the concept, and crafted a compelling musical backdrop to the poignant story of Etienne de Nerval, a young man coming of age in rural France who is ostracized from society due to his diminutive stature. Reaching a maximum of only four feet, he commits every ounce of creative, intellectual and emotional energy to finding the one place in the world where he can be accepted and loved for who he is. Garage a Trois' soundtrack weaves a brilliant tapestry on a par with Tontine's stirring cinematic imagery. Like the film's resourceful protagonist, the four players aim every ounce of their own individual and collective energies at creative excellence. The resulting recording--which synthesizes a variety of world music sensibilities--never falls short.

If ever there was a genre that seemed immune from successful revival, jazz-fusion seemed a prime candidate. But this adventurous debut collaboration from veteran jazz-funksters Charlie Hunter (8-string guitar), Stanton Moore (drums), Mike Dillon (vibes, Percussion,) and Skerik (sax) does more than breath new life into fusion; it imparts it a nervous, electric economy and much-needed tongue-in-cheek sense of mischief. It's no mean feat for players to stretch out as all parties do here, yet maintain a cohesive interplay that's at once focused and musically dynamic. Hunter's compositions "Plena for My Grundle" and "Gat Swamba" evoke vintage jazz Cubano in one corner, while his playing on the squealing, squawking group workouts "A-Frame" and "Delta Skelta" leans on a wholly different sense of aggro-experimentalism. Elsewhere, Stanton's insistent rhythms powers "Interpretive Ape Dance" and the free-for-all "Launch," saxophonist Skerik offers up a savory time out with the bluesy languor of "We See," and Dillon's percussion showcase "House of Hand Wash" conjures a shotgun marriage of Asian motifs and Western minimalism. It's the sort of hip jazz-funk contemporary DJ/mixers like David Holmes struggle to coax from their turntables and samples, but made endlessly more compelling here by four real, live musicians--and one unified, playful spirit. --Jerry McCulley

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LIMITED EDITION 12" VINYL ONLY - Way out "eclectronica" side project from Stanton Moore, Charlie Hunter and Skerik (the fearsome threesome that brought you Stanton Moore's All Kooked Out!) These club-ready but sample-free tracks take you back to the new school in all-live, dubbed-out style. One look at the beautiful hand-printed album cover will explain all. An instant collectors item.