Guitarist Eric Hofbauer has been called "the heir to the avant-Americana throne" (Jazzreview.com) thanks to his 2004 solo debut, American Vanity, a diverse, acoustic guitar-driven exploration of American cultural pride that led The Wire reviewer Philip Clark to write, "His acute irreverence is powerful and expertly judged." He is also a member of Charlie Kohlhase's CK5, which was voted "Best of Boston, Local Jazz 2003" by Improper Bostonian and the Blueprint Project whose critically acclaimed self-titled debut featured Jazz legend Cecil McBee and Matt Wilson. Hofbauer has also performed with musicians such as Han Bennick, Muhal Richard Abrams, Allan Chase, Curtis Fuller, James Moody, and Gunther Schuller.

check out more reviews and info on Eric Hofbauer and "American Vanity" the CD at www.cnmpro.com. visit the online jukebox to hear tracks from Hofbauer's recordings and other artists from the Boston jazz scene (www.jukebox.cnmpro.com).

Skeptics may well cluck their tongues at the mention of the Active Percussion Duo. "If they're so very 'active'," they ask, "then how come I've never heard of them running the Boston Marathon, sledding the Iditarod, or even dancing frenetically? And doesn't the very word activity conjure images of urban rioting, reckless military adventurism, and goose-stepping?"

Interesting questions all, but entirely wide of the mark. For the Active Percussion Duo espouses activity not for it's own sake, but in the service of thoughtful and free-wheeling percussion music, often improvised but not always.

Members of the duo include Michael Brenneis and Geoffrey Brady, who collectively comprise half of Madison's beloved Tomato Box band, and seperately contribute to other beloved bands such as Albert, Yid Vicious, Ten Sleeps Trio, and the Theramones. Between them, they play all manner of drums, bars, stuff that fell off of cars, and much more. Imagine the immense effort involved in consolidating, cataloguing and playing such a vast and disparate array of percussiana. Is that active enough for you? Why not come and see for yourself?