Drew Gress's 7 Black Butterflies

Bassist Drew Gress, an invaluable sideman to many topflight local bandleaders, fields his own quintet with saxist Tim Berne, trumpeter Ralph Alessi, keyboardist Craig Taborn and drummer Tom Rainey. As heard on the band's most recent effort, The Irrational Numbers, Gress plots his busy, luminous postbop charts with utmost precision, yet he also leads the charge when it comes to improvising outside the lines.