Synstelien's title piece opens the music in traditional big band style, showcasing alto saxophonist Sharel Cassity, bassist Ben Meigners and pianist Jack Glottman, all of whom provide brief but tasteful solos. Synstelien's music fuses the classic Duke Ellington / Count Basie big band styles with a more progressive approach, keeping the swing alive and the bop grooving, propelled by melody-driven charts and a host of superb soloists. The eleven-member light ensemble, the brainchild of guitarist/composer/bandleader Jade Synstelien, taps into America's rich musical heritage, breathing life into the swing music of the past, albeit with a decidedly modern touch. Face is produced from a 2008, two-night recording session of thirty-one original charts, from which the group's first two albums-Meditations On the War For Whose Great God is the Most High / You Are God (Smalls, 2009) and Angels Praying for Freedom (Smalls, 2009)-were released simultaneously. The house band of New York's Fat Cat jazz club in the West Village, The Fat Cat Big Band, finally delivers the last piece of its trilogy project.
