Ubatuba

Dramatic contrast informs Ingrid Laubrock’s saxophone playing, as heard on albums led by Anthony Braxton and Mary Halvorson. As a composer, she likewise shows a talent for the bold gesture: *Ubatuba* features drums, reed instruments, and brass, including, yes, a tuba. Group harmony often takes precedence over solo shredding, though just when you think you have a meditative piece like “Any Breathing Organism” pegged, Laubrock will launch into rapid-fire figures. Elsewhere, “Hypnic Jerk” gives every instrumentalist (including Tim Berne on alto sax) room to stretch out. And “Homo Diluvii” whips up a joyous skronk-stomp.