Review:  Daniel Rosenboom’s ‘Fire Keeper’ full of imagination

Veering between knotty jazz, prog rock and metal, Daniel Rosenboom is a trumpeter determined to go his own way.

For years Rosenboom has been an L.A. fixture, performing alongside adventurous reedist Vinny Golia as well as his own genre-skipping projects. Here he’s backed by a nimble roster of local talent, including drummer Dan Schnelle and saxophonist Gavin Templeton, and the record’s liner notes direct a loving mention to Joon Lee, owner of the Little Tokyo jazz hub the Blue Whale (Rosenboom celebrates the album’s release at the club Wednesday night).

While “Fire Keeper” has an undeniable sense of place, its sound is harder to pin down. Chugging guitars mesh with swerving horns on “Tadodaho,” which shifts to a lovely interlude from Rosenboom, while “Seven on Seventh” marches on Alexander Noice’s tangled guitar runs and a gentle melody that gives way to a squall of metallic noise. “The Fifteenth Hour” carries a zigzag pace that recalls the John Zorn-informed side of rock pranksters Mr. Bungle, but “Holiday Motel” draws things back to center atop a delicate horn melody. The album’s many sharp left turns may not be for everyone, but the imagination on display generates plenty of heat.

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The Daniel Rosenboom Quintet

“Fire Keeper”

21/2 stars

(Orenda)