In marked contrast to the wide range of electro-acoustic compositional and improvisational possibilities inherent in his Exploding Star Orchestra large ensemble, Chicago cornetist Rob Mazurek chose an intimate, stripped-down setting for the Starlicker trio, which included Exploding Star Orchestra members Jason Adasiewicz and John Herndon. They debuted with Double Demon on Delmark in 2011. The same year, Mazurek hauled Adasiewicz and Herndon (and Exploding Star Orchestra flutist Nicole Mitchell) down to his second home of São Paulo, Brazil to complete the lineup of the Rob Mazurek Octet -- described as a merger of Starlicker and São Paulo Underground -- and record the live album Skull Sessions, released by Cuneiform in 2013. ~ Dave Lynch