Musicians know they've got something special when they team up with Todd Sickafoose. The man has a knack for gently coaxing brilliant performances from his peers - just check out his inspired work in the studio and onstage with Ani DiFranco and Noe Venable. Says Ani of Todd, "I've never been more intrigued or excited to make music with anyone."

With Blood Orange, the follow-up to 1999's Dogs Outside, it's easy to see why the San Francisco Chronicle has heralded Todd as a "captivating composer and a master of collaboration." Demonstrating technical virtuosity tempered by seductive poise and subtlety, he leads his band through jazz arrangements that brush against the fabric of atmospheric electronica, while remaining wholly organic.

With one foot in the abstract and the other in the earthly accessible, Todd weaves his rich upright bass amidst the spacey Scofield-inflected guitars of Justin Morell and Nels Cline (Wilco), swelling horns of Ben Wendel and Alan Ferber, and the chill, inventive percussion of Ches Smith. As always, Todd offers an invitation to his bandmates to freely embellish and create atop his solid foundation, resulting in clever, emotionally moving sound.

To find out more about Todd Sickafoose, please visit http://www.toddsickafoose.com/.