Shifting Paradigm Records presents 'Impossible Vacation' by Firebell, featureing many original compositions as well as standards that the band has been playing live since their inception in 2009. The album covers a wide variety of genres and contains some extraordinarily wonderful moods. It truly exemplifies the magical direction that this experienced trio has continually created. Park Evans (guitar) grew up in Ithaca, New York studying with classical guitarist Karl Wolff and British fingerstyle master Martin Simpson. He moved to Minnesota to further his study of classical guitar and composition. Upon discovering the rich music scene in the twin cities and studying with local jazz guitarists Kevin Daley and Dean Magraw he became a permanent resident. He currently performs in mul-tiple bands ranging stylistically from jazz to rock to world music including: Parker Paisley, Fire Bell, New Primitives, Radio in the Desert, and These Modern Socks. He has worked extensively with jazz vocalists Sophia Shorai, and Katie Gearty as well as collaborating with guitarist Mike Michel, and cellists Michelle Kinney, and Jac-quelline Ultan. He has released 3 CDs of his original music (Impossible Party (2003), Surviving Desire (2006), and Satori for a Hungry Ghost (2012) and works as a studio musician who can be heard on numerous recordings including jazz, rock, alt-country, and folk albums. www.parkevans.net Graydon Peterson (bass) completed his bachelor's degree in music composition at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire where he studied classical bass with James Clute, a former bassist with the Minnesota Orchestra. While Graydon was a mem-ber of the Down Beat award-winning UWEC Jazz Ensemble I, he performed with such guest jazz artists as Lewis Nash, Ingrid Jensen, Jason Marsalis, and Chris Botti. Now a resident of Minneapolis, Graydon is one of the area's top-call bass-ists, performing nightly with a variety of vocalists and small ensembles including Debbie Duncan, Arne Fogel, Firebell, Snowblind and his own Graydon Peterson Quartet. A consummate accompanist, writer and arranger, he has become one of the backbones of the jazz scene in the twin cities. www.graydonpetersonquartet.com Jay Epstein (drums) has an extensive jazz career as a performing, recording, and touring artist. After college, he studied polyrhythmic concepts in Manhattan with Barry Altschul, the drummer in Chick Corea's Circle. He has lived in Los Angeles, Okla-homa City, Miami, Minneapolis, and played in house bands for 5 years on several cruise ship lines. He's been on 8 European tours with pianists Bill Carrothers & Gi-acomo Aula. Some of the notable artists he has performed with include Barney Kessel, Roseanna Vitro, Manfredo Fest, Sheila Jordan, Terry Gibbs, JoAnne Brackeen, Ernie Watts, Wayne Johnson, Karrin Allyson, Kenny Werner, Howard Levy, Toots Thielemans, Lynne Arriale, Richie Cole, Avashai Cohen, Eric Alexander, and Sarah Vaughan. His CDs, 'Long Ago' & 'Easy Company', featuring bassist An-thony Cox and pianist Bill Carrothers, have garnered luminous reviews in the in-ternational press. Current bands include Red Planet, Klezmerica, Framework, Fire-bell. Visit Jay: www.jayepstein.weebly.com Impossible Vacation Reviews: Take an "Impossible Vacation" With Firebell: CD Release November 17 at the Icehouse Minneapolis. Five years ago, three of the area's most productive and creative jazz artists came together as Firebell, a guitar/bass/drum trio drawing on the talents of Park Evans, Graydon Peterson and Jay Epstein. Over the years they have experimented with original compositions as well as some unique interpretations of jazz and pop standards, finally culminating in the release of their first recording, Impossible Vacation (Shifting Paradigm Records). Their debut recording includes the repertoire Firebell has developed over their five years of collaboration, a range of originals and arrangements that covers a wide range of moods. Graydon Peterson contributes four compositions, including the opening "Ocean Depth" -- depth provided by Peterson's melodic bass uplifting Evans' adventures that suggest a Middle Eastern motif. The bassist penned the songful "Somewhere Parade," which would work well as a soundtrack for a celebratory adventure; "When Dinosaurs Make the Rules" has an exotic theme and vibrant rhythm that highlights each musician without losing the overriding collaborative interaction that exemplifies the entire album. Peterson's "Much Needed Wanderlust" closes the set, a rather gentle set of experiments that seem to happily wander across an open soundscape. Evans pays tribute to his hometown "Ithaca," a Frisellish meander with percussive highlights courtesy of Jay Epstein. Epstein has a greater role on Evans' title track, the drummer's far-ranging arsenal giving the track layers of mood that evolve over its six minutes from a wistful beginning to more heated conversations punctuated by clings, clangs, shimmers and hollow thuds. Epstein's rhythmically shifting sands and washes of sonic fairy dust also highlight "Demonizing Santiago." The trio brings new discoveries to two pop hits. Counterpoint from Evans and Peterson enliven an otherwise laid-back interpretation of "Beyond the Sea," while Epstein's ominous intro paired with Peterson's deep pulse open Del Shannon's "Runaway," creating a playground for Evans multi-faceted improvisations. Working together for five years has allowed this threesome to develop the type of collaboration that delivers seamless layers of conversation, regardless of the origin of the music in pop songbook or fertile imagination. This music conjures global adventures, yet easily within the reach of mortal ears. - Andrea Canter, Jazz Police Together for eight years, yet still a rumor in their own town, talented local trio Firebell — Park Evans (guitar), Graydon Peterson (bass) and Jay Epstein (drums) — takes a big step toward raising its profile with a swell debut album, “Impossible Vacation.” A cool 3/4 piece of Peterson's, Ocean Depth starts this imaginative disc. Later, on 'Impossible Vacation', Epstein lets loose with his shimmering cymbals on the spiky title track, calling to mind a graceful volley of Muhammad Ali punches. The surprising cover tunes include a moody, slightly sinister re-imagining of Del Shannon’s “Runaway.” The disc ends with a spacey and gorgeous Peterson-penned ballad, “Much Needed Wanderlust.” - Tom Surowicz: Minneapolis StarTribune Monday at Icehouse: Firebell “Impossible Vacation” CD Release. Guitarist Park Evans, bassist Graydon Peterson and drummer Jay Epstein have played together since 2009, but this is their first CD. It’s a beauty. All are thoughtful, poetic players, less interested in standing out than in joining together to create that magical trio sound. As a result, there are many luscious moments, and if these tunes — including many originals by Peterson and Evans — sound this good on a recording, they’ll be even better live. 9:30 p.m. $10 at the door also gets you a copy of the CD. - Pamela Espeland: MinnPost