The Vandermark Five is the collection of artists under Ken Vandermark, including NRG Ensemble collaborator Mars Williams. But whereas Williams holds the reins in NRG, this is clearly Vandermark's gig.

Like the Jasper Johns work evoked in the title and cover art, the Vandermark Five's Target Or Flag transforms and challenges icons of its occupied space. Also like Johns, who creates through the exhausted medium of modern art, Vandermark must work in the huffing/puffing world of avant-jazz. And while only the most cultured, sensitive ear can make sense of the avant-garde bluster of John Zorn and his peers, Vandermark interprets and sculpts the genre, giving it a more accessible sound.

In a world where Dave Brubeck plays in Lexus commercials, you can imagine Vandermark's work blaring from the open window of a souped-up Saab. His compositions are, in fact, compository, whether swinging from pared-down improv to accompanied downtown post-bop, or standing stout in the storm of a "Fever Dream."

It's clear that in Vandermark's 16+ years in jazz, he has learned to mine his talent well, and in doing so, has acquired a wonderful ear for new sound. And just as Jasper Johns has reinstilled wonder in his art, Vandermark has reinstilled wonder in his.

-David Day