Even a half-century-plus after the format was established, solo saxophone albums are still a tricky prospect, walking a fine line between musicality and solipsism. No one should want to hear a tape of John Coltrane practicing scales even if it would still be hailed as album of the year upon arrival. The unaccompanied recital needs to keep its audience in mind, the single listener at the other end of the album process, the willing passenger of this title.

This is the latest of several solo releases by New Englander saxophonist Paul Flaherty, who is known, à la Interstellar Space, for his collaborations with drummers Randall Colbourne and Chris Corsano. It was recorded in sessions just before and on his 73rd birthday. He switches between alto and tenor on six pieces that move from charcoal sketch to oil painting.

The date opens with "Do you know", one of two longest pieces, slow, expressive and wailing, like a primeval blues guitarist taking a break at Dochery Farms, its languor broken up by split tones and upper-register squeals simulating a visit to a dentist's office. The shorter tracks are more motivic, more constrained sonically, even if Flaherty cannot resist sandpapering his tone, which can be quite lovely when he is playing straight, especially on "Small lonely looking cloud". But they are just as lamentatory as the opener, with the album mostly having a wistful air throughout. The other longest piece, the title track, echoes "Do You Know" but is denser and more turbulent.

The album closes with the wryly titled "Almost finished", the most "upbeat" music contained herein, buoyantly jubilant, likely heralding another solo release to come.