Source: allaboutjazz.com The Medeski, Martin & Wood band, one that has amassed followers like a snowball rolling down a mountain of wet snow since its emergence on the scene over 18 years ago, is one of those exceptional organizations that doesn't stick to playing what might be expected by its audiences. They don't play it safe, instead choosing to explore sounds, grooves, genres as the spirit moves them. And 2009 saw the spirit moving them a great deal. Also, unlike many groups that stay together a long time for music making, these three gentlemen like each other. They tour the world playing their music, changing it nightly, and doing it according to their own vision. After all this time, the group hasn't gotten stale. It was a particularly fertile year for MMW. For proof, Exhibit A is Radiolarians: The Evolutionary Set, released Dec. 8, 2009, by Indirecto Records (the band's own label). It's a collection of music developed through the course of the year, some