Great new albums from Joshua Redman Quartet, Michael Wollny Trio, Samara Joy, Anteloper and more
international anthem
Jaimie Branch (t, elec, perc, v), Jason Nazry (d, syn), Jeff Parker (el g, el b, perc, syn) and Chad Taylor (mbira)
Now, above all, Pink Dolphins is a disconcerting experience, difficult to describe, as it constantly moves in unexpected directions (sometimes catchy, as on the single ‘Earthlings’). You can’t help but think of how much more this force of nature must have given. Judging by this compelling album, a lot more. Kevin Whitlock
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Steeplechase
Chris Byars (ts), John Mosca (tb), Zaid Nasser (as), Stefano Doglioni (bcl), Ari Roland (b) and Phil Stewart (d)
New Yorker Byars says it’s not old-school R&B he’s offering here, but rather a series of his distinctive originals that use “rhythm” changes or echo the blues. And by “the 20s,” he means the 2020s. Pierre Vacher
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BBE
Alina Bzhezhinska (h), Jay Phelps
With that, her highly anticipated second album, Ukrainian-born, London-based harpist and composer Alina Bzhezhinska, moves forward with a mission to re-imagine the harp in a jazz context and develop her own language in the process. Jane Cornwell
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Swirling Records
John Escreet (p), Eric Revis (b) and Damion Reid (d)
Escreet has a surprisingly unique approach to jazz that is largely both highly percussive, harmonically dense and full of tension, and Seismic Shift is no exception. Selwyn Harris
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Verve Records
Samara Joy McLendon (v), Pasquale Grasso (g), Ben Paterson (p), David Wong (b) and Kenny Washington (d)
The singer’s stunningly beautiful timbre is best heard in The Gershwins’ “Someone To Watch Over Me,” which closes this astoundingly fine album. Pierre Quinn
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ECM
Enrico Rava
The album they created brilliantly plays to the strengths of both musicians. The opening ‘Retrato Em Banca E Preto’ takes Jobim’s composition and examines it with sensitivity and cooperation, so that Rava’s haunting phrases are countered by Hersch’s sense of texture. Alyn Shipton
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Incomparable
Joshua Redman (ts, ss), Brad Mehldau (p), Christian McBride (b) and Brian Blade (d)
It’s the final 12-minute live take, “Rejoice,” that steals the show in its enigmatic tenors, hustling Mehldau-shaded countermelodies, one-key call and response, and playing time. precipitate. John Fordham
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ACT Music
Michael Wollny (p), Tim Lefebvre (b) and Eric Schaefer (d)
For Wollny, songs are like ghosts, and in a matter of months he has collected a selection of music that regularly haunts him – from Franz Schubert’s “Erlkönig” to jazz standards. Stuart Nicholson
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Read reviews of all these albums – and many more – in the October 2022 issue of Jazzwise magazine. Never miss an issue – subscribe today
