Emergent tenor saxophonist based in New York, Paul Jones, exhibits higher levels of matureness and a willingness for originality in his incredible new album, Clean, a considerable step ahead since the release of his full-length debut album, Short Stories, recorded in 2014 with his reliable sextet. The band members are maintained here with the exception of pianist Sullivan Fortner, who gave its place to Glenn Zaleski. The remaining artists, all young and powerfully talented, are Alex LoRe on alto saxophone, Matt Davis on guitar, Johannes Felscher on bass, and Jimmy Macbride on drums.
Some tunes feature a group of woodwind players that plump for a classical chamber tone rather than a jazz-oriented drive. The admitted influence of classical minimalists …show more content…
If on the former, one is able to relax at the sound of the introspective guitar and then perk up with LoRe’s more sinuous phrasing, on the latter piece, we find unison melodies in the head and iridescent improvisations, with special highlight for the fantastic piano work developed by Zaleski who surprises with polyrhythm in his clever interspersion of chords and melodic phrases.
The bandleader not only delivers his best solo on “Centre In The Woods”, a lucid, wispy, and dramatic enchantment, but also unveils his facility for luminous songcraft. Despite the harmonic humbleness, the tune goes directly to your heart and senses through the elasticity of Jones’ language and the control of Macbride’s gentle snare drumming. The drummer gains preponderance once again in the minimalistic “Trio”, a beautiful poem that easily and softly invades the space around us.
Moving in different stratospheres, “I Am An American” carries a more familiar jazz signature as it mildly swings, while “Hola, Amigo” sprinkles a hip-hop flavor in the air and boasts exhilarating solos from tenor and guitar.
Combining the thrillingly emotional with the astonishingly lyric, this impressive body of work feels like a balmy elixir in today’s jazz. Paul Jones is not just the revelation but the revolutionary musician of the
Some tunes feature a group of woodwind players that plump for a classical chamber tone rather than a jazz-oriented drive. The admitted influence of classical minimalists …show more content…
If on the former, one is able to relax at the sound of the introspective guitar and then perk up with LoRe’s more sinuous phrasing, on the latter piece, we find unison melodies in the head and iridescent improvisations, with special highlight for the fantastic piano work developed by Zaleski who surprises with polyrhythm in his clever interspersion of chords and melodic phrases.
The bandleader not only delivers his best solo on “Centre In The Woods”, a lucid, wispy, and dramatic enchantment, but also unveils his facility for luminous songcraft. Despite the harmonic humbleness, the tune goes directly to your heart and senses through the elasticity of Jones’ language and the control of Macbride’s gentle snare drumming. The drummer gains preponderance once again in the minimalistic “Trio”, a beautiful poem that easily and softly invades the space around us.
Moving in different stratospheres, “I Am An American” carries a more familiar jazz signature as it mildly swings, while “Hola, Amigo” sprinkles a hip-hop flavor in the air and boasts exhilarating solos from tenor and guitar.
Combining the thrillingly emotional with the astonishingly lyric, this impressive body of work feels like a balmy elixir in today’s jazz. Paul Jones is not just the revelation but the revolutionary musician of the