What's New on WDCB... with Paul Abella

Artemis – Arboresque (Blue Note)

The supergroup Artemis has just released their third album, Arboresque, and their time together really shows. Trumpeter Ingrid Jensen, saxophonist Nicole Glover, pianist Renee Rosnes, bassist Noriko Ueda and drummer Alison Miller have gelled into a unit where the bandmates’ original material sounds like it was written for THIS BAND, and the arrangements of Wayne Shorter’s “Footprints” Donald Brown’s “The Smile of the Snake” or Burt Bacharach’s “What the World Needs Now” are entirely unique. Alison Miller’s “Little Cranberry” is a favorite of mine, but there’s lots to choose from here. Noriko Ueda’s “Komorebi” ebbs and flows with each of the soloists, building a head of steam as it goes along. Nicole Glover’s “Petrichor” is a gorgeous moment on the album, and Renee Rosnes’ “Olive Branch” is an interesting melody and groove, and gives Jensen, Rosnes, Ueda and Miller ample room to shine. Arboresque, to my ears, is their best album to date.

Steve Knight – For Years Gone (self-released)

Chicago based guitarist Steve Knight is releasing his sophomore album, For Years Gone (his CD release party is at the Jazz Showcase on April 14th), and it’s a charming collection. He’s smart to surround himself with two fantastic trio-mates in Justin Peterson (bass) and Linard Stroud (drums), he writes solid songs, and his choice in other folks’ material is interesting. Interesting? Yes. Plenty of people have played “Pure Imagination,” but who decided to weld it to Miles Davis’ “Jean Pierre?” Or, in the same vein, not too many people have the chutzpah to play Duke Ellington’s “In a Sentimental Mood” at such a brisk tempo, either. And, if you’re going to take on the work of Joni Mitchell, it sure is nice to hear a deeper cut like “Urge for Going.” Knight’s a solid writer as well, and his three originals on the album are impressive. The title track, “For Years Gone” is a beautiful and stark ballad. “Cracklin’” is a great, greasy waltz, and “Lure,” the album’s opener, eases you in before rocking with a guitar solo full of growls and grunts and tasty solos from Peterson and Stroud, too. These days, you can see Knight playing all over Chicago. I’d catch him soon. And I’d grab a copy of For Years Gone while I was at it.

Paul Hecht – Pyrography (ears & eyes Records)

Pianist Paul Hecht recently released his debut album with a stellar cast of Chicago based musicians. That album, Pyrography, features James Davis on trumpet, Ben Dillinger on bass and Gustavo Cortiñas on drums. It’s likely instructive to know what Pyrography is before delving into the music. It’s a form of decorating wood or leather by burning the design into the surface with a heated metal point. There needs to be heat, but not too much heat. It needs to be controlled and contained, lest the heat turns into flames and devours everything in its path. This is music that operates in the same fashion, with a calm demeanor that rarely breaks character. For fans of the music made on ECM Records, this will be right up their alley. “Frankie’s Place” is one highlight to my ears. It simmers without boiling. It swings without swinging. The influence of Keith Jarrett is all over this one. Dillinger and Cortiñas, as a rhythm section, impress throughout, giving these songs some improbable grooves that just work, like on “Femme R,” which manages to make an oompah beat downright funky, or “Further Places” which merges that classic ECM icy detachment with a jazz rhythm section’s take house music. Finding out after a couple of listens that Pyrography is Hecht’s debut album came as a shock; debut albums rarely sound this mature and cohesive. That, I suppose, only bodes well for his future releases.