Guitarist Dave Juarez leads a post-bop quintet through a series of originals with Seamus Blake/ts, John Escreet/p, Lauren Falls/b and Bastian Weinhold/dr. His round and palpable tone is well spotlighted on tunes like the title track and “The Echo Of Your Smile,” but most of the time, he is content to either develop the melodies with Hank Mobley-toned Blake, or let the tenorist take the arias for himself. The flowing and melancholy “La Noche Oscura Del Alma” is an effusive hight point, while “Belleza Nanonima” has some excellent interplay between the leader and Weinhold. The band works well as a unit, as on the racing “Serotonina” that has all horses pulling the wagon with energy. Impressive and brainy music.
Posi-Tone Records
www.posi-tone.com