Mountains

Album review

Young pianist Micah Thomas stepped onto the scene at the beginning of the 2020’s as the leader of a trio with the release of his debut album Tide. At nearly the same time, he appeared in saxophonist Immanuel Wilkins’ dynamic quartet, on Omega in 2020 and The 7th Hand in 2022. Since then, Thomas has only confirmed his extraordinary talents by highlighting a piano style that is as flamboyant as it is refined, whether he’s on his own (as heard in Piano Solo, which won the 2022 Grand Prix of the Académie Charles Cros) or with his trio (his latest album Troubled Mind, released last year). This newest project was commissioned by New York’s Jazz Gallery and recorded live over the course of four performances held in the iconic space on June 16th and 17th of 2023. This was an undeniable shift in scale for the pianist: accustomed to more intimate settings, he suddenly found himself in an ambitious and exciting orchestral context.

Thomas’ sumptuous septet is made up of young musicians who are some of the most prominent in the contemporary New York jazz scene: Adam O’Farrill on trumpet, Immanuel Wilkins on alto sax, Nicole Glover on tenor sax, Caleb Smith on trombone, Kanoa Mendenhall on bass, and Kweku Sumbry on drums. Over 70 minutes long, the composition is divided into four sections in four very different moods. This lush, lyrical music splendidly traverses jazz history in its entirety, from revisited New Orleans style to a free jazz revival, by playing with syncretic effects as well as powerfully baroque idiomatic contrasts.

His ensemble’s organic, improvised quality and the deep colours of his orchestrations bring to mind Charles Mingus’ infamous records from the ‘60’s (Ah Um, The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady) as well as Wynton Marsalis’ early 2000’s work (Live at the Village Vanguard). Micah Thomas demonstrates real talent as both a composer and group leader, taking full advantage of his musicians’ expressive potential to breathe life into his perpetually inventive and captivating music. This is a truly remarkable jazz album. © Stéphane Ollivier/Qobuz