Album Review

The art of ensemble. It’s about bringing a group of musicians onto the same stage, or into the same recording studio and striking up a conversation. No genre has more conversation and interplay in it then America’s own jazz. Welcome to April, The Project H’s latest LP, is exemplary of this sonorous exchange as the jazz septet dances, in harmony, through 8 energetic tracks.

The album kicks off with a dissonant number entitled “Smokescreens”, in which this kind of ensemble play is at its best. It opens with Heinlein’s trombone and Jervis’s trumpet smoothly flowing a melody over a lazy rhythm section vamp, while in contrast, Jason Whitmore interjects deliberate bursts with his tenor sax. All at once, the next section arrives with the entire group coming together on offbeat, dissonant notes. Well executed solos over that groove follow, with the track closing in the same batch of contrasts it started with. The same character can be found in subsequent tracks “In Regards to Your Entitlement…”, “What They Don’t Tell You”, and “Gettin’ Down For Gettin’ Down’s Sake”. I really enjoyed how well orchestrated all of these tracks were, at times effortlessly purveying intricate, group riffs.

However, Welcome to April also higlights the versatility of the album’s musicians. Other tracks groove like funk tunes, while tracks like “Peerless City Struggles” really highlight Ryan Heinlein’s sensitivity and dynamic range. At times, some tracks are so different in character that they gently push outside the identity of the overall album.

There are a few things I would’ve done differently to really make this work shine. I don’t care much for the sound of the audio recording, as there’s a rather dry and hollow tone to it. Unfortunately, this exacerbates the fact that keyboardist Adam Walker is using synthesized piano and electronic piano sounds, a quality that, on its own, conflicts with the otherwise highly organic sound of the rest of the ensemble. (Being a keyboardist myself, I can really sympathize with not having a grand piano everywhere you go.) Also, while I really appreciate the confines of the unison sections of this album, I would’ve loved to hear some more interaction from the very talented Sam Hake during solo sections.

Overall, jazz fans will enjoy listening to Welcome to April. Its polished, unison moments outdo some of the same that I’ve heard from celebrated, all-star jazz records. That itself, is an accomplishment to be proud of. So, congratulations to The Project H for a well done jazz record!