The second album from
Christian McBride
's outre quartet
New Jawn
, 2023's
Prime
is somehow even more expressive and harmonically adventurous than its predecessor. Unlike his other projects, including his trio and Grammy-winning big band, the bassist's
is a maverick ensemble whose frenetic sound shares little in common with the straight-ahead swing and modern jazz
McBride
is known for. This is exploratory, free-leaning post-bop and avant-garde jazz that's easily some of the most adventurous music of the bassist's career. Once again joining him are trumpeter
Josh Evans
, saxophonist and bass clarinetist
Marcus Strickland
, and drummer
Nasheet Waits
. The album opens with a brassy yawp on
's "Head Bedlam," as
Evans
and
Strickland
scream at the sky while
Waits
pummel the ground below them. They build with a primal intensity until giving way to a slow, thumping funk groove over which they each solo with a menacing, snake-like attitude. Yet more-thrilling moments follow, as on "Obsequious" and "Dolphy Dust," propulsive free-bop workouts that evoke the dangerous alchemy of saxophonist
Eric Dolphy
's mid-'60s group with trumpeter
Booker Little
. More atmospheric are tracks like "The Lurkers," with its bowed bass, and "Moonchild," with its airy, baroque trumpet and bass clarinet harmonies. Along with the originals, they dive into spry readings of
Ornette Coleman
's "The Good Life" and
Sonny Rollins
' "East Broadway Rundown." The
Coleman
Rollins
' covers work to underline the influences at play in
, showing just how adept
and his group are at pulling from jazz' avant-garde past while continuously pushing towards its expansive, improvisational future. ~ Matt Collar