…what is more appealing in this set is the ways in which the trio mesh so effortlessly into the dynamics and mood of each piece so that there is never a wasted note, a hesitant beat, or a misplaced emphasis – everything fits.
Hide Inside Records HIDECD003
Neil Cowley: piano; Rex Horan: bass; Evan Jenkins: drums
Recorded by Ethan Johns at Real World Studios
Cowley’s tune ‘Grace’ (from the wonderful ‘Spacebound Apes’ album of 2016) had the somewhat disturbing effect of having one of the UK’s most exhilarating live trios contribute a tune to a host of playlists for mindfulness and meditation for listeners with little interest in jazz.
Of course, good music will always find its audience and beautifully constructed tunes, like ‘Grace’, will flow across all musical boundaries. Almost immediately following this unexpected success, Cowley stepped back from working with the trio to focus on other musical styles, mostly on his own.
So, this release of a new Neil Cowley Trio is special for many reasons. Not only has the trio reunited, but the musical themes that were germinating on ‘Spacebound Apes’ continue to sprout and their tendrils spread across these perfectly developed tunes.
This is music that demands attention, and that refuses to be something that is played in the background. If it is music for mindfulness, then these tunes require the full and honest attention of the listener, at the expense of any distraction and, in return, you get the full and honest playing of the musicians of these scintillating moments of brilliance.
There are many moments across this set, particularly the elegant ‘Father Daughter’, track 4, and ‘Brood’, track 5, that have Cowley’s signature melancholy, and others such as ‘Adam Alphabet’, track 6, or ‘Shoop’, track 9, that have his infectious wit. But what is more appealing in this set is the ways in which the trio mesh so effortlessly into the dynamics and mood of each piece so that there is never a wasted note, a hesitant beat, or a misplaced emphasis – everything fits.
