happy, upbeat, and sure of itself.
Soaring Records
April May Webb – vocals; Randall Haywood – trumpet, flugelhorn, synthesizer, vocals and percussion; Dr. Ryan Tomski – piano and Rhodes; Jacob Webb – bass; Dr. Nathan Webb – drums; Charlie Sigler – electric guitar; Drew Cooper – nylon guitar; Gabe Valle – violin, viola and cello
Dishes Ain’t Clean is a blast. Sounds of April and Randall — vocalist and songwriter April May Webb, winner of the 2024 Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition, and Juilliard-trained trumpeter and bandleader Randall Haywood — have made a jazz record that joyously mixes in R&B, country, gospel and funk. The title started as a literal complaint about their kitchen before Webb realized it meant something else: you can crop a bad photo down to your best angle, but people actually connect with you more when you let the unfinished, hidden parts show.
A lot of the lyrics are about people having enough, but always wanting more. The opener, “I’m Never Satisfied,” sets that tension up first — thumping bass and a bright, happy trumpet tone under a groove that’s pure R&B, chasing a feeling it never quite catches. “Cottonwood Tree” answers it: Webb sings about sitting under a tree back home and realizing she’s got everything she needs. Her infectious background vocals resemble a hiccup — brighter than that, really, more of a “yip” that feels like her own delight leaking out. Haywood’s short trumpet solo sounds as happy as a trumpet can sound.
On “The Way Life Used to Be,” Haywood trades the trumpet for the flugelhorn, and strings nestle in behind Webb’s relaxed vocal. “Learning the Hard Way” starts the same way — just the two of them, Webb singing her way through a life lesson over a simple, shuffling bass line — before the drums and bass push the whole thing louder, until the beat itself takes over, vocals are still there, short trumpet phrases adding to the rhythm, but this is now about the beat.
“I’d Spend It With You” keeps its groove low, a touch of echo runs through the vocal, a trumpet line running underneath it. “The Sunken Place” opens on a walking bass line with strings held quiet against it — until an electric guitar solos and Webb’s voice jumps in loud, sounding genuinely emotional, before she pulls back, scatting a bit, and that same walking bass line returns underneath her.
The album closes on “You Are Everything,” and it goes out on Rhodes, fat bass notes and a funk groove, muted trumpet phrases threaded through synthesizer beats. It’s a dance vibe as much as a jazz one, and the message is as direct as the music: you’re everything you need. After thirteen tracks, that’s a good note to end on — happy, upbeat, and sure of itself.
