Quinsin Nachoff

Tenor saxophonist Quinsin Nachoff is a musician's musician who delights audiences around the world with his manly sound and unstoppable flow of ideas. But FoMo presents him as an estimable composer whose tunes demand his all-star quartet give their very, very best. With formidable chops, drummer Mark Kelso realizes the daunting structures of the leader's challenging charts with effortless naturalness. On the epic "Odyssic," he keeps the rhythmic themes happening and fleshes out spots with meaty fills while Nachoff soars. Playing Fender Rhodes throughout, Andrean Farrugia also meets the intricacies of Nachoff's tunes head-on, digging in with bluesy, walking left hand lines (note: no bass player), as on "Sisyphus," which features a delightfully yowling tenor solo, providing inventive melodic and motivic ideas on all eight tracks. Trumpeter Russ Johnson plays flawlessly throughout, especially on potent opener "Devil's Advocate." While the leader name checks the likes of Camus, Homer and Messiaen, he also alludes to the likes of Radiohead and Hermeto Pascoal. Funky, passionate and intellectually probing, Nachoff is the total package.