Colter Frazier Quartet

pfMentum Records; September 2008

Joined here by Nick Coventry (viola, violin), Miles Jay (bass), and duet partner Rob Wallace (drums), tenor saxophonist and composer Colter Frazier has put together a startlingly original and polished record of brilliant postmodern jazz. The opener, “Lloyd’s Prayer,” simmers and then boils with the energy of Frazier’s distinctive playing, which grows more confident with his every outing. Taken as a whole, the record is among the most mature and beautiful jazz debuts in recent memory, and it ought to propel Frazier into the international limelight as both a player and a composer. Highlights include the staccato swing and beautiful bebop lines of “4 Days and 5 Months” and the bittersweet West Coast cool-meets-Ornette Coleman flavor of “Flight School for Sparrows.” This is great, uncompromising experimental music that still manages to be entirely listenable on every track.