Cascadia

The flugelhornist Dmitri Matheny takes the company of Charles McNeal (tenor, soprano sax), Bill Anschell (piano), Phil Sparks (bass) and Mark Ivester (drums) for this timeless and exciting jazz affair.

The title track opens the listen with warm keys and soothing brass, as a very warm spirit enters the graceful climate, and "On A Misty Night" follows with playful bass and bright flugelhorn making for a crisp and dynamic album highlight.

"Perfect Peaches", a lyrical bossa, occupies the middle spot and showcases the meticulous drumming amid an agile melody, while "The Lonesome Road" moves intimately, with a very meticulous attention to detail as the setting gets quite mesmerizing.

"Humble Origins" and "After The Rain" finish the listen, where the former brings a stirring cinematic quality with the rich interaction between the quintet, and the latter exits with a sublime delivery that certainly does justice to the Coltrane original.

A healthy mix of ballads and bop friendly tones, Matheny and company flesh out a soulful and absorbing body of work here.