Improbable Solutions

The Pacific Northwest has become something of a hotbed for great new jazz music in recent years, with the region producing forward-thinking artists and records at a seemingly improbable rate. Bill Anschell, one of the most talented pianists working in today's scene and a Seattle native, was not someone known to rock the boat: previous albums such as Rumbler and Blueprints operated within the existing bounds of mainstream acoustic jazz, filled with technically gifted playing but did not aim to reinvent the wheel. Improbable Solutions, Anschell's best release to date, changes all that.

Like a number of stellar records released in the past four years, Improbable Solutions' genesis was in the COVID-19 lockdown. Experimenting for the first time with electronic tones and textures, Anschell took over three years to mix, edit and refine a series of recordings while shut indoors at the height of the pandemic. While it would be remiss to say that Improbable Solutions is solely an exercise in electronic jazz a la late career Herbie Hancock (think instead of Weather Report with a more sour edge), it is a radical departure from Anschell's previous work and is all the better for it.

"Is This Thing On?" is exemplary of this. A menacing electronic arpeggio gives way to Anschell's off-kilter acoustic piano, which at points seems to de-tune or become a part of the electronics itself. Washes of synth pads gurgle in the background, as fellow PNW luminary Jose Martinez locks into tight percussive grooves, going back and forth with Anschell like a rally at the U.S. Open. On more mellow cuts such as "Hidden Nobility" and "Gentle Persuasion," Sections of piano trio glide through Anschell's soundscapes with poise and ease, counterposing elegant playing with his synthetic late-night ambiance. Anschell's willingness to push himself out of his comfort zone during COVID paid off in dividends if we go off of tracks like these.

If you take nothing else away from this review, then take this: get this record. If you have a taste for fusion, moody atmospherics and just plain old good musicianship, Improbable Solutions is a must-have.

AAF Rating: 5/5 trumpets