LATRALA

Album review

Like so many plans over the past three years of pandemic-fueled panic, Latrala's self-titled debut was not supposed to happen this way. The lineup—including usual drummer but this time vibes player Kenny Wollesen, drummer Nasheet Waits, guitarist Tony Scherr, bassist Christopher Thomas, and synth player Michael Coleman—was scheduled to play jazz mainstay The Stone in February 2022 when a Covid protocol canceled the gig. Ever the motivated mover and shaker, Wollesen booked studio time at Shahzad Ismaily's Figure 8 Recording to keep the lineup's scheduled play time. The result is a fascinating blend of experimental and '50s highball jazz.

While the vibraphone takes a lot of space in the recording, Scherr's guitar navigates many of the songs into askew spaces while moving ever forward. It's obvious that the quintet was playing together for the first time, but in the very best ways. The accomplishment here is that all the players get spotlit without overshadowing one another. The opening of first track "AGORA" mixes a soft jazz guitar tone over funk rhythms before devolving into a beautiful, spacey mess of synth and guitar-driven noisiness. Wollesen's arrhythmic vibes carry the track home, letting the listener know: we're having fun here.

Synth and guitar also lead "FIFTY-FIVE" to a Blacksploitation-esque funkiness that ends with crashing drum fills. So much of Latrala relies on building and bashing that "JOHNNY GARR" feels empty on first listen, but the comedown doesn't last long. "EMPRESS" glides into a loud interplay between synth, vibes and guitar as a bassline burbles under steady-yet-free drumming. The "chorus" provides a rare glimpse into what the band would do with standard songwriting before finishing with a flourish. "SERIOUS DRINKING" is a wild dreamscape, creepily bordering on nightmare fuel, before a triumphant ascent and slow simmer finishing touch. Like "JOHNNY GARR," penultimate track "SEA CHANGE" serves to ease the listener to the end of the record; the bright and sunny "CAVALIER DA BATON" arrives at a perfect time to change the pace—the crescendo leading to merry chaos to end the adventure.

To think we have a pandemic to thank for this terrific music hurts the soul a bit, sure, but finding a record that perfectly encapsulates the good we find in bleak times may prove difficult. Thankfully, jazz teaches folks to think on their feet and find space for creativity even in dire circumstances. Latrala should never have happened, but now we all get to witness the first public offering from a hopefully fruitful lineup. © Jeff Laughlin/Qobuz