NEW RELEASES: CHRIS POTTER UNDERGROUND ORCHESTRA – IMAGINARY CITIES; CHARLES LLOYD – WILD MAN DANCE; BEN WOLFE – THE WHISPERER

CHRIS POTTER UNDERGROUND ORCHESTRA – IMAGINARY CITIES

Beautiful sounds from reedman Chris Potter – working here with an expanded string lineup, although one that's more of a string quartet added to the core combo – and maybe not the full orchestra you'd guess from the cover! Still, those subtle strings really add a lot to the record – creating this sonic balance that's really sublime, even before Potter comes into the mix on either tenor, soprano, or bass clarinet, depending on the track – and the quartet often shades in the tunes with a gentle introduction, before more familiar Potter associates come in and deepen the sound – including Craig Taborn on piano, Steve Nelson on vibes and marimba, and Adam Rogers on guitar. Titles include "Firefly", "Sky", "Shadow Self", "Lament", and the extended "Imaginary Cities" suite.  ~ Dusty Groove

CHARLES LLOYD – WILD MAN DANCE

Charles Lloyd makes a step over to Blue Note Records – and the result is one of his richest, most organic albums in years! The whole thing's a live performance from Poland – done as a suite of longer tracks that feature a core acoustic quartet with Lloyd on tenor, plus added cymbalom and lyra – both used very heavily, with these open, sonic properties that are especially great – almost a way of bringing in some of the exoticism of Lloyd's earlier recordings, but with less focus on the reeds. The group also features Gerald Clayton on piano – and both he and Lloyd can be airy one minute, powerful the next – as the tunes build up slowly, and form this wonderful painting in sound. Titles include "Gardner", "Lark", "River", "Wild Man Dance", "Invitation", and "Flying Over The Odra Valley".  ~ Dusty Groove

BEN WOLFE – THE WHISPERER

Bassist Ben Wolfe's first record for Posi-Tone is as strong as any headline sets we've heard from him to date! Wolfe is leading an excellent quartet session here for the most part – with the always great Orrin Evans on piano, Donald Edwards on drums and Stacy Dillard on saxes – plus a sharp guest appearance by trumpeter Josh Evans on one track. With the exception nice, nocturnal reading Jerome Kern's "All The Things You Are", it's all Wolfe originals – led strongly by Wolfe's prominent, but never overbearing bass and brilliant rhythmic interplay with Evans and Edwards, with plenty of room for Dillard to shine. Includes "Heroist", "Hat In Hand", "Community", "Love Is Near", "Chronos", "All The Things Yo Are","STFU" with Josh Evans, "The Whisperer", "Becoming Brothers", "The Balcony", "Camelot's Lean'", "Hat In Hand"" and "If Only".  ~ Dusty Groove