Incomplete Voices is the latest release from the Ryosuke Hashizume Group, released in 2017. As with prior albums, this is a wonderful collection of carefully conceived modern jazz compositions showcasing the saxophonist’s concepts and the tight-knit group dynamics. Close attention is paid to the harmonic and rhythmic layers in the music with excitement built on climactic resolutions and striking moods. The music is sleek, organic, and hypnotic at times. For example, track #3 “Synesthesia” is particularly magical as time and pulse slip and shift as the music develops; at other times, the group locks into a detailed groove, or opens up the framework and allows timekeeping to fade from the audio palette. The roomy improvisational passages are filled with emotional passion and rooted by the quintet’s empathy established through years of live and recording experience. ...

The jazz style of pianist/composer Yasumasa Kumagai has always been pinned to the leading edge of modern J Jazz built on a foundation of straight-ahead jazz standards and jams. With a strong influence from jazz pianist Robert Glasper, a one-time teacher of Kumagai, this pianist flows naturally with his fearless compositions and modern angles. Kumagai’s music is no-nonsense jazz rooted in tradition amidst elements of groovy gospel music, Latin flavors, and funky hip-hop — all with a fashionable streetwise attitude and a good-natured sense of humor. ...

Niwatazumi is a wonderful modern jazz record from drummer Kazumi Ikenaga and Pauseland, a Danish group described as ambient jazz with Scandinavian folk influences. Spacey original compositions and mature musicianship flow in a breathy, open style resembling a modern ECM recording. Relaxing and anthemic, the music on Niwatazumi (translated as a large puddle remaining after heavy rainfall) is at times mesmerizing and at other times gently rocking and grooving. It’s a captivating journey from a drummer’s quintet, focused on ethereal ambiance in a way that constructs scenes and visions drawn out of nature, memories, and the texture of life. ...