米木康志

The Hara Dairiki Trio creates a jubilant atmosphere on You’ve Changed, playing choice jazz standards from the bebop and straight-ahead jazz songbook. The drum-led trio creates a live sound, bright and open, in a chord-less configuration consisting of drums, bass, and alto sax. The stripped-down sound creates both purity and rawness that pulls the listener straight into the music, loose and fun and in control, with soaring, bebop saxophone fluidly soaring over the solid double bass and drum foundation. ...

Accomplished pianist Junichiro Ohkuchi leads a trio of solid veterans in the straight-ahead jazz tradition on his 2016 album Invisible. The trio works well together, demonstrating the equal partnership and careful intercommunication that occurs between professional jazz musicians. Evident throughout is a confident sense of risky looseness, with complete control of timing and notes, each member supporting and energizing one another. The pianist Ohkuchi contributes three original songs (the opener is a highlight) with other tunes by Andrew Hill, Bill Evans, Thelonious Monk, Duke Ellington, and others – undoubtedly influences on Ohkuchi’s piano style. The result is a skilled piano trio having a great time making high-caliber jazz. ...