This new piano trio debut album signals the arrival of a major new Australian talent. Melbourne pianist Joe O’Connor won the National Jazz Award at Wangaratta in 2013 and part of the prize was the offer of a recording deal with ABC Jazz and the resulting collection has now been released.
His six originals here move through varying moods and styles, one moment flowing with evocative passages of lyricism, and then breaking into hyper-fast runs with James McLean’s drums occasionally extending, accentuating and punctuating. All of that happens in Chargrinning after an engaging theme of treble notes interspersed with short rests opens the piece and Marty Holoubek’s bass wanders into view.
Maggot? begins with fast-moving bass and drums before the piano breaks in with a running theme that sounds cross-rhythmic, but then settles into speeding flights built on a series of descending chords; these passages could almost be a 21st century version of Art Tatum. An ethereal opening to Duane features sparse treble chords with bass notes from piano and acoustic bass, adding soft out of tempo brushes as the piece gradually gains momentum, and McLean switches to sticks as the piano work swells, pulses and ultimately fades to a conclusion.
Piano, bass and drums all interweave skillfully and esoterically for the opening of Fractured Symmetry, with important spaces and staccato jabs and phrases.
The question that arises from this most impressive debut album is whether or not O’Connor remains in Australia, or will he follow so many others to the US?