Frank Locrasto - When You’re There
If he wasn’t before, Frank LoCrasto certainly is the master of intellectual jazz now. When You’re There is the perfect album if you’re a fan of Maria Schneider (try “Until Dusk”) or any kind of music that’s, well, good. The standout piece is dauntingly the longest at 11:09. But “Overture/The Rathskeller/Interlude” is worth every second. It begins with a slow, diligent alto flute, leads into a soaring violin, and comes to rest atop sustained woodwinds. Soon, a jazz waltz creeps in with a wonderful amount of conspicuousness; the transition isn’t seamless, and it shouldn’t be. LoCrasto knows what he’s doing.
RIYL: Maria Schneider, good music
Rating: 4 stars, A+
-Devin Ouye Yamanaka