I think of myself as more of an acoustic jazz fan than anything, but I’m definitely a sucker for the jazz-rock fusion of my youth: Mahavishnu Orchestra, Bitches Brew-era Miles Davis, Return To Forever, Weather Report. Especially if it has some complicated time signatures and lots of Fender Rhodes electric piano. I’m not alone, because it’s a sound that’s been popular with plenty of musicians right up to the present day, including these two recent releases.
The progressive rock and jazz band Yonglee & the Doltang is gaining fans on the Korean and European jazz scenes, and their album Invisible Worker is a strong debut. It’s billed as a “satirical exploration of modern society’s complexities, absurdities and contradictions,” and while that doesn’t totally come through for me, it’s definitely impressive and fun.
After a brief atmospheric intro track, they launch right into it with “Pay Day.” Yonglee sets the piece up with his own piano and Youngwoo Lee’s synthesizer before launching into an extended Rhodes improv. This one’s a good intro to his rhythm section too: the interplay of Hwansu Kang on bass and Dayeon Seok on drums reminds me of Zappa’s band on, for instance, “Canarsie” from Shut Up And Play Yer Guitar (with bass by Arthur Barrow and drums from Vinnie Colaiuta). Yechan Jo’s electric guitar is prominent on the progressive jazz of “Shell,” and Yonglee really pushes the distortion on his Rhodes on this one.
As you can see from this live video of “Shell,” this is a great band to experience live. They’ve captured a certain amount of that in this debut studio release as well.
I get a bit of vibe like John McLaughlin’s “A Lotus on Irish Streams” from the … okay, satirically titled “Do Plastic Bags Dream About Sunset.” Another notable track is the prog rock of “Fluorescent Light” featuring lilting vocals by Song Yi Jeon that contrast nicely with the song’s heavy vibe. Nice variety, played with consistent quality.
Michael Sarian’s ensemble on Esquina is definitely going more for an In A Silent Way vibe, and quite often they reach it, or at least invoke it. Where Yonglee & the Doltang mix the moods with nine tracks, none topping six minutes, Sarian’s band stretches out on three long tracks of up to 25 minutes.
This is an impressive album for a lot of reasons. Trumpeter and composer Sarian — born in Toronto, raised in Buenos Aires and now based in New York — and his quartet have played and toured extensively in mostly an acoustic chamber jazz setting. But he went into the studio in January 2024 with keyboardist Santiago Leibson (Fender Rhodes, Hammond B3, Mini Moog, Wurlitzer), electric bassist Marty Kenney and drummer Nathan Ellman-Bell to play with and flesh out these compositions.
Muted trumpet with lots of reverb, doubling, and other effects, electric pianos and synthesizers and organ dominate. The mood morphs and shifts from manic to introspective to dreamy, especially on the two longer pieces, “Straight Trash” and “Floating Ballerinas.”
The third, a cover of Portishead’s “Glory Box” at a paltry six and a half minutes, is more blues and melody based, with Sarian’s straight trumpet laying down soulful sounds over a sultry groove and keys. Leibson takes a nice, relaxed Fender solo, too. It’s followed by a brief radio edit of “Straight Trash.” If your taste ranges from electric Miles and Herbie Hancock to, well, Portishead, do check this one out.
(Unit Records, 2025)
(Greenleaf Records, 2025)
