Personnel: James Brandon Lewis, tenor saxophone; Jaimie Branch, trumpet; Luke Stewart, bass; Warren Trae Crudup III, drums; Anthony Pirog, guitar.
“James Brandon Lewis has been climbing the current jazz pantheon for a good while now. This deserving project should elevate the 36-year old tenor saxophonist from Buffalo even higher in the ranks.
Backed by the usual collaborators in his touring trio (drummer Warren Trae Crudup III, bassist Luke Stewart) and a pair of familiar guests, Lewis has crafted another fine testimony to his dynamic skill and progressive vision.
An abbreviated cascade of cymbals preludes the opening designation as guitarist Anthony Pirog weaves subtle, hypnotic chords while Jaimie Branch’s trumpet constructs a solid brass foundation for Lewis’ initial solo.
Some sequences may cryptically conjure the layered, Coltrane-like crescendos Kamasi Washington seized on during his breakthrough a few years back. However, it doesn’t take much listening to understand that this epic is Lewis’ exclusive domain, and that a mainstream breakthrough of his own is also warranted.” All About Jazz