Circles 44 - Cratere [Aut Records 069]

Coming in from Italy only recently is "Cratere", cat.no. 069 of the countries ever active Aut Records imprint and the first longplay release for the Circles 44 trio which is comprised of Massimiliano Amatruda, Joseph Circelli and Andrea Grillini on drums. Put on the circuit in October of 2k20 the nine pieces on this one, stretched over a total of roughly 45 minutes, see the trio on a deep, classy and somewhat noir'esque Jazz tip from the late night piano etudes of the opening title tracks onwards to the driving, space age- and Psychedelia-infused electric guitars of the subsequent "Funk Dress" whereas "Brilliant Cliff" provides an excellent example of rhythmically corresponding piano lines and super complex drum works provided by Grillini whilst "Affirmative Dot Pt.1" weighs in a vibe very vaguely reminiscent of songs by the Red Hot Chili Peppers in their absolute Pop prime - ... and transferred into the Jazz realm, obviously - whereas the concluding piece "Old Chair" presents a stripped down, minimalist angle of approaching Contemporary Jazz just to name a few. Good stuff.

Album artwork on Instagram!