Grand/Nebbia/Sánchez/Mendenhall/Fernández: Altered Visions

In July 1967, The Beatles released the single "All You Need Is Love," with "Baby, You're a Rich Man" on the flip side. It's not that the quintet performing "Wild Marks," the 33-minute track comprising the entirety of Altered Visions, is covering that Lennon-McCartney anthem. But the music presented here embodies the spirit of the idea that love is all you need.

Altered Visions is the inaugural release from Lilailia Records, a label founded by three artists: saxophonists Maria Grand and Camila Nebbia and pianist Marta Sanchez. The ensemble itself is distinctly international: Grand is Swiss, Nebbia is Argentinian and Sánchez hails from Spain. Joining them are Japanese-born, California-based bassist Kanoa Mendenhall and Spanish drummer Iago Fernández.

Each musician arrives with an impressive discography. María Grand first emerged alongside Steve Coleman, then appeared in Mary Halvorson's Code Girl and vibraphonist Joel Ross's groups. Camila Nebbia leads both a quartet and sextet. She has released the acclaimed solo Una Ofrenda A La Ausencia (2023) as well as a duo with pianist Angelica Sanchez, In Another Land, Another Dream (2024), both on Relative Pitch Records. Marta Sánchez leads her own trio, quartet and quintet and can be heard on saxophonist David Murray's recent albums Francesca (Intakt, 2024) and Birdly Serenade (Impulse!, 2025). Kanoa Mendenhall performs regularly with Joel Ross and pianist Micah Thomas, while Iago Fernández collaborates with trumpeter Avishai Cohen.

The recording opens with Grand's and Nebbia's tenor saxophones intertwined—not in a conventional call-and-response, but as if two hearts were synchronizing into one pulse. That sense of entwined connection recurs as a throughline across this expansive composition. Even when Grand sets aside her horn, stepping forward with sung or spoken poetry, the ensemble sustains its collective weave. Mendenhall's deep, resonant pulse, Fernández's drums, bells, and cymbals, and Sánchez's luminous accompaniment serve as the architectural foundation for this improvised love fest.

Each player takes turns adding to the tapestry, which sometimes grows frenetic but always returns to the same braided intimacy. We hear two horns entwined, then voice and piano, piano and bass, piano and percussion—each permutation a variation on the theme of connection. This lather/rinse/repeat dynamic makes for a truly mesmeric experience.

Altered Visions is both a declaration and an invitation: a reminder that music built on trust and generosity can transform spontaneous sound into something as necessary and sustaining as love itself.

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