Meg Morley Trio: Journey Through Home

Meg Morley self-released her debut EP, Through the Hours, in 2017 and followed it up a few months later that year with her trio's first album, the self-published Can't Get Started. Five years later, the same trio—Morley on piano, Richard Sadler on bass and Emiliano Caroselli on drums— has returned, with Journey Through Home. It is a very welcome return, a record that retains the verve and quality of the previous album while expanding the range of Morley's compositions and adding new instrumentation through the appearance of guest musician Huseyin Atasever on one track.

Journey Through Home opens with the title track. It's a gentle way to begin, a pretty melody from Morley initially underpinned by her own rolling left-hand phrase. Almost imperceptibly the tempo becomes more urgent and tension builds as bass and drums enter, then the tension is resolved before the tune draws to a close. The album ends with "To Belonging": a toast, perhaps, to the importance of feeling at home even if you've left the land of your birth (Morley was born in Australia but has been living in the UK for over a decade). It is another gentle and melodic piece, easy on the ear but with a hint of melancholy—"Weightless" is similar in tone, Sadler's bass solo a highlight of this track. In between these three tunes, the trio adds freeform playing, high energy numbers and passages of attacking, up-tempo, music.

Morley has a neat line in titles, indicative of the good-humored interplay that is evident across the eight tunes. "Try to be Free" is a relatively short tune, full of energetic, playing, leaving no doubt that the attempt has succeeded. "How Not to Graciously Accept a Gift" has a bluesy feel, a brighter and more upbeat mood than the earlier tracks. "Dancing Through Culture Wars" shifts tone, tempo, rhythm and mood regularly throughout its seven minute length, in a humorous take on just how hard it can be to navigate those particular cultural conflicts. "e- Gnosis" benefits from the addition of Atasever's baglama playing: indeed, the opening minute is devoted to Atasever's fluid, driving, introduction before the trio enters, with Morley's piano playing often echoing the sound of the guest musician's instrument.

Journey Through Home is the sound of a trio (plus guest) that is confident and collaborative, but refusing to rest on its laurels. Hopefully the trio's next recording will appear in the not-too-distant future: five years is too long to wait for the next adventure in Morley and her collaborators' musical careers.