Jesse Byrom-Carter: The Next Tomorrow Is Yesterday

Like many great musicians before him, Australian bassist Jesse Byrom-Carter traveled to New York to become a part of one of the toughest and most vibrant jazz scenes in the world. He spent three and half years in the city and formed vital connections. His debut as leader, The Next Tomorrow Is Yesterday, was recorded during his stay in the city.

On the album, Byrom-Carter shows he knows how to place the right notes and carry a tune, and as importantly, he displays a distinctive personality as a composer. All the compositions on the album are original and he even penned the lyrics for two songs sung by Alina Engibaryan: "Edge of Space" and "Dreams Untethered."

Byrom-Carter goes beyond the classic quartet format and augments it with trombonists Alan Ferber and Eric Quinn, trumpeter Alex Quinn, and alto saxophonist Michael Bliss. The rhythm section includes drummer Ken Ychicawa and pianists Santiago Leibson and Ryan Slatko.

This broad line-up gives the music a quasi big-band feel and Byrom-Carter takes advantage of it with contrapuntal melodies and layered compositions. One musician in particular shares the bassist's vision of clear yet complex melodic interaction and is guitarist Adam Rogers, who spins elaborate lines on the ideas introduced on "As Is" and the title track.

On the closing track, "Edge of Space," Alina Engibaryan sings: "Exceeding star light, I'm taking flight / On distant highways." With a fair wind, this might well prove to be Byrom-Carter's trajectory.