Eshaan Sood Presents The Sonic Alchemists: The Sonic Alchemists I: Dream River

Guitarist Eshaan Sood came to jazz by the most unlikely and brutal of routes. Born and raised in New Delhi, India, he was expecting to begin a career as a graphic artist until he lost his sight in a terrible car accident that he was lucky to survive.

Rather than despairing, he moved his focus to his other love—music. A guitar, piano, bass and tabla player from a very young age, he enrolled at the Global Music Institute where he was introduced to jazz. They seem to have hit it off together.

Further studies at the Eastman School at the University of Rochester filled out his theory and technique. Months after graduating, he released this, his first record, with a band of his Eastman classmates. Together they call themselves Eshaan Sood Presents The Sonic Alchemists.

Despite the extraordinary circumstances that led to its genesis, or perhaps as a result of them, this is a record infused with hope, joy and the delight of meeting new people. Tunes are inspired by people Sood has met and the music reflects his joy in making a connection, one human soul to another. It is a work of unabashed optimism. Even to a sullen old introvert, the effect is uplifting.

This is feel-good stuff and tracks are often very evocative of their titles, as if sound-tracking a film. It is also wide-ranging and varied. "Miss Lightning" showcases a guitarist of considerable talent. Sood, perhaps because he came to jazz after first loving other music, fills his playing with vocabulary both familiar and unfamiliar, which makes the music curiously ear-catching. Surely, though, it would not have been too hard to write a conclusive ending and so avoid a disappointing fade.

"Glass Blown Acquaintances" is a cracker. The opening bars are so soothingly wholesome they could accompany a bit of farmyard footage in a Sesame Street interlude, with Annie Orzen playing some great down-home piano reminiscent of Keith Jarrett in the best of good moods (as unlikely as that seems). "Hexes and Spells" has guitar and sax playing the head in unison; not your standard arrangement. It works well, though it sounds tricky for the guitar to pull off.

Though this is a great listen, Sood's inexperience as a musician and a leader shows in places. His guitar tone is inconsistent across the tracks, and is more appealing in some places than others. Putting a disco track in the middle of the record is, politely, a bold move that might have some listeners reaching for the skip button.

This is an agreeable record more than a memorable one; it entertains capably while listened to but does not leave much behind. Sood's personality is heard clearly at times and those tracks are great, but there are a lot of styles going on. One track sounds like George Benson, another opens with a phrase that is pure John Coltrane. As a set, it would benefit from more consistency and, oddly, more variety, too. Sood has a strong and endearingly pastoral voice he could trust more, then use it to explore his own thing in more depth. Looking forward to hearing that record.

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