Esthesis Quartet: Time Zones

The four members of Esthesis Quartet, flutist Elsa Nilsson, pianist Dawn Clement, bassist Emma Dayhuff and drummer Tina Raymond, each live in different parts of the United States, but, as this album shows, when they get together their playing has an easy and natural rapport.

With flute as a lead instrument, the group sometimes have the cooler sound associated with West Coast jazz as on the breezy "Hollywood" and the gentle "First Light." However, over the course of the album, they prove adept in several different styles. "Blue Light" starts as a nimble tango introduced by Dayhuff's light-fingered bass, then shifts into a sparking funk groove underlined by Raymond's explosive drumming. "Serial" has a menacing rhythm akin to Henry Mancini's "Peter Gunn" theme that sets the table for delirious disturbances by jangling piano and electronically distorted flute. "The New Yorker" is a hazy mix of wandering flute and rippling piano that supports a hushed Clement vocal with the simple earnestness of Bjork's early records.

On all tracks, the four players mesh like they have been playing together for years. This is true whether they are dancing slowly through "First Light" or swinging through the ominous blues feel of "Brush Fire." This last one starts out quiet and slow but ramps up into an explosive climax with Nilsson blowing hard and shrill as Clement bangs her piano and Raymond crashes on her drums. These four women form a more than capable quartet. Their varying careers as musicians and educators do not allow them much chance to work together but when they do, it is special.