Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Atley King: Unconditional

23

Atley King: Unconditional

By

View read count
Atley King: Unconditional
Unconditional is the debut recording as leader by Atley King who is described in a press release as "Canada's leading young jazz vibraphonist." While that portrayal may or may not be true—not to mention gratuitous—King is very good, as are the members of his admirable quintet.

Besides playing splendidly, King wrote the first eight of the album's nine selections, closing with John Coltrane's soulful "Naima." His compositions are fine, albeit more or less generic—that is to say, well-written but several steps removed from special. While there are some pleasant harmonic touches, most notably on "Wondering," "To Each Their Own" and the title song, most numbers are respectable but no more than that.

The groove is laid-back to moderate, save for the playful "Doing Good," one of the session's high points, wherein the ensemble proves there is no sweat when the heat is on. Bassist David Caballero introduces "Doing Good," which shifts into high gear behind engaging solos by King, pianist Max Huberdeau and Brad Turner—who plays flugelhorn on every number—and solid rhythmic support from Caballero and drummer Arvind Ramdas.

More of that would have been welcome—as would a standard or two—but what there is, aside from "Naima" and the tunes already named, are four more of King's genteel compositions, "Now and Then," "For Our Friends," "Attachment" and "Context." To place the session in context, King and his colleagues are commendable throughout, earning high marks for their ability and commitment, grades that would have been even higher were the material more seductive and challenging. Even so, an impressive debut by a rising young star on the Canadian jazz scene.

Track Listing

Now and Then; To Each Their Own; Doing Good; For Our Friends; Attachment; Unconditional; Wondering; Context; Naima.

Personnel

Album information

Title: Unconditional | Year Released: 2024 | Record Label: Cellar Music Group

Tags

Comments


PREVIOUS / NEXT




Support All About Jazz

Get the Jazz Near You newsletter All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.

More

Tramonto
John Taylor
Ki
Natsuki Tamura / Satoko Fujii
Duality Pt: 02
Dom Franks' Strayhorn
The Sound of Raspberry
Tatsuya Yoshida / Martín Escalante

Popular

Old Home/New Home
The Brian Martin Big Band
My Ideal
Sam Dillon
Ecliptic
Shifa شفاء - Rachel Musson, Pat Thomas, Mark Sanders
Lado B Brazilian Project 2
Catina DeLuna & Otmaro Ruíz

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.

Install All About Jazz

iOS Instructions:

To install this app, follow these steps:

All About Jazz would like to send you notifications

Notifications include timely alerts to content of interest, such as articles, reviews, new features, and more. These can be configured in Settings.