Delay 45 are a jazz ensemble from Sydney, Australia. Just as that cosmopolitan city is set into its vast red continent, the group set traditional jazz elements; piano, trumpet, bass, and drums, into a vast experimental and improvisational landscape. Their latest work, Flux, explores themes of "notions of flow, movement, and shape." The alluringly urban vibes offered by Tom Avgenicos' trumpet conjure images of a Sydney at night, city lights dancing on the bay, while the trailing piano of Roshan Kumarage, flourishing drums of Ashley Stoneham, and frolicsome bass of Dave Quinn bring tracks such as I'll Come To The Next One and She to unwaveringly epic places.
Foolish is Avgenicos' centerpiece, and after the bass and piano are allowed to play games with each other for a while, the trumpet comes confidently in, delivering a masterful performance. Interlude 2 is a gracious rest on the ears after the intensity that came before, setting the listener into Hindsight, this reviews highlight after repeated listens. The players' performances culminate so symbiotically that despite, or rather thanks to, the jarring key changes, one is moved along so assuredly that when one reaches Kumarage's frantic piano, one is entirely enthralled.
★★★★
Reviewed by Jay Honeycomb on February 26th 2022
Rating: 4