Mother Tongue

Fine modern jazz outing that draws a little bit from Mahanthappa's Indian roots. A quartet led by sax and piano (with former Bay Area dude Elliot Kavee on drums!) Mahanthappa and Vijay Iyer, the pianist, have put out some of the most intriguing and creative new jazz in the last few years. Mahanthappa is an able student of '60s jazz, and I just love the steely, glassy sound Iyer puts down on piano -- although he's more restrained and traditional year.

Highly recommended for those who enjoy "regular" jazz and would like to hear it stretched in new directions; think Greg Osby or Steve Coleman.

1- Old bebop sound
2- A dry fast stepper, after a bass-solo intro
3- Slowish
4- Upbeat and intellectual, with long sax lines
5- Mid/fast, brisk. Nice piano, tangly but restrained. Intense near the end.
6- A quietly happy, fairly fast one.
7- Mid/fast, complex
8- Midtempo and a bit more "out there"
9- A robust tangle, with cool solos from drums & bass
10- Sax solo, thoughtful
11 [hidden track] -- Lush and pretty, then gets tangly and fast. Ends with a pause, then an avalanche of spoken voices: "No, I don't speak 'Indian.'"