HIROMI
Brain

Telarc

Read the Jazzitude review of Hiromi/Another Mind
Read the Jazzitude Review of Hiromi/Spiral
Read the Jazzitude Review of Hiromi/Time Control

Listening to “Kung-Fu World Champion,” the opening track from pianist Hiromi Uehara’s latest offering, Brain, I couldn’t help but think of Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill films. The music evokes the quick, punchy anime-influenced bursts of color and violence that is present in Tarantino’s work. In addition, Hiromi adds a serious twist of funk on this disc, even recruiting bassist Anthony Jackson for three tracks. Hiromi’s usual bassist, Tony Grey, is more than able to hold down the chair on the other numbers, helping to kick Hiromi into high gear on tracks like “Kung-Fu” and “Brain” that evoke the most energetic and interesting elements of early ‘70s jazz-fusion, including Herbie Hancock’s Mawandishi and Headhunters groups and Chick Corea’s Return to Forever during the Hymn of the Seventh Galaxy/No Mystery period.

Hiromi’s Telarc debut, last year’s Another Mind was overwhelming in its aggressive stance both technically and in sheer terms of ideas. Many listeners found the recording stimulating listening, while others decried what they saw as an elevation of technique over content. Hiromi’s new recording may win her some converts among the cynics, because she’s introduced a new element on this album: serene, uplifting tunes like “If…” and “Wind Song” that allow this superb musician to show a warmer, more soulful side that helps complete the picture of her as an artist. On “If…” she plays a solo that manages to suggest influences as disparate as Ahmad Jamal, Ramsey Lewis, and McCoy Tyner. The resulting concoction is like one Grover Washington Jr.’s classic recordings—it goes down very easily, but avoids the descent into cliché that became smooth jazz.

Hirmoi can create energy out of any musical situation, it seems. While “Desert of the Moon” starts off at a relaxed pace, drummer Martin Valihora and guest bassist Jackson keep building, edging the pianist into more and more muscular territory until the tempo quickens and the notes begin to fly. On the title track, she’s not afraid to mix the mechanical with the lyrical, the electronic with the organic. “Keytalk” comes across like the illegitimate child of Horace Silver and Bootsy Collins before settling into an energetic jam groove session. Uehara has her own take on jazztronica, and it involves a more analog approach to incorporating electronic elements.

One of the reasons Hiromi is creating such diverse opinions about her work is that one element of that work is a highly controversial period in recorded jazz music history. But she incorporates more traditional elements in such a way as to make it impossible for anyone to say that she doesn’t know or understand the tradition. Those seeking a straight ahead approach to jazz piano won’t like Hiromi’s recordings, but those seeking an adventurous approach to incorporating elements from the past and branching out into ideas that point the way to the future will be delighted with Brain.