kris davis trio — Jazz Album Reviews — JazzTrail | NY Jazz Scene | Album Reviews

Label: 4166 Records, 2026

Personnel - Kris Davis: piano; Robert Hurst: bass; Johnathan Blake: drums.

The otherworldly trio of Grammy-winning pianist and composer Kris Davis—featuring bassist Robert Hurst and drummer Johnathan Blake—is back with more maturity and refinement in the process, after maintaining a consistent touring schedule over the past few years. Imbued with a rare, infectious group spirit, Lost in Geneva showcases the sinewy rhythmic thrust and harmonic venturesomeness that characterize the trio.

On the opener, Davis' "The Subtext”, the trio navigates complex and investigative musical waters with a compromise between lyrical and angular. As Hurst and Blake become completely immersed in the rhythmic mesh, Davis enchants, showcasing a stunning independence of hands. The piece grooves and swings with distinction, while vamping sections and flowing currents provide ample room for the threesome to stretch out. Also by Davis, "Congestion Pricing" locks in a ternary cadence, stacked over lovely drumming and precise cymbal design. Let yourself go in dreamy piano textures involving single-note phrasing and rich harmonic progression, as well as Hurst's groove-centered solo. I love the modern classical-inspired coda too.

The freely improvised "Mourning Dove”, underpinned by gongs and percussion, serves as an intro to Hurst's "The Bluesy Bird in Bob's Backyard”, whose soothing effect at the core contrasts with bursting tension and release in the melodic ideas. The rendition of Morton Feldman's "Nature Piece 5" is funkified with clever counterpoint and intervallic expanse, proving Davis to be a brilliant arranger, while Blake's “Clues", which first appeared on his debut album The Eleventh Hour (Sunnyside, 2012), spins out a hectic tale with solo drums at the outset and punchy staccatos in the accompaniment.

"Where Does That Tunnel Go?" and "The Deer Fly" are Davis compositions—while the former is an ostinato-driven and grooving piece thriving on the collective energy of the trio, the latter is a buoyant avant-garde portrait of a vampire insect delivered with an underlying quintuple feel.

It's impossible to ignore the affinity, spontaneity, and tuned mechanisms of the Kris Davis Trio. More than their previous album, Run the Gauntlet (Pyroclastic, 2024), Lost in Geneva is absolutely powerful—an indispensable sophomore record that you certainly don't want to miss.

Favorite Tracks:
01 - The Subtext ► 02 - Congestion Pricing ► 04 - Where Does That Tunnel Go? ► 09 - Clues

Label: Pyroclastic Records, 2024

Personnel - Kris Davis: piano; Robert Hurst: bass; Johnathan Blake: drums.

Pianist, composer, improviser, and label owner Kris Davis has been forging her own distinctive path in the creative jazz scene, earning widespread acclaim. In Run the Gauntlet, Davis returns to the piano trio format for the first time in a decade, teaming up with seasoned bassist Robert Hurst and sensitive drummer Johnathan Blake. The album pays tribute to six extraordinary women pianists who have profoundly shaped her sound and influenced her musical direction: Geri Allen, Marilyn Crispell, Angelica Sanchez, Carla Bley, Renee Rosnes, and Sylvie Courvoisier.

Straddling the line between post-bop and avant-garde jazz, the title track, “Run the Gauntlet”, opens with a palpable tension, featuring odd-metered ostinatos that weave in and out over the rhythmic turmoil of bass and drums. The piece gradually finds a groove, with dynamic shifts and tempo changes, as the trio delivers head-spinning improvisations. Blake's drumming intensifies the conclusion by erecting a massive wall of snare, cymbals, and toms. “Knotweed” hints at prog-rock in its initial moments before slipping into Monk/Coltrane territory in its firmly outlined head. The trio swings with humor and grace, pushing the piece into a frenetic avant-garde finale.

Davis rarely delves deeply into jazz tradition, but when she does, the result is forward-leaning music sculpted with charm and spontaneous creativity. Her prepared piano takes on world music influences in “Softly, As You Wake” and the freely improvised “Subtones”, both of which feature deep, resonant arco bass and gamelan-like rhythmic pulsations. The latter piece evolves into a freewheeling, groovy atmosphere, bearing a resemblance to the meditative version of Blake’s “Beauty Beneath the Rubble”, while its original version takes on the form of a tranquil rubato hymn, gently brushed to a shimmering finish.

Davis also composed a three-part composition inspired by her son’s growth. “First Steps” is a solo piano piece that balances passion and detachment, offering pulse, motion, and freedom. “Little Footsteps” brings a snappy polyrhythmic feel that, borrowing from funk, also draws from electronic and modern creative jazz, with Hurst’s dancing bass lines blurring the boundaries between these genres. “Heavy-Footed” centers around a riff set within a 10-beat cycle that occasionally slows, striking a balance between jagged and smooth edges. Each note played emerges beveled.

The trio is clearly having fun in Run the Gauntlet, a mature, boundary-pushing record made by adventurous instrumentalists whose rapport is no less than wonderful.

Favorite Tracks:
01 - Run the Gauntlet ► 04 - Little Footsteps ► 08 - Knotweed