Label: NHOW Records, 2024
Personnel - Benedikt Jahnel : piano; Nesin Howhannesijan: bass; Diego Pinera: drums
Trichome is the brainchild of Berlin-based bassist Nesin Howhannesijan, who composes all the music for his eclectic jazz trio, featuring Benedikt Jahnel on piano and Diego Pinera on drums. The term Trichome refers to an outgrowth on a plant's epidermis that defends against external factors and facilitates the absorption of sunlight, water, and minerals. This is meant as a metaphor in a group that takes inspiration from various stylistic sources.
Their 12-track album, Parallel Universe, navigates between transient free-form pieces and well-structured originals, seamlessly traversing different musical realms while keeping improvisation at its core. The album’s opener, “Brainchild”, gets off the ground in a deliciously dragging 3/4 time, presenting a solemn arco bass solo upfront, with support of a compelling harmonic sequence and tactfully brushed drums and cymbals. Sheets of piano notes and buoyant drum chops spike up the remaining solo segments in a piece with contemporary views.
“Clusters” combines an odd-metered groove with modal insight, enriched by perceptible bluesy and dancing electro-rock tinges. A final vamp in seven encourages kinetic energy. In contrast, “Pure at Heart” plays like a romantic ballad, stepping into more traditional jazz territory with echoes of the Bill Evans Trio. “On the Bandstand” is a hard-bopish, blues-based burner where Howhannesijan takes center stage in the head, and then pointing out the direction through a crisp bassline drive before delivering an energetic solo that culminates in descending movements with the pianist.
Jahnel mounts a pathos-filled intro in “Parallel Universe”, soon joined by Howhannesijan’s rumbling bass and Pinera’s coruscating brushwork before an emotional unaccompanied passage. “Free Form Ballad” surprises by adding tension and density in its second half, only to fall back in line with a cool posture. The album closes with the bubbly “Notes Into Space”, offering an elated swinging vibe and stimulating bar exchanges between the trio.
Trichome plays with maturity, rising to meet the challenges of creating a consistent whole with diverse feels and genres. Their effort results in a satisfying experience marked by fruitful interplay and fine individual statements.
Favorite Tracks:
01 - Brainchild ► 03 - Clusters ► 11 - Free Form Ballad