This was another year of riches in jazz and creative music, with barriers between the tradition and the avant-garde melting away. A thriving global scene of brilliant musicians playing “mainstream” post-bop is out there, of course, but it is not retro or at war with newer structures and bolder flavors. Instead, it is proof that the jazz tradition, as defined and mastered by some of the masters who died in 2024 (a list that includes Quincy Jones, Roy Haynes, Lou Donaldson, Benny Golson, Russell Malone, and David Sanborn), has a clearly defined center.
By my definition, the best jazz of the year pushes outward or builds on top of that center, even if the center still generates fabulous new recordings. Pianist Bill Charlap and his trio aren’t irrelevant or quaint on And Then Again, issuing vintage and vigorous takes on “All the Things You Are” or “I Don’t Stand a Ghost of a Chance with You” — Charlap and his rhythm section of Peter and Kenny Washington simply prove that the mainstream is vital. Trumpeter Pete Rodriguez isn’t even a quarter-step behind the times with this year’s I’m Pete Rodriguez, Volume 1, even if it reminds me a bit of Wynton Marsalis’ 1985 Black Codes from the Underground — that comparison is almost the highest praise I can think of.
Similarly, some of the coolest jazz of 2024 is older music that only came to our ears this year. A posthumous release from Wayne Shorter and his long-running quartet with Danilo Perez, John Patitucci, and Brian Blade, Celebration, Volume 1, contains concert recordings that are timeless, exploratory, and gorgeous. Kurt Rosenwinkel’s The Next Step Band Live at Small’s 1996 captures one of the most influential bands of the last 40 years at a prime moment. Forces of Nature, Live at Slugs is a ferociously elegant 1966 date featuring pianist McCoy Tyner, Joe Henderson, Jack DeJohnette, and Henry Grimes. I can’t stop listening to it, reveling in the mastery of the modern jazz language by these players — Tyner and Henderson can simultaneously reference Bud Powell or Coleman Hawkins and establish a personal language all their own.
But in a year of bounty in jazz, identifying the best new jazz of 2024 meant finding the recordings that took my breath away and built atop or extended the tradition. Each of these recordings, to my ears, is bracing, beautiful, and new, suggesting the many ways the art form remains important and joyful. The surfeit of piano-forward recordings here may be a personal quirk of mine — but I promise it took all of my discipline not to additionally include Perpetual Void by the Marta Sanchez Trio, Matthew Shipp’s exceptional New Concepts in Piano Trio Jazz, Matt Mitchell’s Illimitable, an album of spontaneously improvised solo piano pieces that is the most astonishing example of the form in 50 years, and the sumptuous new Little Big III from Aaron Parks, which is a heady fusion of jazz, indie-rock, and soul that is more cooly melodic than any other album of the year.
After the painful omissions, a list of bracing works of art is presented alphabetically by artist. – Will Layman
Arooj Aftab – Night Reign (Verve)
Arooj Aftab’s Night Reign comes off the heels of 2023’s Love in Exile, Aftab’s collaboration with jazz pianist Vijay Iyer and multi-instrumentalist Shahzad Ismaily, and Ayer’s jazz inspiration may have at least partially inspired this new release. “Saaqi”, one of two songs on Night Reign featuring the Urdu-language poetry of 18th-century Indian poet Mah Laqa Bai Chanda, actually features Ayer on piano, and it’s an airy, ethereal masterpiece of mood. But even in Ayer’s absence, jazz plays a vital role in the makeup of this refreshingly diverse collection of songs.
Throughout the history of recorded music, there’s a long list of works that are best experienced at night, under the cover of stars: Miles Davis‘ Kind of Blue, Portishead‘s Dummy, Radiohead‘s Kid A. You can add Arooj Aftab’s beautiful Night Reign to the upper echelon of that list. – Chris Ingalls
Jamie Baum – What Times Are These (Sunnyside)
This is the most ambitious and finest album from flutist and composer Jamie Baum. Baum has a luscious and full sound and is a compelling soloist, but What Times Are These is primarily a conceptual triumph — a cogent example of how 21st-century jazz has been developing. It dares to reach across boundaries of all kinds and works because Baum has a strong vision that allows multiple strands to be woven into a beautifully conceived tapestry. Baum has merged powerful poetry, sophisticated arrangement, and composition for her talented septet, diverse voices (singers and jazz improvisers), and a range of historical influences not restricted to one tradition or tonality. Vocalists Sara Serpa and Theo Bleckmann are just two of the wonderful lead voices.
The standout track is “Sorrow Song”, which uses rap, poetry, M-Base-style jazz groove, at least four distinct solo “voices”, and the blended voice of her septet’s wind section to create a clear but complex statement. There was no more distinct recording in 2024 — I can’t think of a better fusion of literary voice and jazz. – Will Layman
Patricia Brennan – Breaking Stretch (Pyroclastic)
The third album by the vibes and marimba master Patricia Brennan overflows with the rattling, life-affirming polyrhythms of dance and joy. Brennan has a background and training in classical symphonic music and jazz, so she has been a perfect fit in a contemporary creative music scene where tricky compositions zip into free-wheeling improvisations with little regard for genre or strict tradition.
Breaking Stretch contains nine dazzling Brennan tunes that allow her seven-piece band to play all sorts of ways using voicings full of beauty and tension for a front line of three horns: trumpeter Adam O’Farrill and saxophonists Mark Shim and Jon Irabagon. Irabagon will turn your head 360 degrees one way and 720 back the other way with his wild leaps and uninhibited tone on alto and soprano saxophone — seeming like a musical gymnast working the uneven bars.
Though Brennan isn’t working elements of pop music or hip-hop into these performances, she isn’t shy about adding electronics to the sound of her vibraphone or the ensemble courtesy of O’Farrill. The result is music that music that pulses with the dance impulse while also being out of this world. – Will Layman
Kim Cass – Levs (Pi)
Kim Cass has been playing bass on some of the last decade’s most daring and exciting albums, notably in partnership with Matt Mitchell, the pianist on Levs. Mitchell and Cass share a fascination with compositions that harness the undeniable polyrhythmic groove of jazz but also sew together fragments with a collage-like technique associated with New Music.
The compositions on Levs are breathtaking in their nuance and precision, which makes the partnership of drummer Tyshawn Sorey equally essential. Despite the abundance of tracks here that keep you — sometimes aggressively — on the edge of your seat, Cass also writes with tenderness and incorporates flute and euphonium into his arrangements. Irresistible tension and sonic intrigue also come from Mitchell’s Prophet-6 synthesizer rubbing against the bass or flute, adding eerie orchestration or acting as a madcap lead voice. This is a decidedly challenging and rewarding experience. – Will Layman
The Kris Davis Trio – Run the Gauntlet (Pyroclastic)
As with Matt Mitchell’s trio record below, this is an album where the leader of many wide-ranging ensembles plays in the traditional piano trio format yet continues to break boundaries. The title track is a romp of rhythmic variations, potent licks, and irresistible grooves — both daring and ass-shaking. Davis’s compositional imagination and improvisational bent is to create music that toggles between harmonic adventure and the post-bop logic of Herbie Hancock.
There is as much lush, sumptuous music here (“Beauty Beneath the Rubble”, which may remind you of some great Keith Jarrett recordings) as there is a thumping adventure (“Knotweed”). But every note here is keenly felt. Bassist Robert Hurst may be associated with his time with the Marsalis brothers, but he sounds reborn and liberated as he teams with drummer Johnathan Blake in a pliant groove. The recital is all the richer for Davis’s interest in reaching inside her piano to generate new textures and rhythmic power. – Will Layman
Janel Leppin – Ensemble Volcanic Ash: To March Is to Love (Cuneiform)
Rarely discussed beyond the bounds of Washington, DC’s local scene, Leppin is a cellist creating music you must hear. The sextet here plays gritty, super-smart New Jazz that features guitarist Anthony Pirog (see the Messthetics recording below), two saxophonists (Brian Settles on tenor and Sarah Hughs on alto), plus bassist Luke Stewart, and drummer Larry Ferguson. The band’s sound is rubbery and danceable, making it 21st-century jazz that is both “free” and remarkably accessible.
“As Wide as All Outdoors” opens with an aggressive fanfare and then slips into a funky and simple bass groove for its anthemic melody. Leppin’s cello is expressive, and Pirog’s solo is a fiery, wild thing — with bits of John McLaughlin and plenty of Sonny Sharrock blending into overdriven electronics. The band has a wide range of gears, from ominous balladry that can move into sustained chaos to wide open spaces of shivering impressionism. — Will Layman
Mary Halvorson – Cloudward (Nonesuch)
The band that made Mary Halvorson’s 2022 Amaryllis so dazzling returned for this new set, and things remain astonishing. Adam O’Farrill’s trumpet and Jacob Garchik’s trombone are that rare front line that is all brass, no wind, and the attack is bold. The other twinning is in how Halvorson’s spikey guitar sound finds common space with the ringing attack of Patricia Brennan’s vibes. The music is skronky or edgy in spots (dig the clinky-clanky improvisation that begins “Incarnadine”), but this adds to the rush of feeling that accompanies getting to know a lovely performance such as shimmering “Ultramarine” or lightly bouncing “Collapsing Mouth”. One song here even rocks a bit — “Desiderata” begins with a backbeat, setting up a melody for vibes underpinned by the brass before a period of suspended sunlight. Then Halvorson plays a distortion-fed solo that goes into psychedelic overdrive. All the feelings are jammed into this album somewhere. – Will Layman
Vijay Iyer Trio – Compassion (ECM)
Compassion is the second outing for this trio (with Linda May Han Oh on bass and drummer Tyshawn Sorey), which sometimes plays with ECM-ish studied care but also kicks up dirt. The balance of pensive, searching, introspection, and fire is just about perfect. As always with Iyer, there is top-notch writing — the thrill of “Maelstrom” or the wistful tug of “Where I Am” — and Iyer also programs songs by notable ancestors. Roscoe Mitchell’s “Nonaah” is a scrambling, free joy that works its way to the theme only at the end; the mashup of John Stubblefield’s “Free Spirits” and “Drummer’s Song” by Geri Allen is a gorgeous onrush of momentum; and “Overjoyed” is yet another reminder that there are endless depths in Stevie Wonder’s music. Iyer, notably, is a professor at Harvard, and he uses his music to demonstrate the connections between the past and the present. – Will Layman