DAVE BASS, Trio Nuevo Vol. 3

There’s is something exhilarating about hearing a jazz trio discover just how far three musicians can stretch the boundaries of a conversation. On Trio Nuevo, Vol. 3, pianist and composer Dave Bass, bassist Tyler Miles and drummer Steve Helfand move with such instinctive chemistry that even the album’s most stylistically disparate pieces seem to belong to the same adventurous universe. Bass has assembled another wonderfully eclectic repertoire, but what makes this third installment of the Trio Nuevo journey so compelling is the sheer elasticity of the group’s interplay: lyrical one moment, percussive and explosive the next, always listening, responding and pushing the music somewhere unexpected.

The album opens with the Brazilian-inflected “Neither Have I Wings,” where Bass begins with an extended, sparkling piano meditation before gradually introducing a rolling baião groove. Playful percussion, popping bass and rapidly shifting piano figures turn the piece into an infectious, exotic ride, culminating in a fiery improvisation and spirited bass showcase. That same sense of discovery defines “Toccata,” Bass’ imaginative homage to Bach. Its tender, almost mournful opening eventually gives way to a dazzling piano sprint, with dancing figures racing over an increasingly rambunctious rhythm section. Miles’ fast-moving bass seems almost to challenge Bass to keep pace, producing a splendid burst of trio fire.

The group’s more reflective side emerges in the graceful “The Water Is Wide,” where dark piano chords, brushed drums and methodical bass create an atmospheric meditation before Bass gradually intensifies his improvisation, reaching into the instrument’s higher register with increasing emotional force. “When You Wish Upon a Star” receives similarly elegant treatment, its familiar melody surrounded by luminous piano filigree before Bass launches into sparkling upper-register improvisation and Miles answers with a contrasting, darker-toned solo. Even Disney becomes fertile territory for sophisticated jazz imagination.

Elsewhere, the trio embraces rhythmic complexity and sheer playful abandon. “Work” tackles Thelonious Monk’s idiosyncratic rhythmic architecture with percussive piano, odd meters, unexpected spaces and increasingly forceful swinging passages, Bass turning the composition’s inherent angularity into a joyous conversation with Miles and Helfand. “Fingerprints/Gantry,” a hybrid of Chick Corea’s “Fingerprints” and a soulful, gospel fired Bass original, is even more combustible, its church-inflected foundation exploding into a freewheeling exchange of pounding piano, bustling drums and plucky bass. “Black Swan” similarly transforms a foundational Swan Lake inspiration into a fast-moving, whimsical romp, while “Lost Mambo” plunges into Cuban tumbao, tribal percussion and increasingly fierce Latin-funk energy.

The album’s centerpiece ballad is the gorgeous “Try a Little Tenderness,” which strips the familiar standard down to spacious piano, rumbling bass and evocative percussion, allowing Bass’ long, expressive lines to carry its emotional weight. At the opposite extreme, “Far and Wee” becomes a liberating piano-and-drums dialogue, while the slyly titled “You Lose,” an artful contrafact of “If I Should Lose You,” turns its ostensibly melancholy premise into a buoyant, fast-swinging celebration.

Throughout Trio Nuevo, Vol. 3, Bass, Miles and Helfand demonstrate that musical conversation is not simply about exchanging solos. It is about anticipation, provocation, restraint and surprise—and this remarkable trio seems to relish every possibility.