A locally based musician recently tipped me off to a 2024 release featuring Kansas City vibraphonist Peter Schlamb. The recommendation was the first I’d heard of the recording. I wouldn’t ordinarily feature an album released 25 months ago, but Quintet Music is a brilliant distillation of much of what I love most in contemporary improvised music.
Thrillingly ferocious, guitarist Travis Reuter’s self-released album is imbued with uncommon musicianship, vision and recklessness. Hearing Schlamb’s gonzo solo over the first-call rhythm section of bassist Harish Raghavan and drummer Tyshawn Sorey on “Interlude 1 (Schlamb)” is thrilling. Saxophonist Mark Shim matches Schlamb’s energy elsewhere.
Quintet Music received a handful of rave reviews from in-the-know writers at secondary outlets a couple years ago. It also received a nod from one voter in the 2024 Francis Davis Jazz Critics Poll. The figure would have doubled had I heard it as a new release. Schlamb’s characteristic reticence has rarely been more frustrating.