{"id":4818,"date":"2022-07-22T20:52:37","date_gmt":"2022-07-23T01:52:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/?p=4818"},"modified":"2022-07-23T06:52:27","modified_gmt":"2022-07-23T11:52:27","slug":"review-tyshawn-sorey-trios-mesmerism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/review-tyshawn-sorey-trios-mesmerism\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: Tyshawn Sorey Trio\u2019s \u2018Mesmerism\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Did any artist have a better 2021 than Tyshawn Sorey? The 2017 MacArthur Fellow was the subject of a New York Times Magazine profile, premiered recordings of two large ensemble compositions, and received acclaim for albums with saxophonist Hafez Modirzadeh, DJ\/producer King Britt. Not to mention his role in the  powerful trio with pianist Vijay Iyer and bassist Linda May Han Oh. Sorey seemed to be everywhere doing everything, always defying expectations. So, it might be tempting to call<em> Mesmerism<\/em> (Yeros7 Music, 2022) a retreat into the conventional by Sorey\u2019s Standards Trio. It\u2019s not. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>True, Sorey, pianist Aaron Diehl, and bassist Matt Brewer take on two familiar standards here. \u201cDetour Ahead\u201d and \u201cAutumn Leaves,\u201d account for nearly half of Mesmerism\u2019s 48-minute running time. Yet this trio doesn\u2019t so much play over song form as play with it. On the former, each player circles the song structure in his own orbit, coming together to mark the changes and the pulse only to venture far from the harmony and rhythm again. Entrusted with the melody, Diehl fractures it and rearranges the pieces over the bar lines, pulling and stretching phrases like a modern Errol Garner.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"100%\" height=\"120\" style=\"position: relative; display: block; width: 100%; height: 120px;\" src=\"\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/v=2\/track=3979810365\/album=2163619900\/size=large\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/tracklist=false\/artwork=small\/\" allowtransparency=\"true\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>You would think that after more than a thousand recordings and countless dreary jam-session calls, there would be nothing left to find in \u201cAutumn Leaves.\u201d&nbsp; Some wrinkles in the arrangement aside, this trio doesn\u2019t try. Instead, they opt to play it straight with an effortless swing over Brewer\u2019s walking and Sorey\u2019s airborne cymbal beat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The remaining four covers are far less familiar, but even here, the trio applies intuition and deep listening to unearth fresh surprises.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cEnchantment\u201d is a deep cut from Horace Silver\u2019s <em>Six Pieces of Silver<\/em> (Blue Note, 1957), the kind of vaguely Latin exotica that Martin Denny might have covered. Surprisingly few jazz musicians have attempted it. Sorey remakes the tune by exchanging Silver\u2019s bright clav\u00e9 for a powerful groove at the place where boom-bap and shuffle meet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"100%\" height=\"120\" style=\"position: relative; display: block; width: 100%; height: 120px;\" src=\"\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/v=2\/track=75030763\/album=2163619900\/size=large\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/tracklist=false\/artwork=small\/\" allowtransparency=\"true\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cFrom Time To Time\u201d exists almost out of time, doubling down on Paul Motian\u2019s spooky, otherworldly compositional signature. The melody as played on <em>Motian in Tokyo<\/em> (JMT, 1991) is barely perceptible, coming into focus only near the song\u2019s end when it emerges from a haze of shimmering piano arpeggios, a distant object in an otherwise empty sky.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Muhal Richard Abrams\u2019 \u201cTwo Over One\u201d was first recorded by saxophonist Chico Freeman with Elvin Jones and bassist Juini Booth and that rhythm section\u2019s approach is easy to hear in Sorey\u2019s tidal beat and Brewer\u2019s intervallic leaps. But, here, the tempo is turned down to a simmer, and the blues feeling is more pronounced.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" width=\"100%\" height=\"120\" style=\"position: relative; display: block; width: 100%; height: 120px;\" src=\"\/\/bandcamp.com\/EmbeddedPlayer\/v=2\/track=4021639752\/album=2163619900\/size=large\/bgcol=ffffff\/linkcol=0687f5\/tracklist=false\/artwork=small\/\" allowtransparency=\"true\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sorey saves his most radical gesture for the concluding cut. The title of Duke Ellington\u2019s \u201cREM Blues\u201d suggests that it was written on the morning of the <em>Money Jungle<\/em> (United Artists, 1963) session with Max Roach and Charles Mingus but left unreleased until Blue Note\u2019s 1986 LP reissue. It\u2019s a get-down shuffle, as skeletal as \u201cC-Jam\u201d Blues, and  Sorey\u2019s trio swings it madly. There\u2019s nothing fancy here, just laying deep in a groove. That\u2019s an audacious conceptual flex and just what you would expect from music\u2019s renaissance man of the moment. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong><em>Mesmerism is now available on Yeros7 Music. It can be purchased on <a href=\"https:\/\/tyshawn-sorey.bandcamp.com\/album\/mesmerism\">Bandcamp<\/a><\/em><\/strong>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Tracklist: 1. Enchantment; 2. Detour Ahead; 3. Autumn Leaves; 4. From Time to Time; 5. Two Over One; 6. REM Blues. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Personnel:  Tyshawn Sorey (drum set), Aaron Diehl (piano), Matt Brewer (bass).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Did any artist have a better 2021 than Tyshawn Sorey? The 2017 MacArthur Fellow was the subject of a New York Times Magazine profile, premiered recordings of two large ensemble compositions, and received acclaim for albums with saxophonist Hafez Modirzadeh, DJ\/producer King Britt. Not to mention his role in the powerful trio with pianist Vijay [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":4820,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"iawp_total_views":72,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4818","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-reviews"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/07\/882c1d56-da2d-49c7-a2c8-5afb42cb944c.jpg?fit=750%2C500&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/peRkRR-1fI","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":422,"url":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/review-tyshawn-sorey-marilyn-crispells-the-adornment-of-time\/","url_meta":{"origin":4818,"position":0},"title":"Review: Tyshawn Sorey &#038; Marilyn Crispell&#8217;s &#8216;The Adornment of Time&#8217;","author":"Rob Shepherd","date":"November 18, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"A single fully-improvised piece of over an hour in length, percussionist Tyshawn Sorey and pianist Marilyn Crispell\u2019s The Adornment of Time is a challenging work. It is not simple, danceable, easily listenable, or intended as background music. It is highly unlikely the listener will fully grasp its importance upon first\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Album Reviews&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Album Reviews","link":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/category\/reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/The-Adornment-of-Time.jpg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/The-Adornment-of-Time.jpg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/The-Adornment-of-Time.jpg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/The-Adornment-of-Time.jpg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/The-Adornment-of-Time.jpg?fit=1200%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":11172,"url":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/strange-heavens-oh-review\/","url_meta":{"origin":4818,"position":1},"title":"Review: Linda May Han Oh\u2019s \u2018Strange Heavens\u2019","author":"Jim Hynes","date":"August 26, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"The comparison of a familiar hell to a strange heaven drives Australian-born bassist and composer Linda May Han Oh\u2019s thinking for her trio album Strange Heavens (Biophilia, 2025). It is far too easy to be lulled by society\u00a0 into complacency and benign acceptance of social and political conditions. Strange Heavens\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Album Reviews&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Album Reviews","link":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/category\/reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/img_1162.jpg?fit=750%2C500&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/img_1162.jpg?fit=750%2C500&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/img_1162.jpg?fit=750%2C500&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/img_1162.jpg?fit=750%2C500&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":11220,"url":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/review-fieldwork-thereupon\/","url_meta":{"origin":4818,"position":2},"title":"Review: Fieldwork&#8217;s &#8216;Thereupon&#8217;","author":"Jim Hynes","date":"September 1, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Fresh off their appearance at the Big Ears Festival, \u00a0which this author unfortunately missed, the trio Fieldwork return with their first album in almost two decades, Thereupon (Pi, 2025). You will likely not find three more decorated individuals in any trio than those in this band: Vijay Iyer, Steve Lehman,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Album Reviews&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Album Reviews","link":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/category\/reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/9-19-25-Fieldwork-Credit_LynneHarty-780x525-1.jpg?fit=750%2C500&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/9-19-25-Fieldwork-Credit_LynneHarty-780x525-1.jpg?fit=750%2C500&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/9-19-25-Fieldwork-Credit_LynneHarty-780x525-1.jpg?fit=750%2C500&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/9-19-25-Fieldwork-Credit_LynneHarty-780x525-1.jpg?fit=750%2C500&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":2029,"url":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/kiwanuka-2019-list\/","url_meta":{"origin":4818,"position":3},"title":"Brian Kiwanuka\u2019s Favorite Jazz Albums of 2019","author":"Brian Kiwanuka","date":"November 27, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"As the PostGenre Team is working on their list(s) of Favorites from 2020, here is a flashback to Brian Kiwanuka\u2019s 2019 list. This list originally appeared at Nextbop. 10. Brandee Younger \u2013 Soul Awakening (Self Release) The harp is a spellbinding instrument and throughout Soul Awakening Brandee Younger is a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Lists&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Lists","link":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/category\/lists\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/BeFunky-collage4.jpg?fit=750%2C500&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/BeFunky-collage4.jpg?fit=750%2C500&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/BeFunky-collage4.jpg?fit=750%2C500&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/BeFunky-collage4.jpg?fit=750%2C500&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":561,"url":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/rob-shepherds-favorite-jazz-albums-of-the-2010s\/","url_meta":{"origin":4818,"position":4},"title":"Rob Shepherd&#8217;s Favorite Jazz Albums: 2009-2019","author":"Rob Shepherd","date":"December 24, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Editorial Note: Although PostGenre is the home of more than just \"jazz\" music, much of \"jazz\" consists of an amalgamation of various styles and approaches to music. This list, a republication of one that appeared on Nextbop on December 24, 2019, particularly shows the eclecticism of much of today's \"jazz.\"\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Lists&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Lists","link":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/category\/lists\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"best of 2010s","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Rob-Shepherd-Favorite-Jazz-Albums-Decade.jpg?fit=1024%2C475&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Rob-Shepherd-Favorite-Jazz-Albums-Decade.jpg?fit=1024%2C475&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Rob-Shepherd-Favorite-Jazz-Albums-Decade.jpg?fit=1024%2C475&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Rob-Shepherd-Favorite-Jazz-Albums-Decade.jpg?fit=1024%2C475&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":6283,"url":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/iyer-newport-jazz-2023\/","url_meta":{"origin":4818,"position":5},"title":"Magic is Real: Vijay Iyer Previews the &#8216;Love in Exile&#8217; Trio&#8217;s 2023 Newport Jazz Festival Performance","author":"Rob Shepherd","date":"July 28, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Often the best music seemingly transports the listener - by the artist\u2019s direction - to another time and place. The music envelopes the audience, disorienting them temporarily but ultimately giving them a path to follow. While recordings can capture this mystifying experience, it is truly the live performance in which\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Interviews&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Interviews","link":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/category\/interviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/20210303_VijayIyer_EbruYildiz_3691.jpg?fit=750%2C500&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/20210303_VijayIyer_EbruYildiz_3691.jpg?fit=750%2C500&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/20210303_VijayIyer_EbruYildiz_3691.jpg?fit=750%2C500&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/20210303_VijayIyer_EbruYildiz_3691.jpg?fit=750%2C500&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4818","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4818"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4818\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4855,"href":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4818\/revisions\/4855"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4820"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4818"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4818"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/postgenre.org\/staging\/4567\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4818"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}