Canada’s Cellar Music put out a lot of albums. To be frank a lot of these this year aren’t my cup of tea much – I thought their output last year overall was stronger – but RePaved certainly is an album I admire and enjoyed listening to and underlines despite sometimes switching off from their output from time to time what an important record company for jazz Cory Weeds’ indie is. Baker’s album from my knowledge of the label is one of Cellar Music’s finest achievements.
Why? Perhaps it’s because I liked vibist Jalen Baker’s role in the Jeremy Pelt sound on Woven (and fittingly Pelt produces); perhaps it’s because Paul Cornish is on piano. That last point is probably the most significant here; other recommendable factors in what is a very good record indeed include the arrangement on ‘Kashmere’ – the broader ensemble at play has flute, violin, viola and cello in addition to the rhythm section. Baker’s solo when it comes is full of character. And character is what this album is all about. Baker recorded the album over two days in January at a studio in Long Island City, New York. He composed the project in response to the gentrification transforming Houston’s 3rd, 4th, and 5th Wards.
