Finn Carter photo via Whirlwind
New and very notable from Finn Carter in a quartet setting plus guest trumpeter Christos Stylianides on the more free form ‘Clear Your Mind (If You Can)’. In Carter’s band the young London pianist/organist and composer who favours a very poignant, heartfelt touch which isn’t twee in the slightest is joined by tenor saxophonist Kaidi Akinnibi who proves highly effective, double bassist Joe MacLaren – brilliant on ‘Clear Your Mind (If You Can)’ sounding a bit like Jacob Gryn (the Sultan Stevenson bassist) – and drummer Blake Cascoe who has worked with Sampha, Little Simz and PinkPantheress. Carter started to emerge in the Lockdown years around late 2021 and this release shows how much his sound is in full bloom.
Carter and bassist MacLaren are both on the rather lovely Rex Orange County’s Americana tinged ‘Guitar Song’ which was on the English singer songwriter Alex O’Connor’s album The Alexander Technique which came out a few years ago under O’Connor’s Rex Orange County moniker.
But this new album is jazz and makes no apologies for it nor for its melodicism that’s part of the blend. In this video filmed earlier this year at Nottingham jazz club Peggy’s Skylight, Carter, Akinnibi, MacLaren and Cascoe play Hymn for My Dad tune ‘Swimming Pool Jones.’ The opening chords are like the spirit Billy Taylor tapped on ‘I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to Be Free’. I always feel very grounded when a pianist enters that sort of spiritual domain and finds a new path to navigate it. Home Again abounds with such moments often cloaked in softly tolling cadential microcosm.
Hymn For My Dad itself which is also extremely good was recorded at a studio in Portugal and released in 2024. Akinnibi and MacLaren were on that too. But for this new one the pianist has changed his drummer.
Finding Home is very touching, powerfully mournful and rather poignant and feels authentic. Highly recommendable I’d pick out ‘Rejoicing You’ where the sax comes into its own most and there is strong bass soloing. Carter’s opening to ‘Short Stories’ is utterly beautiful – it has a twirling music box quality to it as if pins are plucking out hidden, encrypted, emotion – and I find myself playing that over and over again, the theme carefully delineated by Akinnibi whose work I also liked doing Afro jazz fusion in very catchy fashion with Blue Lab Beats. Tunes are all Carter’s. Deserves maximum exposure, respect, plaudits and recognition.
- Hear Finn Carter at the Vortex, Dalston this coming Tuesday evening. Finding Home is in the marlbank top new UK jazz tally for 2026 – read the full list
Leave a comment