Code of Being is an album that deserves attention simply because it’s a new James Brandon Lewis album. Since debuting with Moments eleven years prior, the visionary saxophonist, leader and composer has built up a sturdy legacy of jazz with substance that puts both composition and performance way up front.
Though coming right on the heels on Lewis’ brilliant George Washington Carver-themed Jesup Wagon, Code of Being is in reality the follow-up to 2020’s Molecular, because Lewis quickly reconvened his talent-laden quartet introduced on that earlier album and banged out eight fresh originals. It’s a group of leaders in their own right with Aruán Ortiz on piano, Brad Jones on bass and Chad Taylor on drums.
Lewis manipulates melody to carry out emotions and feelings as complex as life itself. On “Where is Hella,” he takes the spiritual heaviness of Coltrane maybe a step further, playing his spellbinding saxophone with — intentionally or not — a hint of a Carnatic trance. Taylor’s restive drums and Jones’s yawning bowed bass complete the dramatic scene for Act 1 of the song; Act 2 is a perfectly singable melody that you could swear is some classic strain you can’t quite remember where it came from. That’s the launchpad for Ortiz’s masterful extended spotlight.
“Resonance” also brandishes a strong melodic sense, but Lewis orders up a change in the tempo when it comes to solos time, ensuring that the fervor will be there during improvisations. A sonic adjustment during “Archimedean” is made by Taylor for Lewis’ motivated saxophone statements, who leans on the toms to provide the right inflections for the moment, turning into an animated convo between the leader and Ortiz that teases total freedom.
Lewis goes it alone in introducing “Per 4,” a sinuous strain that reminds me a bit of Monk’s “Evidence.” That morphs into a one-chord jam whereby both Lewis and Ortiz are simultaneously inventing creative expressions. A circular piano/bass figure defines the melody of “Per 5,” and Taylor gives it a kick in the pants as Lewis keeps coming up with new ways to paint the canvas.
Taylor’s non-conformist approach to the drums has a way of re-shaping songs. His explosive dynamism keeps everyone else on “Code of Being” from getting too comfortable with themselves and motivates them to likewise soar higher. He gets funky and then frisky before settling into a relaxed groove on “Tessera.” Lewis and Ortiz adapt perfectly to wherever the flow is going.
James Brandon Lewis typically alters his approach from album to album but with his forceful new quartet, a second go-around is not a bad idea at all. Already looking forward to the third James Brandon Lewis Quartet entry.
Code of Being can now be had at all the regular outlets, courtesy of Intakt Records.
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