Dance of the Evil Toys cover

Dance of the Evil Toys

Released

Tarbaby is a collaborative trio featuring pianist Orrin Evans, bassist Eric Revis, and drummer Nasheet Waits. Their fifth album offers guest appearances from alto saxophonist Oliver Lake, a longtime collaborator, and trumpeter Josh Lawrence, new to the Tarbaby world but frequently present on Evans’ solo albums. They perform a few Revis compositions, including the title track, which also appeared on Branford Marsalis’s excellent 2019 album The Secret Between the Shadow and the Soul (Revis is a member of Marsalis’s quartet as well); a couple of collective pieces; one by Lawrence and two by Lake; and close it all out with a meditative version of Prince’s “Sometimes It Snows in April.” Lake’s “Bumper” has a Thelonious Monk-ish lurch and his horn lines possess a gospel-ish cry; Lawrence’s smeary trumpet on the title piece is equally compelling, balanced against Waits’ pounding drums.

Phil Freeman

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