John Chin – Blackout Conception (Jazz CD/Fresh Sound Records)

 

Sound: B-     Music: B-

 

 

Our first jazz CD in a while, John Chin’s Blackout Conception (2007) offers seven instrumental tracks that are mostly new and all decent, including:

 

1)     Blackout Conception

2)     Joanne Julia

3)     I Won’t Argue With You

4)     After Crash

5)     Some Other Time

6)     Lullaby

7)     Passion Flower

 

 

Chin performs with four other musicians including Bill Campbell on drums, Mark Turner on tenor sax on tracks 1/2/4/6, and two bassists: Alexis Cuadrado on tracks 1/3/4/6/7 and Chris Higgins on tracks 2 & 5.  Cuadrado co-produced the album with him and it is decent, though nothing particularly stuck with me.  I wondered why there were not a few more tracks or why the extended tracks did not have a standout.  All are good and Jazz fans should be pleased, but I felt mixed about the whole thing and can only give it a limited recommendation.

 

The PCM 16/44.1 2.0 Stereo is a little compressed and has slight limits throughout despite being recorded nicely otherwise.  I was not expecting it to sound like an SACD, but I also very much expected it to be a little clearer.  Despite the holdback, it is not bad.

 

 

-   Nicholas Sheffo