Keisuke Nakamura: Humadope
Trumpeter Keisuke Nakamura leads a group of contemporary jazz musicians called Humadope, a post-bop Jazz Messengers-styled quintet with a trumpet-sax front line and piano-bass-drums rhythm section. The name itself (a mix of human/mad/dope) suggests a dangerous edge on blisteringly fast tunes as the skilled soloists riotously burn through the changes. Yet, the group handily balances this attitude with a warm sensitivity played on soulful ballads and cooler numbers.
This album consists of well-written original compositions with a few covers thrown in (Freddie Hubbard, Herbie Hancock, Quincy Jones). Overall, this is an excellent debut with a variety of moods, tempos, and exciting solos showcasing some premium J Jazz from the current crop of musicians.
Humadope by Keisuke Nakamura
Keisuke Nakamura - trumpet, flugelhorn
Akihiro Nishiguchi - tenor sax, soprano sax
Akane Matsumoto - piano
Motoi Kanamori - bass
Yasushi Fukumori - drums
Mamoru Ishida - Rhodes (tr. #5, 6)
Shun Ishiwaka - drums (tr. #1)
Released in 2014 on M581 Records as SDR1401.
Japanese names: Keisuke Nakamura 中村恵介 Akihiro Nishiguchi 西口明宏 Akane Matsumoto 松本茜 Motoi Kanamori 金森もとい Yasushi Fukumori 福森康 Mamoru Ishida 石田衛 Shun Ishiwaka 石若駿
Audio and Video
Excerpt from "Speed Harassment", the first track on this album: