Daiki Yasukagawa Trio: Kanmai

Jazz of Japan #80 • Aug 23, 2019 • Brian McCrory

Like the expansive cover depicting a peaceful blue ocean and sky, jazz bassist Daiki Yasukagawa’s trio on Kanmai creates a mood of a rolling deep and lofty grace.

The album includes nine modern jazz tunes, most being original compositions from Yasukagawa, and one each from pianist Sato and drummer Hashimoto. Two standards are also included, a swingy, stylish “Long Ago And Far Away”, and a bowed-bass feature on “Greensleeves”, a delicate, sacred performance heavy with emotional weight.

Opening with atmospheric space, unhurried and patient, the modern sound develops with a fun looseness based on confidence and skill; the music soars and swings with thrilling percussive, melodic, and bass interplay. These players bring a lot to the performance, listening and responding to each other throughout, reacting and embellishing each other’s ideas and open spaces with exquisite taste.

Kanmai by Daiki Yasukagawa Trio

• Daiki Yasukagawa - bass
• Koichi Sato - piano
• Manabu Hashimoto - drums

Released in 2012 on D-Neo Daiki Musica as DNCD-01.

Japanese names: Daiki Yasukagawa 安ヵ川大樹 Koichi Sato 佐藤浩一 Manabu Hashimoto 橋本学

Audio and Video

• Daiki Yasukagawa Trio video for Kanmai