Near East Quartet

With its combination of moody grooves, fragile melodies, and near-ambient accompaniment, Near East Quartet offers the sonic set menu of ECM, its legendary German label. Indeed the tone and melodic inclinations of bandleader Sungjae Son are reminiscent of label-mate and fellow saxophonist Andy Sheppard.

Sungjae Son and guitarist Suwuk Chung studied music in the US, but Yulhee Kim is the unusual ingredient here. A traditional Korean vocalist and percussionist, Kim contributes vocals somewhere between speech and song. Soojin Suh's decorative drum work provides a conversational counterpoint, and together they take their stylistic cues from pansori, a type of musical storytelling traditional in Korea.

It all makes for a restful and reflective concoction. The singing bowls of ‘Mot’ lend its stillness a devotional feel. The guitar swells of ‘Ewha’ hint at a heavier post-rock edge. ‘Jinyang’ offers the best of both worlds, a delicate opening passage centred on a descending guitar figure gives way to a rollicking jazz groove worthy of Jack DeJohnette.

The quartet's brand of barely-there melodies and ascetic arrangements might not be for everyone, but the album does not outstay its welcome, providing a succinct statement on the possibilities of jazz and South Korean folk fusion.