Brian Landrus, Fred Hersch, Drew Gress, Billy Hart - For Now (2020)

Dr. Brian Landrus is a well—educated multi-instrumentalist who is equally masterly with baritone and bass saxophones, bass clarinet, alto and bass flutes, but modestly reports that he plays all other varieties of saxophones, clarinets and flutes. Not a man, but a brass band.
Landrus willingly shares his skills and teaches a lot. He recently got a position as an assistant professor at the University of Sacramento, but Brian does not forget about "field" work.
His new album opens with a solid non-pop theme, “The Signs”, led by Landrus' baritone saxophone and Michael Rodriguez's trumpet. It sounds promising, but then the record starts to wobble. The plaintive squeak of the string quartet in “Clarity in Time“ or the title piece, “For Now”, should probably depict tenderness and romance, and as a result, it clogs the space. Towards the end of the album, the strings will restore their reputation with a swinging violin solo in “Her Smile". But it is still surprising that the thoughtful Landrus could not build such arrangements in which the density of his middle register would not stumble over the subtle strings.
Although Landrus is an incredibly skilled musician, sometimes a teacher seems to wake up in him. As a result, his solo appearance in Thelonious Monk's “Round Midnight” is more like a warm-up or exercise on a simulator.
If you stop grumbling, then the best thing on this uneven album is the rhythm section. Its core is the solid double bass of Drew Gress. Veteran drummer Billy Hart elegantly places accents, and pianist Fred Hersh creates complete, complete works in solo and accompaniment. In general, the record should appeal to fans of low-frequency wind instruments.