Jay Phelps - The Now (2023) [Hi-Res]

The seventh solo album by Canadian-born, London-based trumpeter du jour Jay Phelps, The Now has been a while coming. Recorded a year-and-a-half ago with a stellar line-up including genre-bending keys wizard Nicola Guida and instrumental genius David 'Blue Lab Beats' Mrakpor on vibes, the project's release nonetheless feels neatly timed, and comes accompanied by a marketing savvy that would do Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah proud.

Phelps' campaign is as dynamic, clever and forward-looking as his sound, with cover art depicting the trumpeter/composer/producer/broadcaster/entrepreneur as an intergalactic superhero, an Astro Boy with a horn, refreshing notions of Afrofuturism by melding jazz with genres including the relentlessly doofing Detroit House.

Highlights are many: opener 'Finding Centauri' finds Phelps’ trumpet - variously soft-edged, shrieking and fluttering: forging its way through space-scapey claps, beeps and clatters, Mrakpor's vibes adding starbursts along the way. 'Through the Clouds' is an intricate, funk-riddled, jazz-tinged galaxy ride buoyed by the plaintive vocals and double-time flows of Birmingham's Simon Jnr. The title track and closer is a jam-like push me-pull you of sampled voices and sounds given ballast by wheeling keys, a chanted refrain ("Here and now") and Phelps' dexterous horn playing, which nods to the jazz tradition as it reaches into the stratosphere. A trumpet fanfare, please.

Tracklist:
1 01. Jay Phelps - Finding Centaurii (07:13)
1 02. Jay Phelps - Through the Clouds (06:57)
1 03. Jay Phelps - Liquid Living (06:46)
1 04. Jay Phelps - The Now (04:59)
1 05. Jay Phelps - Sanctuary (04:09)
1 06. Jay Phelps - The Malleables (08:13)