Joe Lovano’s new album Homage, released on ECM Records, finds the celebrated saxophonist in a deeply creative partnership with the Marcin Wasilewski Trio (pianist Marcin Wasilewski, bassist Slawomir Kurkiewicz, and drummer Michal Miskiewicz). Recorded at the legendary Van Gelder Studio following a week-long residency at New York’s Village Vanguard, the album showcases a quartet in full command of fluid improvisation and spontaneous interplay. Joe Lovano’s relationship with ECM Records is both longstanding and multifaceted, stretching back to his early career. Lovano first became involved with ECM in 1981, appearing on drummer Paul Motian’s album Psalm. Over the years, he contributed to numerous ECM recordings as a sideman with artists such as John Abercrombie, Steve Kuhn, and Marc Johnson, and was a key member of Motian’s influential trio (alongside guitarist Bill Frisell) which released several acclaimed albums on the label. Despite this deep association, Lovano did not record as a leader for ECM until 2019, when he released Trio Tapestry with pianist Marilyn Crispell and drummer Carmen Castaldi. This marked a significant new chapter in his discography, following a long tenure at Blue Note Records where he had recorded over two dozen albums. 

Lovano penned most of the album’s compositions, with the two longest tracks surpassing the ten-minute mark. The elongated characteristics of these compositions allow an unbridled exploration of the group, with a strong musical dialogue evident from the outset. “Love Is In The Garden” is an abundance of conversation, an airy and light opening ballad that features the saxophonist’s shimmering vibrato against a backdrop of pedal point piano and silky pattering of the drums and cymbals - evaporating to the whisper of Lovano’s upper register. A short preface to the album, but one that invokes influences of Keith Jarrett, Ralph Towner and John Abercrombie. 

Inundated with percussion and flowing into a bass and piano shared ostinato, “Golden Hour” embarks on a prolonged journey with the overflowing ideas coming from the Cleveland native’s saxophone. Marcin Wasilewski elevates the intensity with a barrage of quartal harmonies and intricate piano lines before a more complex and dissonant solo on the tárogató - a Hungarian woodwind instrument popular in folk music. The piece comes full circle, ending as it is introduced with percussion. “Homage” is a celebration of the album’s producer and ECM founder Manfried Eicher’s 80th birthday. Diving head-first into a display of unshackled and wandering creativity, via the unwieldy tárogató, it spurs on a trio that seems to be playing through a telepathic connection, interrupted only by a solo piano that borders the section.    

The ensemble immediately locks into a polyrhythmic dialogue on “This Side - Catville”, weaving together contrasting textures and dynamic shifts. Abstract chord progressions provide a foundation for Lovano’s commanding tenor, which stabs and jabs between Wasilewski’s lightning piano runs, and this gradually phases into a bold and robust theme. “Giving Thanks” offers a chance to regroup after the mammoth compositions, a solo saxophone musing that is meditative and reflective before “Projection” concludes the album through a reverberant gong improvisation. 

Homage stands as a testament to the saxophonist's enduring artistry, blending exploratory freedom with profound lyrical depth. As a team, with the Marcin Wasilewski Trio, the quartet navigates shifting moods and modal landscapes, from the hypnotic to the freewheeling spontaneity, all while honouring ECM’s legacy of immersive soundscapes. The album captures a quartet operating at peak creative synergy, restrained intensity and improvisational daring, and above all revealing Lovano’s ability to channel reverence into revelatory music. 

Dan Spirrett

from www.prestomusic.com