Since his award-winning 2006 debut Telescope, Andrew McCormack's piano trio recordings have curiously been thin on the ground. The pianist–composer is recognised for his collaborations in duo with saxophonist Jason Yarde, the Kyle Eastwood band and writing commissions for the LSO among others. More recently in 2017 and 2019, a pair of his angular Tigran-influenced prog-jazz outfit Graviton's recordings signalled a surprising departure from the accessible, exquisitely lyrical brand of acoustic postbop jazz he's normally associated with. His last trio recording in 2014 was with a hard-driving New York collective but McCormack has a more commanding presence as both composer and improviser on the new album in a UK-based trio consisting of the young in-demand Joe Downard and his contemporary, the drummer Rod Youngs.

What's implicit in his love of ‘classic’ jazz mainstream pianists from Monk - whose ‘Work’ is one of four of the CD's elegantly reworked non-originals – and Herbie through to Jarrett and Mehldau is the instinct to adapt and reinvent the form. His skill-set as a classical music-influenced composer too – with ‘New Music’ composer Mark-Anthony Turnage as an important mentor - has fed into his improvisational approach on Terra Firma in terms of explorations of structuring and phrasing.

He starts with an earworm of a tune: ‘Brooklyn Memoir’ is one of the pianist's most direct and outgoing performances to date and ends with ‘Prayer for Atonement’ a lament that bears comparisons to Brad Mehldau in Radiohead mode. Sandwiched in between is a few non-originals including a perhaps predictable yet heartfelt and unpretentious account of Sting's ‘Fragile’. ‘Dear Old Stockholm’ does the unexpected though, by sounding nothing like previous classic bop era takes, with McCormack effectively spinning it as an improvised classical-influenced piece mixing a contemporary drone element in with the folky lyricism of the late romantics. An optimistic vibe though is always just around the corner with McCormack and he swings with a playful lyricism on his ‘Clementine Dream’. The programme is very well-balanced and there's a new confidence and self-awareness about McCormack on this one that makes it one of his best album recordings so far.