Smith is one of several notable Americans who straddle the world of jazz, soul and electronica and have an avowed interest in production as well as playing. While his performance at the drum kit has all the finesse one would expect, given his illustrious sideman credits (Dave Holland, Chris Potter, Scott Colley) Smith has also paid much attention to the sound quality and mix of this follow up to 2017’s Kinfolk:Postcards From Everywhere. An inescapable observation is that the material has the low end depth synonymous with modern black popular music.

Then again, Smith’s ability to bridge many vocabularies is his strong suit insofar as it can lead to interesting nuance and attention to detail amid familiar resonances. The key example is ‘Fly (For Mike)’, which is essentially a glorious piece of gospel soul with a fabulous lead vocal from Brittany Howard that is enhanced by Smith’s use of brushes rather than sticks, the effect of which is to leave a kind of sensually whispered veil fluttering around the gilded melody. In stark contrast comes the snapping funky backbeat of ‘Square Wheel’, which is graced by thought-provoking verses from Kokayi and a swish chorus from Michael Mayo.

As much as the players on See The Birds impress, the singers form something of an all-star line-up, as Stokley and Amma Whatt also make excellent contributions. It is very likely that Smith will draw comparisons with Robert Glasper’s Experiment because of the content of this work, yet the pop accessibility and artistic integrity sit well together, showing the leader’s skill in negotiating different paths all the while asserting a strong sense of his own individuality.