Donovan Haffner is the latest in a long line of young lions to emerge from the Tomorrow’s Warriors school, demonstrating that organisation’s continuing beneficent effect on the general scene. He’s toured with Moses Boyd, but while many of his fellow alumni have made their mark with a club-centred fusion approach, this debut reveals Haffner’s commitment to contemporary acoustic jazz, featuring carefully structured compositions with changes, ordered solos and even (on the very satisfying ‘The Sublime’) an uptempo 4/4 swing with walking bass. He’s got an attractive tone on alto with enough of an acidic bite to confer the necessary edge, and his time, swing and command of language are exemplary in the old-fashioned way.

The rest of the band play up to the mark as well, with drummer Harry Ling especially impressive: the compositions, all by Haffner, give everyone room to stretch out as well as to show how tight they can play as a unit. There’s a maturity to his writing that shows in the attention to detail and the way he manages to realise some ambitious structural ideas, like the tricky meter in ‘The Lone Wolf’, while maintaining a commitment to melody. Everyone really flies on the closing track ‘Step Aside’. A confident and impressive debut.