Artemis: In Real Time album review — all-female jazz collective engages with second album

The self-titled debut by the all-female New York collective Artemis delivered contemporary mainstream jazz with cool lyricism and a tailored edge. Three years on, their confident Blue Note follow-up, In Real Time, adds flamboyant brass and ups rhythmic bite.

This tougher sound is partly due to attention-grabbing arrangements and changed personnel — Nicole Glover replaces Melissa Aldana on tenor saxophone and clarinettist Anat Cohen gives way to saxophonist/flautist Alexa Tarantino. But there is an extra spring in the rhythm section’s step and emotional contrasts are more sharply defined.

The album is bookended by two covers. The sinuous complexity of “Slink”, written by the late Lyle Mays, opens the set with flute layered into brass and a counterpoint piano line. As the piece evolves, bass joins piano and the pulse grows more intense. In contrast, the closing waltz “Penelope” hovers above ballad tempo and uses muted trumpet and sheens of brass to capture the pensive aesthetic of its composer, the late Wayne Shorter.

The remaining tracks were composed by members of the band. “Balance of Time”, “Empress Afternoon” and the arrangement for “Slink” were written by pianist/musical director Renee Rosnes, the band’s leading light. The first is a delicate ballad, the second opens with powerhouse brass and all three reflect a career that began in the late 1980s in bands led by saxophonists Joe Henderson and Shorter.

Elsewhere, the contrast between rhythm section stabs and walking bass swing is well worked on “Lights Away from Home”, written by bassist Noriko Ueda, who was inspired by the sight of a meteor shower. Drummer Allison Miller opens her modal “Bow and Arrow” with a call-to-arms press roll and inspires trumpeter Ingrid Jensen and saxophonist Glover to explore their full sonic range. Jensen’s focused tone and flights of fancy enhance “Timber” and Tarantino’s puckish flute uplifts “Whirlwind”, completing a balanced programme that engages throughout.

★★★★☆

‘In Real Time’ is released by Blue Note