Exploring time in all its facets – that is what the Latvian drummer Dāvids Eglītis aims to do on his debut album *Reflections on Becoming*. Across seven tracks, he and his accompanying musicians reflect on the process of becoming. How did it come about?

It might be a touch self-deprecating: Premonition, Eglītis calls the opening track ‘Premonition’, which spends a good minute and a half oscillating between voices in the orchestra pit and parallel solos before slowly coalescing into a shared structure – and ends, though actually merges more into Start Over, a classically smooth jazz number that delivers the longed-for form, swinging and grooving and making one prick up one’s ears. What else is there? The ballad Mean It, one might think, until it shifts into an uptempo number and flows with verve into a four-part suite of pieces.

Part 1. Envision seems to be a narrative in sound, at times questioning, then euphorically pushing forward, pausing, moving on – a piece that is dynamic both compositionally and in its playing, which, as if in a dark tunnel, leads into Part 2. Look How Far You’ve Come. This picks up on the void and fills it with a drum solo lasting a good eight minutes, which stylistically quotes a number of influences – Elvin Jones, Jeff ‘Tain’ Watts or even Jeremy Dutton, and, as far as the structure of some of the rolls is concerned, perhaps also Pierre Morlean. Part 3. Hope And Doubt brings the drum solo from Part 2 to a close and transitions into a joyful, optimistic soundscape full of verve, the baton of which is taken up by Part 4. Prayer, which radiates a gentle and understated sense of calm and relaxation, just as if someone had arrived safely.

Eglītis recorded his album with Claudio Jr De Rosa on saxophone and bass clarinet, Enrio LeNoci on semi-acoustic guitar, Daniel Bulatkin on piano and Arjun Ramdas on double bass. He met them all whilst studying at the Royal Conservatory in The Hague in the Netherlands, where the album was also recorded.

As well as the music itself, the recording shines with superb acoustics. The instruments have a rich body; the bass and bass clarinet, in particular, have real depth. The dynamics of the drums, ranging from subtle to powerful, are always clearly defined. The piano and guitar sound authentic and warm. The performance takes place on a medium-sized stage, which is wider than it is deep, effectively spreading the sound sources across the mix.

A fine debut on the jazz scene. (Thomas Semmler, HighResMac)

Claudio Jr De Rosa, saxophones, bass clarinet
Enrico Le Noci, electric guitar
Daniel Bulatkin, piano
Arjun Ramdas, double bass
Dāvids Eglītis, drums