Rafael Enciso

Crossfade

Contagious Music

Bassist and composer Rafael Enciso debuts with Crossfade, leading his quartet in a project produced by Dayna Stephens, who guests on tenor on one track. Enciso is based in NYC, but the music of the album is informed by his upbringing in Ithaca, NY, and its natural environs. The album is rich harmonically, its layered sound making an intriguing and generally relaxing listen. By design, sounds blend into one another. The title embodies the nature of change itself. Like the seasons, nothing is ever truly gone but fades into and out of what comes after, often reappearing in new and surprising ways. Enciso says, “The album lives in that in-between space where the past and present coexist and influence each other.”

 Enciso’s quartet delivers a collective sound. No individual is a self-promoter, including the leader. They have worked with him since 2021 and have a great intuitive feel for the architecture of his compositional approach. Long melodic lines advance like masses of air, or waves (if you prefer), and rhythmic ideas develop unbounded. Harmonies shimmer and then become subtly muted, sometimes even remotely dissonant. Yet, there’s a warmth that pervades throughout.  The inspiration for the album is best exemplified in the piano-driven “Waterfall,” though the metaphor of such runs through the entire album.  Enciso often witnessed the waterfalls that run through Ithaca’s gorge, impressed by the constant changes not only of water hitting the rocks, but also the shifting shapes of light.

Enciso works with alto saxophonist Nicola Caminiti, pianist Gabriel Chakarji, and drummer Miguel Russell. Along with Stephens, the other guest is Jahari Stampley, who contributes organ to two tracks.

The opening “High Priestess” is a flowing piece that nods to Wayne Shorter, full of mystery with Caminiti’s exploratory lines and Chakarji’s glistening piano. The motif seems suspended between two tonal centers, and Caminiti’s solo ties at least two different ideas together.  Meanwhile, Russell deftly steers the ship on his drum set. “Photogenic Memory” offers similar intrigue, mostly via the pianist’s inventive improvisations. Stephens steps in for the playful, lighter “Austin Otto,” using effects on his saxophone as he weaves through his solo. Chakarji picks up on the moods, dancing all over his keys, surrendering to Russell for an animated drum solo. “Stick Your Neck Out” is an up-tempo piece, centered on a call-and-response-like dialogue between Caminii and the rhythm section, who constantly push the momentum forward. Yet they deliberately decelerate, bringing the piece to a gorgeous conclusion.

“Thousand Yard Stare” is a ballad about that feeling of having much on one’s mind, an unshakable weight that is difficult to express. The playing is understated, remarkable considering it was done in just one take. Stampfley’s organ adds a subtle coloring, not breaking the coherence of the piece but thickening the harmonic texture. His lines linger in almost foreboding fashion at the end of the piece. “Solstice” is a dreamy piece, which, true to the album’s theme, has fragments of melody appearing and fading throughout. The water imagery continues through “Skipping Stones,” imbued by a richly toned bass line, Chakarji’s single notes and Caminiti’s ascending lines and liquid clusters, and Russell’s scattered rim shots. “Whirlpool” is a brief piece, a solo by the leader, which, contrary to the turbulent nature of the title, has him stepping carefully. The closer, by its title, suggests that we’ve left the imagery of the Ithaca environs to the famous street that runs through Harlem. It begins gently but builds in intensity, with Stampfley’s return on organ adding a density rarely heard in the prior pieces.

Enciso successfully executed his vision in this remarkably cohesive set of compositions. He delivers far more than just an auspicious debut. He makes his mark as a visionary composer.

• Jim Hynes

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