Aiming specifically for a complex, dense sound on his debut album, pianist Rich Pellegrin sets out on
Three-Part Odyssey to fill whole sonic landscapes, combining horns with one another for larger sounds and incorporating basslines into thicker underlying grooves. The first "part" comes across heavily, focusing on the lower end of the piano, deep bass solos, and post-bop horn arrangements courtesy of R. Scott Morning and Neil Welch. The second movement incorporates more suspense into its progression, playing lighter piano against off-kilter rhythm movements for an opening and building into a more tense, grandiose format in "Pastiche" before closing in an almost
Philip Glass-like piano-and-horn tessellation. The final movement gives Pellegrin room to stretch out on piano for some impressive soloing, as well as a chance to show some nearly avant-garde collective improvisation among the players, slightly reminiscent of
Albert Ayler's compositions. It's an adventurous album, especially for a debut, but
Three-Part Odyssey remains true to its stated goal of density and complexity from start to end. There's never a dull moment here. ~ Adam Greenberg