Camille Thurman - Origins (2014)

Vocalist, multi-instrumentalist Camille Thurman is not just another girl singer accessorizing with a horn. She is a first class saxophonist that blows the proverbial roof off the place and an accomplished stylist who uses her vocal cords like she does her various woodwinds, with agility and sophistication.

Her sophomore effort Origins is a testament of her skill and talent not only as a performer but also as a composer as she penned most of the music on the record. This delightfully engaging work opens with a bang. "Forward Motion" features Thurman's brassy tenor in a witty, mercurial improvisation over drummer Rudy Royston's spare, atmospheric beats and bassist Corcoran Holt's resonant strings. Holt weaves an intense and lyrical solo around the intimate three-way conversation and his thrilling acrobatics bring the tune back to the head.

Holt's bluesy reverberations briefly take center stage in the gorgeously inventive "Indigo Moments" otherwise he lays down complex rhythms together with harmonically colorful percussionist Shirazette Tinnin. The mellifluous piece is built around Thurman's acerbic and soaring soprano sax that is the perfect foil for pianist Luis Perdomo's graceful and yearning cascade of notes.

Perdomo joins forces with another pianist the virtuosic Enoch Smith Jr. on the standard "Please Be Kind." The contrast between the two and Thurman's emotive, passionate and tad whimsical articulation of the lyrics make for a stirring and haunting interpretation of the song.

Equally ethereal is "The Dreamweaverer." Thurman's saxophone adlibs with a reserved angularity as Royston and Holt together with guest harpist Brandee Younger buoy the leader's undulating lines. Younger's inventive extemporization brims with soulful energy balancing a resonant airiness with a vibrantly organic feel.

Thurman's muscular flittering flute drops and rises over Tinnin's funk-infused, earthy beats on the Latin tinged "In Duetime." Thurman's delightful and inventive scatting echoes her bright tone and winding style on her instrument.

With the intriguing Origins Thurman reveals herself as a unique and consummate artist. Although she is at the threshold of a brilliant and promising career, this disc does more than whet the appetite for her future output. It stands on its own as a stimulating musical statement.

By HRAYR ATTARIAN
All About Jazz