Christian Scott

Christian aTunde Adjuah, Concord ****

Christian Scott wields a colourful trumpet and that instrument is what joins the dots on this majestic, ambitious double-release, full of spirit, energy and thought. The New Orleans' player's eighth album sets out to examine themes of identity, specifically his own family's African ancestry, in the context of various social issues of the modern world, from unrest in Africa to the slaying of Trayvon Martin. Poking around in big themes often produces hectoring strawmen, but it is meat and drink to Scott, a musician with the gumption and guile to tackle such topics without a heavy hand. Throughout Christian aTunde Adjuah, Scott and his quintet are nimble, quick-witted and sure of themselves, shooting the funk into corners, keeping that down-low New Orleans' Big Chief sauce on the boil and fine-tuning their blur of fit-for-purpose jazz throughout. Audacious in all the right ways. christianscott.tv

Download tracks: New New Orleans, Kiel, Jihad Joe