Takuya Kuroda (Friday, Triskel, 6.30pm) Fusion can be a scary word for fans of jazz, or any music. But Takuya Kuroda gives it a good name.
As a player, the Kobe-born trumpeter fits easily in the lineage of Donald Byrd, say, but his musical influences range far and wide. The prolific Kuroda has released five albums in the past decade, with loops, synths, and hip hop beats in the mix, in work that’s always groovy and soulful. His 2022 album, Fly Moon Die Soon , is an Afrobeat-infused effort, featuring covers from the likes of Herbie Hancock.
His latest, Midnight Crisp, has a cleaner sound though still heavy on funky beats. In other words: it’s hard to know what to expect from this sold-out early evening show. At Triskel it soon becomes clear that, in a live context, this excellent group keeps it very jazz indeed, finding range and harmony, elaborating with solos, and generally creating more interesting, improvised music.
In keeping with Kuroda’s reputation for new music, we begin with an as-yet-unreleased track. Later, some of the best moments come from the high-energy piano playing of Takahiro Izumikawa, especially as he and Craig Hill on saxophone set off towards a crescendo which may never come, but which, in the rapid fingering, hard-blowing and some oomph from the drums, takes us somewhere special. This is a group that knows how to keep it varied, exemplified by a trumpet-sax duet that is witty and playful.
Kuroda saves the most recognisable moment for last: his cove.