Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Dave Bass Trio: Trio Nuevo Vol 2

Dave Bass Trio: Trio Nuevo Vol 2

By Pierre Giroux
June 12, 2025
View read count

With Trio Nuevo Vol. 2, pianist

Dave Bass

piano

" data-original-title="" title="">Dave Bass continues to chart his unique course through the jazz landscape, delivering an album that is both grounded in tradition and fearlessly progressive. Joined by the superb

Tyler Miles

bass

" data-original-title="" title="">Tyler Miles on bass and the ever- responsive

Steve Helfand

drums

" data-original-title="" title="">Steve Helfand on drums, Bass offers a multifaceted recording that celebrates the breadth of jazz expression. From bebop burners to Latin explorations and classical-infused musings, the trio navigates the shift in terrain with precision and soul.

The album opens with the intricately conceived "Legrand/Lester Left Town." Bass's original number functions as a dialogue between two musical spirits:

Michel Legrand

piano
1932 - 2019

" data-original-title="" title="">Michel Legrand, the French composer known for his musical lyricism, and tenor saxophonist

Wayne Shorter

saxophone
1933 - 2023

" data-original-title="" title="">Wayne Shorter, whose "Lester Left Town" is an iconic nod to the departure of

Lester Young

saxophone
1909 - 1959

" data-original-title="" title="">Lester Young. It is a masterstroke of intertextual composition brimming with invention and emotional depth. The first of the covers is Egberto Gismonti's "Frevo," a tour de force. The trio captures the Brazilian composer's kaleidoscopic energy with precision and flair. Bass dances over Helfand's dazzling polyrhythms with acuity and melodic daring, and Miles's bass solo offers authenticity to his big tone. Dave Bass's composition "Melqu��ades" has a Latin pulse and is a mysterious and rhythmically intricate number that unfolds like a dream sequence. Bass displays his fondness for modal textures and subtle dynamic shifts, floating over the Latin beat established by Helfand. Bass continues this musical narrative with "Latin Journey," which is based on excerpts from Isaac Alb��niz's "Asturias" and Ernesto Lecuona's "La Comparsa," as well as his composition, "Mi Montuno." The number sparkles with infectious syncopations that conjure up memories of

Eddie Palmieri

piano
1936 - 2025

" data-original-title="" title="">Eddie Palmieri and

Chucho Valdes

piano
b.1941

" data-original-title="" title="">Chucho Valdes. Bass's playing is percussive yet melodic, his phrases cascading like water over Helfand's crisp patterns and Miles's bass lines.

The take on

Thelonious Monk

piano
1917 - 1982

" data-original-title="" title="">Thelonious Monk's "Trinkle Tinkle" is wonderfully off-kilter and irrepressibly joyful. Bass does not shy away from Monk's thorny harmonies and rhythmic dislocations, but adds his own spin and phrasing style. Helfand and Miles match Bass's jagged lines with their counter-punching style. Dave Bass has always had a fondness for the music of bebop piano master

Bud Powell

piano
1924 - 1966

" data-original-title="" title="">Bud Powell, and has continued his tradition of recording his compositions, with the classic "Dance Of The Infidels." The interpretation is treated with a reverence that does not sacrifice energy. Bass channels Powell's sprinting lines while adding bluesy grace notes and unexpected detours. The rhythm section provides support with a bop-infused pocket.

The closer is

Lennie Tristano

piano
1919 - 1978

" data-original-title="" title="">Lennie Tristano's "Lennie's Pennies," a contrafact based on the chord changes of the popular song "Pennies From Heaven" written by Arthur Johnson and Johnny Burke. Bass's agile lines and daring substitutions honour Tristano's cerebral approach while injecting visceral swinging. Miles and Helfand are right there with him, navigating the tune's harmonic complexity with aplomb.

Learn more about our star rating system

Track Listing

Legrand/Lester Left Town; Heart Above My Head; Frevo; Melquiades; Latin Journey; Questions; Trinkle Tinkle; Fools Rush In; Dance Of The Infidels; Journey With Bach; Lennie's Pennies.

Personnel

Dave Bass

piano

Tyler Miles

bass

Steve Helfand

drums

Album information

Title: Trio Nuevo Vol 2 | Year Released: 2025 | Record Label: Dave Bass Music

PREVIOUS / NEXT

Meet Matt Merewitz of Fully Altered ...
< Previous

Jed Levy, Kandace Springs, Leon Ande...
Next >

Dave Bass Concerts

Oct 22 Wed

Trio Nuevo 3

Twin Lotus Thai
Sacramento, CA

Support All About Jazz

All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.