Sasha Berliner: Onyx
JMI Recordings

In selecting a word that, among other things, stands for strength and durability, vibraphonist Sasha Berliner chose the title for her sophomore album wisely. The material on Onyx is as tough as the dark stone, thanks in no small part to the illustrious crew of musicians the San Francisco-born Berliner recruited for the project. First among equals is drummer Marcus Gilmore, whose ever-inventive attack drives the performances, followed closely by Burniss Travis II on upright and electric bass and James Francies on piano and Fender Rhodes. Appearing on select cuts are alto saxophonist Jaleel Shaw, vocalist Thana Alexa, and Julius Rodriguez on analog synths. Front and centre, of course, is Berliner, whose mallet artistry and arresting compositions give Onyx its defining character. She was voted “Rising Star, Vibraphonist” in a recent DownBeat critics' poll, and it's easy to understand why when the evidence is so compelling.

Berliner says Onyx is “meant to be seen as a collection of artistic statements rather than a story with a peak and a conclusion. Each work holds its own, yet infuses a bit of itself in every other piece.” That's both an instructive and accurate description of the set when each of its eight tracks—seven if the two-part treatment of “My Funny Valentine” is considered one—plays like a self-contained piece yet at the same time feels integral to the whole. No matter how it's regarded, the album's engrossing.

Berliner's rise has been rapid, all things considered. She arrived in New York in 2016, quickly caught the ear of respected figures such as Nicholas Payton and Tyshawn Sorey, and issued her debut album Azalea in 2019. Her playing on its follow-up is marked by authority and confidence; all hearing it would surely agree no one could call it tentative. Though it might be tempting to think its vitality could be attributed to the unleashing of energy that naturally accompanied the lifting of pandemic-related restrictions, Onyx was actually recorded in December 2020 and therefore right in the midst of it. Perhaps it might be more accurate to see the album as an expression emboldened by a resilient spirit determined to not let non-musical forces sap her creative will.

Its head-turning opener, “Jade,” sets the tone, especially when it's kickstarted by Gilmore's dazzling, shuffle-inflected groove and Francies' sparkling keys. Shaw enters to establish the tune's dark harmonic tone, his lithe horn doubling up with the leader's vibes before she ventures forth with her own assured solo, a breezy turn that glides smoothly across the ferocious churn generated by the rhythm team. Forget genre classifying—“Jade” is as much hip-hop as jazz without slotting itself into either, but the music's towering swing makes thinking along such lines a fool's game. Ethereal and lustrous by comparison, “Crescent Park (In Elliptical Time)” bewitches when Alexa's featured, the singer always elevating any project she's a part of with her presence. The tempo's slower here, and with Rodriguez's synths adding to the arrangement the atmosphere's dreamier too. Up next, the adventurous “Polaris” captures the remarkable fluidity with which the musicians navigate through a complex, harmonically shifting landscape.

The title of “NW” references both Berliner's San Francisco hometown and a favourite novel by English writer Zadie Smith. Genre again falls to the wayside in a mercurial roller coaster that, especially when Shaw's present, recalls jazz-rock fusion in its prime as much as traditional jazz. Berliner's originals are strong, but so too is her re-imagining of “My Funny Valentine,” the evocative opening part featuring her alone and enrapturing the listener with a spellcasting exploration, the second a breathtaking, high-velocity band essaying. A new era of vibraphonist artistry has been ushered in by Berliner and her contemporaries Joel Ross, Simon Moullier, and Patricia Brennan, all of whose work has been lauded with praise. Building on the legacies of Lionel Hampton, Gary Burton, and other pioneers, the new players are reaffirming the instrument's identity as a voice inarguably strong enough to front an ensemble.

December 2022