Jazz
Corbett vs. Dempsey · 2026
The album was recorded live at Chicago’s Constellation in 2025, and it’s three people: Josh Berman on cornet, Jason Roebke on double bass and Chris Corsano on drums. With no piano or guitar to anchor the harmony, Berman uses the open space to write singable themes before taking them apart.
The method repeats and it works. There’s a clear melodic head, and the exploration builds from there: «Scale», the eighth track, opens up through cracks, angles and threads until the trio finds its way back to where it left off. Free improvisation is in there, but always within the margins the opening and closing themes set.
The closer, «Second Look», is the record’s best track: Corsano keeps a brushed backdrop that sounds like fine rain while the cornet and bass hold a low-key dialogue that never rises. Corbett vs. Dempsey release it on CD and download.
The reservation comes from right here. Berman first put this trio together in 2015 and now extends it without questioning it: the same melodic margins that keep the record from coming apart also mean the risk stays capped from the start. In a repertoire steeped in bop, that safety shows.
Rating: 7.5/10
Text by Aina Torrents