HARPER TRIO – DIALOGUE OF THOUGHTS (Little Yellow Man Records) (200 ltd LP/ DL) (2025)

This follow-up to Harper Trio’s successful “Passing By” LP is described as “an aural journey rich in nuance and unexpected turns”. It begins with ‘Quiet Mind’ demarcated by a quintuplet of harp notes from Maria- Christina Harper accompanied by Josephine Davies on sax whose warm notes are a delight throughout (Except maybe during the more avant-garde sections) and Evan Jenkins of The Neil Cowley Trio on drums (cymbals and atmospheric percussion on this number). The impressive ‘Walk’ does have drums and a repetitive harp ‘riff’ as the sax ascends a scale and then takes up the riff extravagantly with flurries and runs of sound. ‘Ephemeral Now’ has a smoother jazz rhythm with piano and a ruminative theme with a step change as a new theme emerges with a strong melodic edge. ‘Inner Thoughts’ is more free form with spoken parts and ‘Dialogue Fusion’ is also a bit of a blow with an unusual rhythmic quality. ‘Madness While Trying to Meditate’ has another hypnotic riff on harp, the style verging on rock then slowing to walking pace, the rippling of the harp combining well with the studied notes of the sax. ‘In Between Dream’s has the same hypnotic quality while ‘Sometime in Cairo’ fulfils its eastern promise in line with the Greek and Egyptian roots of some of the music. The final track ‘Moving On’ has a spoken introduction and is a subtle way to end to an album that makes an interesting and varying listen musically and thematically.