Jeff Parker comes across as lowkey, almost sleepy in his guitar delivery. The jazz guitarist has traveled many music miles over the last 20 years; as a member of the post-rock/experimental outfit Tortoise, sought-after collaborator for artists like Makaya McCraven, Rob Mazurek and most recently Flea, as well as a steady flow of masterful solo records.
But over the last few years Jeff Parker has truly made a name for himself playing improvisational shows with the ETA IVtet, or Enfield Tennis Academy Quartet. The band consists of saxophonist Josh Johnson, bassist Anna Butterss and drummer Jay Bellerose. Their debut album was a breath of fresh air for the world of jazz and improvisational music, and with 2024s The Way Out of Easy he’s cemented his reputation as one of the leading forces in today’s modern jazz movement.
The latest from Jeff Parker ETA IVtet is the transcendent Happy Today. Two tracks, both nearly 25 minutes each, take groovy, dreamy, and inventive turns and tricks as the band plays for an astonished audience. The results are nothing short of hypnotic, inventive, and brilliant.
Filmmaker Charlie Weinmann made a 46 minute concert film of the making of this record. If you can find the time I say you need to sit down and watch it. While the album itself is amazing, watching these 4 musicians communicate not through words but through intuition, feel, and of course music is a sight and sound to behold. But if moving pictures aren’t your jam, well the album will go a long way to blowing your mind.
Side one is the the languid and exploratory “Like Swimwear”. It opens with Parker’s looping guitar line which slinks spider-like as the band slowly joins in on the fun. Josh Johnson adds color and texture with his saxophone, while the rhythm section of Butterss and Bellerose gives the proceedings a solid foundation to explore from. The song ends with Anna Butterss’ upright bass and the hazy drone of guitar and saxophone.
Side two is title track “Happy Today”. The shuffling of feet is covered over by the drone of Parker’s guitar. Calling this just “jazz” is really undermining what Jeff Parker does. He works as much like a painter as he does musician, layering drones of noise via effect pedals. There’s a psychedelic quality to what he does, and in that way he puts me in mind of a guitarist like John Scofield, another proper jazz musician that explores psychedelia as well as funk and blues.
The track takes its time building momentum, moving like clouds on an otherwise blue sky day. Near the 12-minute mark after various percussion Bellerose comes in with an absolute funky beat and the song finds a strut and keeps it up to the end. All four musicians lock in and never lose sight.
Happy Today is yet another brilliant turn from Jeff Parker and his ETA IVtet. There’s nothing quite like this happening now. This isn’t just the future of jazz, but the future of music in general. Alive, improvisational, and in the moment.
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