| Jazz |
Summary : Canadian-born drummer and composer Bobby Wiens delivers a sophisticated and deeply engaging jazz album that honors tradition while embracing contemporary expression. Featuring exceptional musicianship, intricate compositions, and a memorable reinterpretation of Bob Dylan’s “With God on Our Side,” this is a release that jazz lovers should not overlook.
Bobby Wiens Finds the Beating Heart of Modern Jazz on a Brilliant New Album
I’ve integrated the suggestions directly into the review while maintaining the long-form Washington Post-style tone and preserving your enthusiasm.
Bobby Wiens was kind enough to send us his album back in March. For reasons that remain a mystery, however, it never reached us. After several exchanges with the artist, we finally have the opportunity to give this remarkable recording the attention it deserves.
Originally from Canada and now based in Denver, Colorado, Wiens has built an impressive career as both a bandleader and sideman, performing, recording, and touring alongside world-class musicians throughout the United States and Canada. His studies with distinguished educators and performers including John Riley, Joe Farnsworth, Kenny Washington, Jim White, Dylan van der Schyff, Jon McCaslin, and Memo Acevedo have clearly contributed to the depth of his musical language. Yet from the very first moments of this album, it becomes evident that drumming represents only a small part of his artistic identity.
The opening track, “Go Back to the Beginning,” immediately establishes the record’s character. Wiens’ touch behind the kit is marked by an uncommon delicacy, while the trumpet seems almost playful as it dances around the rhythmic framework he proposes. Then comes “Focus,” a dazzling excursion into bebop territory that leaves no doubt that surprises lie ahead. Wiens writes music of considerable complexity, but what makes these compositions truly compelling is the sense of humor and humanity that runs through them.
Inevitably, echoes of jazz’s greatest masters can be heard throughout the album. Yet what strikes me most is not simply the quality of the trumpet playing, extraordinary though it is, but the collective excellence of the ensemble. Every musician here performs at an exceptional level. The trumpeter emerges as one of the most compelling voices on today’s jazz scene, but the same can be said of the musicians surrounding him. When Wiens finally steps forward for one of his own solos, he offers a masterclass in restraint and expression. Rather than attempting to overwhelm the listener with technical fireworks, he develops his ideas from within, shaping each phrase with patience and purpose. There is something deeply personal and profoundly musical in his approach. His sensibility recalls the lineage of artists such as Miles Davis and Joe Zawinul, musicians who understood that emotional depth often speaks louder than virtuosity alone.
It is difficult not to wonder about the breadth of Wiens’ musical culture and influences. His compositions reveal themselves as affectionate and highly successful tributes to the rich legacy of African American music. Every track offers something to savor. The listener constantly feels on familiar ground, yet the results remain strikingly contemporary. The piano work deserves special mention, as does the bass playing, both contributing significantly to the album’s remarkable sense of balance and cohesion.
This is an album that will appeal equally to devoted jazz aficionados and serious collectors. In fact, I found myself returning to it repeatedly. One listen became two, then three, then many more. As I continued writing these notes, the album remained in constant rotation. There is something addictive about it. Once it draws you into its world, it becomes difficult to leave.
Another of the record’s most impressive achievements is the equilibrium maintained among the instruments. Given the sophistication of these compositions, a single miscalculation in the writing could have upset the entire structure. Instead, everything feels carefully crafted, refined, and sculpted with extraordinary attention to detail.
When viewed through the composer’s own words, the album’s artistic vision becomes even clearer. As Wiens explains:
“I wanted to begin with a tune that, for me, captures the beating heart of the jazz musicians I most admire, those filled with swing and soul. It comes from a knowledge and understanding of the music born in New Orleans at the beginning of the twentieth century. Gabe shares that sensibility, so we improvised a quick take at the end of the session, a piece I titled ‘Go Back to the Beginning.'”
That statement serves almost as a key to the entire album. It is built upon countless references, but never in a manner that feels derivative. Instead, these references become acts of admiration, transformed into something personal, vibrant, and fully alive in the present moment.
The recording concludes with a reinterpretation of Bob Dylan’s “With God on Our Side,” a choice that proves both unexpected and deeply effective. Here, the ensemble performs with extraordinary elegance and maturity. One senses that this piece could become the perfect closing statement not only for the album but perhaps for future live performances as well. After such an interpretation, it is easy to imagine an audience already applauding, already demanding one more song before the musicians leave the stage.
Perhaps, in the end, not receiving this album back in March was a blessing in disguise. Listening to it now, its freshness remains entirely intact, as though it had only just been released. And with summer approaching, this feels like precisely the right moment to shine a little more light on Bobby Wiens and the outstanding musicians who bring this music so vividly to life.
Albums this accomplished do not arrive every day. This is one worth discovering.
Thierry De Clemensat
Member at Jazz Journalists Association
USA correspondent for Paris-Move and ABS magazine
Editor in chief – Bayou Blue Radio, Bayou Blue News
PARIS-MOVE, June 8th, 2026
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Musicians:
Gabriel Mervine – trumpet and flugelhorn
Tom Amend – piano and keyboards
Seth Lewis – bass
Bobby Wiens – drums
Track Listing :
- Go Back to the Beginning (2:15)
- Focus (7:09)
- Hat Trick (5:37)
- Devoted Heart (7:25)
- Sun Dance (For Al Foster) (5:50)
- Hermann (3:56)
- Headed East (6:48)
- Morning Run (4:14)
- Mantra (7:49)
- For AJ (6:38)
- Minor Dilemma (4:23)
- With God on Our Side (7:23)
All compositions by Bobby Wiens (BMI), except “With God on Our Side” (Bob Dylan, Special Rider Music)
Recorded by Colin Bricker at Mighty Fine Productions (Denver, CO) on December 10, 2025
Mixed and Mastered by Colin Bricker (MFP)
Photography by Hannah Rodriguez
Album Design by Jacob Reid