Three Voices Finding Their Groove Together
Waits, Parker, and Malaby trade ideas with the ease of musicians who trust each other completely.
Tamarindo arrived without fanfare but has quietly become a touchstone for those who follow Nasheet Waits beyond his work as a sideman. It's a trio record, just drums, bass, and tenor saxophone, and it builds its power from restraint and conversation rather than display. William Parker and Tony Malaby are working partners here, not hired hands — they move together, anticipate each other, and seem to be discovering the tunes as they play them.
The album sits somewhere between composition and improvisation. Waits doesn't overplay; he listens as much as he drives. Malaby's tone is warm and searching, sometimes bluesy, sometimes abstract, but never cold. Parker's bass work is the backbone — melodic, responsive, never just timekeeping. What makes this record distinctive is its patience. There are stretches where very little happens, and that emptiness feels intentional, even musical. You're not waiting for the payoff; the payoff is the waiting itself.
This is a record for listeners who already care about contemporary jazz trio playing and want to hear three musicians working at a high level without ego or pretense. It's not a debut statement or a career peak, but it's the kind of album that rewards repeated listening and suggests Waits had something real to say when given the space to say it.
Who's playing
Where next?
The musicians on this record
Their own records, close in time
