Josh Hou
Bilingualism
Self-Released

Whatever you do, don’t call Seattle accordionist/keyboardist Josh Hou a sentimentalist. Sure, his playing shows a love of catchy melody and the pastel moods of swing, and in projects like his standards duo with guitarist Andy Short, How Short Jazz, he sparks off humor and a little showbiz flair. For his debut recording as a leader, Bilingualism, Hou teams up with trumpeter Raymond Larsen and bassist Troy Schiefelbein, pushing his musical conception further by using traditional Chinese music as a point of inspiration.

The trio’s chamber sound might evoke Natsuki Tamura and Satoko Fujii’s Gato Libre project, yet rather than evocative music searching for a nationality, Hou and company reveal a complex nationality, searching for a new music. Hou mixes traditional songs (the pentatonic “Jasmine Flower”) with his own, musette-style compositions (the inventive “Maritime Serenade”), blending them in his ensemble’s studied ethos of melody and swing. Hou’s sense of classical reserve unfolds in the title track, where a pentatonic melody shifts between trumpet and accordion, playfully enacting the translation of self between two native languages.

Schiefelbein, a contributor to projects like Simon Henneman’s New Series One; and Larsen, an essential part of Chemical Clock, answer well to Hou’s encompassing sound on accordion. On tunes like “Afternoon Nap,” Larsen shows his chops on ascending lines over a descending chord progression, while Schiefelbein holds down the low end. “Wrong Turn” stands out as an ensemble piece—a funky, cruising anthem with a mean, percussive bass line and a stereo comp in the twin bellows of the accordion. Articulate, self-assured, and styling, each member of the trio brings their respective languages into play, announcing an identity outside of any single genre. –Ian Gwin

The CD release concert for Bilingualism is September 5, at the Royal Room. Details at theroyalroomseattle.com