Review: Patrick Shiroishi and Jason Nazary, "here i am no i"
The word “Jazz” has come to take on a profusion of meanings in the 21st century, from the neo-bop represented by the Marsalis family and forever immortalized as a museum piece in conservatories all over the country to a term that the internet uses for any music with a saxophone. The scope of the term is demonstrative of how foundational jazz is to American music and American culture in a broader sense, but the music itself in the contemporary age largely feels soulless, as a result of the appropriation of its aesthetics without the decades spent honing the craft and developing a real appetite for Jazz music with a capital J. Nonetheless, there are still many artists pushing the boundaries of jazz music and figuring out what it can look and sound like in the digital age, both when it comes to straight-ahead jazz—Joshua Redman, Walter Smith III, and Mary Halvorson come to mind—and in new and exciting genres for which I would not dare throw out a name.
Relatedly, Patrick Shiroishi is an artist I have been fascinated by since I came across his 2025 release, Forgetting is Violent. The album was whirling and dissonant, solemn and emotional. Since then, I have seen him in concert enough times such that I’ve lost count, and every time he manages to be doing something unique and interesting, from live-looping his saxophone through his pedalboard while reading his poetry to his trio album release show with Dave Harrington and Max Jaffe where he built a luscious soundscape with his bandmates and immersed the crowd in a variety of jingly and jangly percussive elements.
Now, the dissonant, dizzying sounds of Patrick Shiroishi return for a second full-length release this year, this time supported by New York-based drummer and synthesist Jason Nazary. here i am no i is built around Shiroishi’s slow-moving, not-quite-in-time saxophone loops gliding gracefully on top of Nazary’s complex and dynamic percussive colors, all with Shiroishi’s unique combination of post-bop and free jazz language front and center. Every track is bold and builds masterfully, making for an album with hardly a dull moment.
The third track, “lovesong of the square root of negative one,” is exemplary of the dynamism of the album. The song begins with a rhythmic synth pulsing and Shiroishi’s breathy saxophone. A duo of haunting saxophones play a harmonized melody, accented by Nazary’s rhythmic colors. Shiroishi begins his solo with melancholic, weeping trills before slowly diving deeper into Brötzmann/Dolphy style language, with frantic, bewildering lines that tear at your heart, all on the base of the original two saxophone melodies. More saxophones join the desperate fray before the track dissipates.
Every track on this innovative and memorable release is similarly given room to breathe while having a beautiful narrative arc. here i am no i is a joy to listen to and an album I find myself returning to again and again. It’s so exciting to hear new takes on what jazz can look like in 2026, especially when crafted with as much care as this Shiroishi and Nazary release. This album is a gorgeous and important contribution to LA’s off-beat, contemporary jazz scene and a must-listen for anyone seeking out innovative and moving instrumental music.
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