New York-based saxophonist Ayumi Ishito has been leading her own quintet for nearly 15 years. *Wondercult Club*, her solo debut for 577 Records, is inspired by her cherished collaborator, saxophonist Daniel Carter. Earlier in 2024, Ishito, along with guitarist George Draguns and drummer Kevin Shea, released *Roboquarians, Vol. 1*, a daring mix of electrified improv and vanguard jazz-rock.
*Wondercult Club* was recorded in a single day in a Brooklyn studio by Todd Carder. The album blurs the lines between post-bop, avant-garde, spacy garage funk, riff-heavy hard rock, and more. The quintet — Ishito on sax and electronics, guitarists Hajime Yoshida and Yana Davydova, drummer Carter Bales, and bassist Yoshiki Yamada — are seasoned improvisers and ensemble players who follow her seamlessly through various genres, styles, sonic spectrums, and textures across eight compositions. The opening tracks, “Sugar High People” and “The Basement Jam,” set the tone for the album. “Sugar High People” begins with a breezy melody shared by the guitarists and Ishito, underpinned by a warm Brazilian samba rhythm. A minute in, Yamada shifts gears, leading Bales and the rest of the band into open improvisation, playing with dissonances and guitar effects before returning to the elegant, airy theme at a slightly quicker tempo. “The Basement Jam” starts with Yamada’s circular funky bassline atop breakbeats and spectral, effects-laden guitars. Ishito’s electronics add depth and abstraction, with her saxophone emerging only in the final third to deliver a supporting theme. “Hot Summer Nightmares” blends accessible harmonic sensibility with jagged syncopated prog rhythms, reminiscent of ’80s-era King Crimson. “Blue Heart” is a beautifully layered ballad that marries post-bop and ambient sonics, with Ishito’s horn seamlessly intertwining with the guitars to create a wide-textured tonal palette. “Garden Meeting” mixes South African jazz, Ghanaian highlife, and a spiky guitar vamp that recalls the intro to “La Bamba.” Midway through, the track takes a funky turn before the quintet supports Ishito’s fiery solo, culminating in a euphoric post-bop conclusion. “Chasing the Deer” weaves modal and post-bop elements with psychedelically inspired prog-fusion. The brief closer “Speed Skater” (1:37) ventures furthest afield, combining Frank Zappa-esque harmonic intrigue, free improv, and rock guitar pyrotechnics in a tight progression. Wondercult Club reveals Ishito as a fearless, focused composer, sophisticated improviser, and canny bandleader. She rejects rigid genre boundaries, forging her own path through experimental jazz, seamlessly integrating various traditions without artifice or self-indulgent excess.
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