Heading into his ninth Megaoctet album in 30 years, why would French pianist/composer Andy Emler be in a hurry? That said, the title track actually heads off at a fair old pace, with Emler’s piano and Francoise Verly’s drumming setting a brisk undertow against the corrective swooning of wind instruments. As the two forces negotiate, Laurent Blondiau mediates with a long, scrabbling trumpet solo - one of his many impressive contributions to the album.

Emler’s compositional formula often involves a counterpoint of rhythmic groove against almost classically complex arrangements over which one or more players freely improvise. There’s a keen sense that he writes to the strengths of the ensemble members while his own piano contributions are more diffidently deployed to bring the whole together. And when it comes together the sound can be truly orchestral, worthy of a full-strength big band. That powerful full effect is used judiciously, however, often sandwiched between quiet duo or trio passages exploring the textural permutations on offer.

After three decades there’s an irony to calling a tune ‘Just A Beginning’, especially when it heralds the return of original member guitarist Nguyên Lê as a guest. After an intricately written ensemble opening section, Lê’s twanging solo guitar wavers over the tuba’s droning bass rasp, growing in assertion and range as the piece builds in response. The score eventually shifts into a full-strength onslaught behind his frenzied fretwork before collapsing to leave a reflective piano and a distant slide guitar. It’s a brilliant piece of writing that showcases the collective empathy between band and bandleader in a project that knows exactly where it is going.