Keyboardist-composer James Francies has gained quasi-wunderkind status in the past few years by way of his contributions to veterans such as Pat Metheny, Marcus Miller and Chris Potter as well as his auspicious 2018 Blue Note debut Flight. To a great extent the 24-year-old is the contemporary artist who looks like a convincing heir to the thrones of Herbie, Zawinul and Chick because of his ability to plot an intelligent course though both the electric and acoustic heritage of black music without falling into any of the cliches that often ensnare those attempting ‘fusion’ without any real sense of daring.

What stands out the most on Purest Form is the beguiling beauty of some of the textures, particularly ballads such as ‘Melting’ and ‘Eyes Wide Shut’, where Francies has chosen exactly the kind of disturbingly vaporous synth sounds to resonate with a voice as singular as that of Bilal. Francies moves to the opposite end of the spectrum with a piece such as ‘Transfiguration,‘ which is all stinging uptempo attack, frenetically zigzag melody and a fabulously expansive solo from the leader, who is ably supported by the steady yet supple drums-bass axis of Jeremy Dutton and Burniss Traviss.

As anybody who has seen Francies with Potter's Circuits Trio will know he is capable of delivering explosive, ecstatic solos when appropriate but there is also a contemplative side to him that is most engaging when applied to an interest in black history, as is the case on ‘Freedmen's Town’, where spoken word testimony on Texas' post-slave period over gorgeous pianissimo musings loosely recall Jason Moran's ‘Gentle Shifts South’. Music that is saying something in every possible way.