Parallels juxtaposes Joe Sanders' adroit skills and resonant sound on double bass with his all-round competence in the studio as composer, producer and arranger.

The first four tracks, driven by drummer Greg Hutchinson and with saxophonists Logan Richardson and Seamus Blake in the front line, were recorded at a gig in the South of France. The remainder, with Sanders playing many instruments, were multi-tracked by Sanders at his home studio. The result is an excellent showcase for Sanders’ all-round musicality and the rich sounds and nifty finger-work of the Sanders bass, but the album is less than the sum of the parts.

The four live tracks open with the interlocking lines and sweetly harmonised saxophones of 'Dualities'. 'Granma' comes next, a sonorous mid-tempo complexity that finds Seamus Blake phrasing tightly on tenor sax, and then the twisty lines of 'J’Ai' unfold over up-tempo swing. 'La Vie Sur Terre' with Sanders’ son adding warmth on melodica, closes a good live set that has Blake and Justin Robinson blending nicely, tight bass and drums and solos that grip.

The remaining tracks were studio-recorded and range from the excellent solo bass of 'Parallels' to the sax and rhythm track 'Amalfi' on which Jure Pukl guests on tenor sax – nice playing, but the rhythm tracks are obviously overdubbed. 'The Rise and Fall of Pipokuhn' and 'Orange Bleu' use dense electronic textures which work better, but Taylor Eigsti’s piano is something of an afterthought on ‘DH’, the album’s final track.