The thirtysomething Bari-born pianist's Kube trio has been turning heads on the European circuit, including a date this autumn at the Soho Pizza Express. If they sound like an assured cocktail of many of the contemporary piano trio movers and shakers over the past decade, the sensuous, Mediterranean-infused themes and atmosphere on the new recording Room of Mirrors sets them apart. Fornarelli moved to France in 2005 and has released two straightahead-ish recordings prior to taking a sabbatical in order to realign his playing towards a more contemporary aesthetic. Made up of the leader's originals, the opener ‘Room of Mirrors’ is Brad Mehldau-like in its harmonic development, but Kekko plays with a more richly orchestrated style on piano and the drummer Gianlivio Liberti uses the studio sound well, favouring beats derived from rock, hip hop and electronica. Both moody and melancholic, Fornarelli's terse, wistful melodic themes occasionally recall the late Esbjörn Svensson's writing too although the penchant he has for gospel and latin elements in his playing descends from an entirely American tradition.