Bassist Phil Donkin tends to slip under the radar more than he ought but he’s a commanding presence, up there with the standout voices of his generation. His various jazz, jazz-latin and groove-rooted sensibilities have been nurtured on both the London and New York jazz scenes but he has an open-ended approach dependent on context. Since residing in Berlin a decade ago he’s released an excellent NYC jazz-orientated debut The Gate and excelled on solo bass for Walk Alone, an album defined by the pandemic years.

For his new recording Donkin extends the sound palette to an octet, the largest ensemble he’s documented on recording to date. He also takes a more leftfield turn with an enigmatic tonal palette that embraces unconventional contemporary classical elements, be it with an undiminished jazz-fuelled rhythmic impetus.

The opener ‘Doll Head’ has something of the spirit of In a Silent Way-era Miles in its democratic collective ambience anchored at first by a spooky synth vamp as Donkin’s fracturing groove and micro horn riffs punctuate various instrumental free-improv conversations. ‘Upon Echo’ has a more formal jazz structure with its drily angular trumpet-sax theme contrasting with an exuberantly swinging solo from impressive pianist Clara Vetter; the fragmentary free bop-ish ’13 Steps’ and spaced-out vibes/Rhodes-led ‘Sphere of Influence’ have Donkin’s avant funk bass and the excellent James Maddren’s stuttering contemporary beats laying the ground for some fine solos.

If Bring a Friend is a tougher listen at first for those more attuned to the bassist-leader’s post-bop lyricism, it’s worth persevering. Maddren and Donkin steer the ship with their infectiously fragmented grooves, especially on penultimate track ‘Mr Logic’, a highlight of this stimulating and accomplished effort.