In 2014, the lyrical, meticulously nuanced music of the Austrian guitarist Wolfgang Muthspiel found its way to the ECM label – a place that many of his admirers might long have considered should be his natural home. With Angular Blues, Muthspiel returns to the trio format of his ECM debut after two quintet releases, and with the earthily direct, Ray Brown-like approach of double bassist Scott Colley joining Brian Blade’s inspired mix of the supportive and the interventionist at the drums, it’s also his most explicitly jazzy release on the label, not least for the inclusion of the standards ‘Everything I Love’ and ‘I’ll Remember April’. The fluently catchy groove and bass-stated theme of the opening ‘Wondering’ sets a vibe of easygoing looseness from the off, and the title track is an attractively staccato dance -constantly embroidered by Muthspiel’s ringing harmonies, onrushing runs, and whippy chords, and held in shape by Colley and Blade cruising beneath. The folk-ballad ‘Huttengriffe’ is a solemn, beautifully played guitar trance; the bright, nimble melody of ‘Ride’ sets Muthspiel loose in Wes Montgomery territory; a group and a solo bugged-guitar exploration of the call-and-response canon format are hypnotically intense and prettily contrapuntal respectively, and the standards show how much freshness this fine guitarist can bring to much-travelled chordal journeys. Angular Blues features Muthspiel at his most orthodox, and the routine of guitar-bass-drums solos on most tracks reinforces that impression. But it’s a unique collection of personal statements by a very classy contemporary trio too.