Judging by his sleeve notes for this fourth album, and his second for Siggi Loch's ACT following Follow The White Rabbit, the high-flying Israeli, Paris-based pianist has been doing a lot of soul searching recently. Perhaps that's why this feels like his most generous, heartfelt sounding recording so far. Since his 2007 debut Time for Everything Herman has been recognised for his very considerable gifts, and stepped into the fast lane with awards and recognition heaped on him so that he has very quickly climbed the international concert roster. On Alter Ego he moves away from the piano trio as a recording setting for the first time, with a new extended ensemble featuring a band mainly from Paris with a pair of high-grade horn players, the Parisian Brecker-ish soprano-tenor saxophonist Emile Parisien and upcoming New York-based alto saxophonist Logan Richardson. This seems to have had the effect of reining in some of the extrovert and youthful hyperactivity he has exhibited in the past, but in a good way. For the first time there's no pop covers here – he's previously rearranged everything from Britney Spears to Radiohead – and the two non-originals include instead the Israeli national anthem ‘Hatikvah’. The pianist couldn't resist a reference to pop culture on his electronica-inspired ‘Mechanical Brothers’ but other originals highlight a folky influence from his Semitic heritage, occasionally echoing the yearning themes of bassist Avishai Cohen. Herman's fluid, dance-like improvisation and superb interaction with his band makes this his best album to date.