This is Austrian pianist David Helbock's debut on ACT records. He comes to the label with a reputation as one of the rising stars of European jazz and penchant for wearing beanies with a distinctive piano keyboard design – even in the hottest weather. His trio is certainly in demand, and on the strength of this album he is a musician to watch. Into the Mystic is prefaced by liner notes that speak of Sufism, Greek mythology and dreams but one of the ironies of the postmodern situation (in which we all find ourselves) is that the consumer creates the meaning of the text in use, not the creator and that regardless of the deep meanings creators want their text to carry, if the audience doesn't ‘read’ them they become meaningless. The text here – 14 compositions in all – is probably a bit long, since Helbock is unable to sustain a consistent level of invention throughout. While he's an impeccable pianist with a clear, crisp touch, the first piece ‘Beethoven #7, 2nd Movement’ with a ‘prepared’ piano is an indulgence, and actually detracts from what is potentially a good album. He has a flair for the dramatic – ‘The Soul’ – which grabs the attention and having done that it's a question of where do we go from here? With just 10 well-chosen pieces selected to sustain a mood, rather than 14 to act as a kind of demo disc, this would have been an impressive showing.