Carnaval

Spyro Gyra was one of the first jazz outfits I checked out when I was just starting my journey into music and vinyl. Catching the Sun was a fun listen back then (it's been a while, so I don't know how it holds up), and Carnaval is the same.

My ears have matured, and what I can say now is that this album is great musicianship on display. Right from the opening song, Cafe Amore, you get a quick rundown of how things are going to shape up: Smooth jazzy fusion, with the musicians either playing tightly together, or one upping each other with some great tropical solos.

But the musicianship feels like it has reached the apex of what the genre provides. How much more can you expand? The answer is, not much more, so in the end, you're left with great potential that's bottlenecked by the limits of the genre. As far as smooth jazz goes, this is great, but as far as jazz, it's good for an occasional listen of the background variety, with the occasional turn when a cool solo pops up.