A young pianist from Maine, Yvonne Rogers is mentored by fellow keyboard warrior Kris Davis, who also owns Pyroclastic and produced this album, and performs with next-gen jazz stars Ingrid Laubrock and Adam O’Farrill. Despite her work with ensembles, Rogers – at Davis’ suggestion – goes it alone on The Button Jar. Named after a container her mother kept for odds and ends that would later be repurposed for arts and crafts, the album feels appropriately titled – despite the limitations of solo performance, Rogers doesn’t stick to solely one sound or feel. A trio of tunes near the front lays it out: “Cloud Chorale” floats on breezes of shimmering chords and lush melody, “Scatter and Sort” runs seemingly ragtag across the keyboard, and “Monkey’s Fist” finds a medium – a very happy medium – between the two. Elsewhere, “Little Dance” crackles with free play energy, while “Exhale” ends the record on a gentle, contemplative note. The brisk “The Craft Room” indicates that adeptness by sounding like a classic standard being turned inside out in real time. Davis had the right idea by isolating Rogers for her first headline outing – The Button Jar shows off her talent both explosively and intimately.
