Jazz Bass Virtuoso Marks Milestone in Meteoric Rise With New Album Sextet

Adhyâropa Records is thrilled to announce Sextet (ÂR00158), the new album from rising jazz bass star Ben Ferrell featuring contributions from Atley King on vibraphone, Nick Rousseau on electric guitar, Reginald Chapman on bass trombone, Will Evans on trumpet, and Rintaro Mikami on drums. 

In short order Ben Ferrell has established himself as a leading light of the next generation of young New York jazz artists. Since graduating from Old Dominion University and the Tribeca Jazz Institute, Ferrell has developed an instantly identifiable playing and composition style forged from his unique interests, experience, and perspective. Having studied or performed with jazz luminaries such as Pasquale Grasso, Kenny Washington, Cecil McBee, John Toomey, Grant Stewart, and Bruce Harris, Ferrell strives to honor the traditions of jazz while bringing a modern energy to his compositions and feel. Drawing from influences across the jazz spectrum and beyond, Sextet announces the arrival of a major new talent.

The album opens with the hard-charging ‘Tholus,’ announcing the ensemble’s intent from the beginning with emphasis. Ferrell’s power 5ths herald a collective improvisation that blooms into a melody played in unison over Mikami’s customarily virtuosic drums, a post-bop chamber ensemble with roots in the past but with its gaze firmly in the future. “Sextet honors the tradition of improvised music before me while finding our own contemporary, modernized, unique version of it,” Ferrell says. “It has swing, it has the blues, and those are important influences, but as a product of the internet age I had access to a huge breadth of music and it all informs this music as well – electronic music, fusion, psychedelics, and so much more. Keen listeners will hear it all, blended together to form my own unique compositional and improvisational voice.”

Once the roundhouse punch of the intro subsides, the tune gives way to a series of solos, one feeding into another seamlessly in the manner of an ensemble that has been playing together for years – which in one form or another, they have. “This is my first record as a leader, and I know a lot of musicians who have hired their old professors to play on their record, and that’s great,” Ferrell says. ”These are the people who have inspired them and pushed them and it’s a tribute to them as well as a launching point. But for me, I wanted an ensemble that had been there with me as I’d grown into myself as a musician, growing in their own ways, together and separately – musicians and friends that I could play comfortably and confidently with and who speak the same language I’m searching for.”

Ferrell wisely introduces the complete cast of characters in the first track. Rousseau, an Adhyâropa veteran (This Entity Makes Music ÂR00013, Alive ÂR00020, Empathy ÂR00026, The Great Beyond ÂR00042, Toy Conscious ÂR00051), takes the first solo into outer space with an overdriven, echo-y sound out of a modern rock record. “I first heard him in a TikTok video before I ever met him and was immediately impressed with his musicality. Like, who is this guy? Years later when I saw him perform at a bar and after approaching him to say that I liked his playing, I pieced together that it was the same guy!”

Chapman follows, with the technical facility of Jimmy Knepper and the authoritative tone of Wycliffe Gordon. A veteran of Broadway shows as well as the all-star big bands of Darcy James Argue and John Hollenbeck, Chapman’s playing communicates command, dexterity, and gravitas. “I looked up to him as a musician when we first started playing together but he completely disarmed me with his generosity and friendship; I just love playing with him.” Evans is next, the lickety-split high brass counterweight to Chapman’s low-register profundity. “Will is from Virginia as well – he’s very quiet, not one to say much or take too much praise, but when he starts playing there’s an obvious strength and confidence that comes right across.”

Next to introduce himself is Atley King, whose breathy vibraphone lines give the album its particular modernistic character. Vibes have been a part of boundary-pushing jazz from Lionel Hampton to Gary Burton to Stefon Harris; here the effect is to add an ear-catching, experimental sound to Ferrell’s sonic stew. “Atley is considered Canada’s leading jazz vibraphonist and is also an alumnus of the Tribeca Jazz Institute,” Ferrell says. “I knew right away that I shared an intimate musical and personal kinship with him.” Ferrell’s own solo follows King’s, another perfect high-low register counterbalance, leading us to the grand finale:

Rintaro Mikami’s drumming and overall musicianship has made him a local legend amongst the young jazz musicians of New York City, and he has contributed his blend of virtuosity and precision to several Adhyâropa releases in the past (noonmoon’s noonmoon ÂR00032, Carlin Lee’s With The Changes ÂR00037). “Out of all the collaborators on this album, I probably play with him the most,” Ferrell says. “I also met him at the Tribeca Jazz Institute and could tell immediately that he had not just world-class chops but a beautiful feel and musical empathy.” Mikami dances and thunders through ‘Tholus’ like a Gen-Z Tain Watts; we’re only one track in and are already left breathless.

The album unfolds with much more in store, from the unconventional, sophisticated take on Thelonious Monk’s ‘Light Blue’ to the blazing ⅞ Nu jazz of ‘Never Forget’ (the album’s 1st and 2nd singles respectively), the latter in particular sounding like Mingus small band arranging for the post-M-Base generation, with King delivering an urgent, knife-edge solo exploration.

“My old high school teacher Bryan Hooten was a big inspiration for me because while we were learning the standards and giants of jazz history he would also introduce us to artists from across the musical spectrum like Radiohead, and Herbie Hancock’s fusion projects,” Ferrell says. This spirit of eclecticism pervades Sextet; where ‘Caladan’ cossets in pillowy modal harmonies, the stuttering rhythms of ‘Picky Bits’ recall Edgar Meyer’s rangy collaborations with acoustic musicians like Chris Thile and Yo-Yo Ma. ‘Song For Stilgar’ is a loose, Ornette-esque melodic setting that stretches past 10 minutes; ‘Dragon Roost Island’ follows at a brisker 4 minutes of mostly triadic harmonies, following a structure more akin to a pop song. For every zig on Sextet, there’s a zag; the listener is kept in a continual state of surprise and delight.

Artist: Ben Ferrell

Album Title: Sextet

Label: Adhyâropa Records

Release Date: May 4, 2026 (single: ‘Light Blue’); May 18, 2026 (single: ‘Never Forget’); June 5, 2026 (album: Sextet)

Purchase: https://benferrell.bandcamp.com/album/sextet

Performers: Ben Ferrell (bass); Atley King (vibraphone); Rintaro Mikami (drums); Nick Rousseau (electric guitar); Reginald Chapman (bass trombone, bass trumpet); Will Evans (trumpet)