5. Hasaan Ibn Ali Metaphysics: The Lost Atlantic Album (Omnivore)
Until this year, “the legendary Hasaan” was known only for a lone trio album with Max Roach and the mythic claims of his Philadelphia contemporaries. With the belated release of this 1965 quartet session, the shroud of mystery long surrounding him was lifted at last. The music bolsters Hasaan’s image as a brilliant yet challenging composer, with barbed, bristling melodies made all the more daunting by the pianist’s dense and foreboding harmonic sense. SHAUN BRADY
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