Piano Piano

Jeremiah Fraites’ piano textures are part of the DNA of folk-rock group The Lumineers—the band the American multi-instrumentalist and songwriter cofounded. Piano Piano, his first solo album, gradually unfurls to reveal stunning complexities and subtleties, as he gives full rein to his creativity. A hazy introduction (“Departure”) paves the way for the simple piano, strings, and haunting effects of “Chilly.” Meanwhile, on “Tokyo,” Fraites’ flair for quirky melody and inventive scoring comes to the fore, its lilting rhythms and muffled piano achieving a delicate, impressionistic portrait of the Japanese city. Elsewhere, such as on the elegiac “Maggie,” he taps into The Lumineers’ folk roots, rock piano and drums in exquisite union. There are moments of more classical introspection (“Dreams” and the Chopin-esque “An Air That Kills”), before the final track, “Arrival,” beautifully melts away.