The debut album from Canadian-born, Brooklyn-based pianist Andrew Boudreau, 2022's Neon is a measured record showcasing his nuanced modern creative jazz. A graduate of the Schulich School of Music at McGill University and the New England Conservatory, Boudreau has garnered accolades for his softly textured soloing and compositions, including winning a 2013 Astral Artist Prize. It's a style that has brought him into contact with players like saxophonist David Binney, vocalist Christine Correa, guitarist Simon Legault, and others. Here, he leads his quartet, a group that features saxophonist Neta Raanan, bassist Simón Willson, and drummer Eviatar Slivnik. Together they play with a hushed and thoughtful intimacy that brings to mind Wayne Shorter's acoustic quartet. Tracks like "Ribbons," "Maud Lewis," and "Ghost Stories" are delicately swinging yet still highly kinetic numbers that imaginatively evoke something along the lines of Paul Bley playing with Sonny Rollins. There are also several languid ballads, including the title track and "Welcome Oak," that display Boudreau's ear for rich chordal textures. While one wouldn't necessarily call this a classical album, there is a hypnotic, meditative quality to several of the songs that recalls the modern classical work of composer Steve Reich. There's a warm camaraderie to Boudreau's work with his quartet, and it illuminates all of Neon.