An otherwise mellow Monday night in Brooklyn this past fall brought the rare opportunity to see French firebrand Hadrien Feraud up close, in clinic and performance at the new Park Slope location of Matthew Garrison’s vital ShapeShifter Lab. The occasion was an off night from Hiromi’s U.S. tour in support of her latest incendiary outing, Sonicwonderland [Telarc, 2023], which features her new quartet, Sonicwonder, comprised of Feraud, drummer Gene Coye, and trumpter Adam O’Farrill. With Feraud and Coye available, Garrsion booked trumpeter Wallace Roney Jr. to somewhat replicate the touring ensemble for this intimate, informal session. Hadrien discussed and demonstrated the ways in which Garrison influenced him, and both bassists spoke about learning from French chordal master Dominique DiPiazza. Their exploratory set included Garrsion and Feraud originals, and Herbie Hancock’s “Dolphin Dance.” Afterward, I spoke to Hadrien about Hiromi’s new band and record, which finds him more than holding his own as a fretboard conversationlist with the virtuoso Japanese pianist/composer, while also mind-locking with Coye on constantly morphing grooves. For Feraud, it all began with a call from Hiromi in 2016 asking him to replace an ailing Anthony Jackson on the remainder of a world tour, at the recommendation of then Hiromi drummer Simon Phillips. For the Sonicwonderland project, Hadrien was the first musician Hiromi recruited, and he recommended Coye, who he dubs, “L.A.’s best kept secret on drums.” He adds, “Gene is the most well-rounded drummer in town. He has the ability to instantly fit into any style, drawing from a rich history of playing and listening, and he’s always tasteful and spot on.” With O’Farrill in place on horn, Hiromi sent everyone MIDI demos of the songs (some were part of her One Minute Portrait initiative on YouTube during the pandemic) and they rehearsed together to flesh out their parts. From there, the quartet did a string of dates in California and Minneapolis to hone the music before heading to Skywalker Sound Stage in Nicasio, California to cut the 9-track album last May. Feraud reports, “We recorded everything live in the same room and then we all had the opportunity to do overdubs and fix a few things. But we left some imperfections on there to retain the live feel.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y8EX2dpThCU   Speaking to the creative process at play, Hadrien offers, “The key with Hiromi is she's writing with you in mind. So she had my style in her ears when she wrote the songs and the bass parts. I function as the bassist in the heads, but Hiromi likes to counter that with sections that are totally open. And for those she sometimes likes to provide the low end, so I’ll move up higher. In the open and soloing sections we’re four equal voices. We interpret the written sections and for the rest it's about interaction and being spontanous—lis