Gav Smith‘s Pantone label continues to showcase some of Japan‘s future jazz talent with the debut from sax man Kaz Kazuta. Produced by fellow Japanese residents (and labelmates) Yukihiro Fukutomi and Jazztronik, the album starts off strong with the appealing, Latin-tinged “In The Morning,” crooned smoothly by Vikter Duplaix. From there, the styles volley between broken beat, ambient, and jazzy; Gonky‘s Miss Yukimi features on a couple of tracks, as does Japan‘s Studio Apartment and Faze Action. Doubtful that it‘ll be mistaken for forging a “new standard,” but it‘s still a cut above.