A strong contender for best local jazz release of 2009, drummer Jay Epstein's "Easy Company" ends with a memorably meditative and atmospheric triptych of tunes.

Epstein's "Sgt. Rock" (an homage to the comic book character) has him rattling like a cricket on percussion while Anthony Cox furiously bows a brittle bass line and Bill Carrothers snakes deep phrases from the left side of his piano. The 75-year-old standard "For All We Know" is similarly dark-hued, tinged by Epstein's memories of Patty Peterson playing it at her cousin Bobby's funeral. "Maus," Epstein's brooding tribute to Art Spiegelman's Holocaust-themed graphic novel, concludes the disc.

Depressing? Not when it's balanced by songs like the "Imperial March" from the movie "Star Wars," a spunky cover of the rock band Cream's "White Room" and a sprightly rendition of the Ray Noble Orchestra chestnut "Midnight, the Stars & You." And not when the members of the trio are this accomplished and empathetic, lending resonance to the "Easy Company" title. The group will perform gigs in celebration of the CD's release tonight and tomorrow night at the Artists Quarter in downtown St. Paul.

Epstein also worked with Cox and Carrothers on his first, similarly adventurous CD in 1997, ironically titled "Long Ago." Although less internationally renowned than his two bandmates, the drummer, 62, has been a bulwark of creative improvisation in these parts for decades now, plying what he calls "the gray area."

"Drum-nistically, when I was a kid there was a dichotomy between those who could play nice, clean time like Jo Jones and Roy Haynes, and the completely free players like Andrew Cyrille," Epstein explains. He went to study with drummer Barry Altschul -- best known for his work with Dave Holland and Chick Corea -- "because he bridged those inside guys and outside guys; he played in that gray area. I could hear it, but I didn't know how to get there."

In that respect, "Easy Company" is notable for its multiple shades of gray, its blend of interactive grooves and intrepid experimentation. Epstein, who was Cox's roommate in the '70s and began playing with Carrothers in the '80s, lauds both for "having their own voice, which is the most important thing to me."

Pushed to describe his own growth, he accurately notes, "I've been discovering a lot about how to express myself in more comfortable and elegant ways, playing both stronger and with more sensitivity. Miles Davis once said, 'Sometimes it takes a long time to sound like yourself.' Some of us are late bloomers."