It is produced and mixed by Jon Brion (we can assume these guys crossed paths at the club of the same name!) and engineered by Thomas Biller, and contains not only some of the best melodic keyboard work I've heard in ages, but also some of the best-sounding drums and most inventive percussion as well. The drummers are Jorge Rossy, Jim Keltner, and Matt Chamberlain, and there are always some weird kind of bells or jingling crap or something going on here and there; there are heavily effected guitars, and a distorted (and Leslied, and Whammied) piano, and prepared pianos. But there are also great horn arrangements and solid bass.
Ultimately though what comes through is the sound of a great band backing a great musician, with great people at the board. The arrangements and treatments support the performances rather than overwhelming them, and sound as organic and appropriate as everything else in the mix. The songs are fantastic, and Mehldau's cover of "Paranoid Android" has got to be one of the best covers of anything I've ever heard. Also "You're Vibing Me" has got what must be the most heavily compressed cymbals in the history of recorded jazz. Totally radical but totally right.
Also, it's all live in the studio, no overdubs.
Everybody go get a copy!
