On SOME SMALL FORTUNE, corto.alto finds his riches in other people

On SOME SMALL FORTUNE, the third album from corto.alto, Glasgow musician Liam Shortall, the mind behind the project, returns to the restless, genre-spilling language he established on Bad With Names (2023) and consolidated on 30/108 (2024), this time sharing the songs with a sizeable cast of collaborators.

This is a record concerned with identity and memory. Its songs reflect on the way the present slowly carries us away from our childhood; from where we come, in other words. Rather than turning inward, Shortall goes looking for himself in other people. Eight of the 15 tracks feature guests, and each works less as a conventional collaboration than as a mirror.

The instrumental tracks set out the dynamic from the off. The title track offers a brief, enchanting string arrangement, clearing the way for “THIEF” to burst forth, a dizzying, repetitive theme that expands as it goes. “TEMPLE” is pure joy, nimble and playful, recalling the style DOMi & JD BECK explored on this year’s WHO ASKED?. Later on, the sound swerves into psychedelic indie, fusion, highlife and a host of other explorations that resurface throughout the album.

The album’s real protagonist is the low end. Shortall’s basslines are maximalist, mixed with such care that they drive much of the sonic narrative. On “PAPER”, the brass, prominent given the clear nods to Afrobeat, is woven into a vast bed of sound while bass and drums take charge. “GO”, with Vector’s elastic flow and processed vocals, pushes dancehall into denser, more industrial territory, and is one of the album’s high moments.

It’s on the vocal tracks that the collaborative spirit of SOME SMALL FORTUNE is most evident. “APRIL”, featuring anaiis, wraps R&B warmth in fragmented, irregular rhythms and ethereal noise, somewhere between Hiatus Kaiyote and Flying Lotus. Mick Jenkins brings a measured flow to “WHODIS”, a track that harks back to J Dilla. “OMNI”, with Terra Kin, is the clearest example of Shortall’s evolution: elegant, refined pop that nonetheless keeps its fusion DNA intact.

Throughout the record, Shortall adapts to his guests without losing his own identity. On “SOMETHING”, BINA. lends her voice to a neo-soul composition shot through with indie, while album closer “NOBLEHILL” pairs Jacob Alon’s intimate, almost confessional vocal with sweeping strings and nimble, fragmented drums, edging towards Björk-like art-pop as the final chorus delivers the album’s title.

The riches held by SOME SMALL FORTUNE reflect, in truth, the great generosity of a young composer establishing himself as one of the leading names in European nu jazz. That said, with its hefty tracklist, the album’s middle stretch can start to feel somewhat indistinct. “YURA” and “IJUSTIDONTKNOW” – the latter drinking from the well of highlife and ’70s jazz-funk that Kokoroko carry forward today, with a touch of BADBADNOTGOOD – boast rich textures and impeccable execution, but sit in territory that Shortall has already explored.

Still, by seeking himself out through his collaborators, Shortall has made his most wide-ranging corto.alto record yet – proving once again that riches only grow when they are shared.