(International Anthem)The style-surfing guitarist deploys self-quoting loops and minimal solo work to beguiling effect
![Jeff Parker: Forfolks review – a meditative gem](https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/3d2ce49113733331f49aae141eb39dd2c126f6e1/0_0_5184_3110/master/5184.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-align=bottom%2Cleft&overlay-width=100p&overlay-base64=L2ltZy9zdGF0aWMvb3ZlcmxheXMvdGctcmV2aWV3LTQucG5n&enable=upscale&s=9869edf3a8fdb2a7475690e961c76b80)
Best known as the jazz-facing guitarist in the influential
Chicago post-rock outfit Tortoise, Parker, now based in LA, wears many berets: band leader, film composer, unstarry collaborator. Parker’s third solo album for the International Anthem label is a meditative gem that breaks with the more fully fleshed out style of his two previous outings.
The New Breed (2016) memorialised Parker’s late father; last year’s Suite for Max Brown was dedicated to his mother, Maxine. This year’s Forfolks does away with collaborators in favour of self-quoting loops and minimal solo guitar – impressionistic daubings of notes playing out in the space between jazz, ambient and the daily practice of quietly sketching out a tune for oneself.