With all unexpected twists and turns in the music world this decade, sometimes an artist just slips between the cracks and it’s only by chance and word of mouth that he or she gets heard. Case in point, Todd Cochran is back on the scene with a new CD called From The Vault: Notes For The Future. I had not heard of Todd before but I found out that he was the keyboardist with the late 1970s fusion band Automatic Man with Santana drummer Michael Shrieve and guitarist Pat Thrall, in addition to releasing a couple albums on the fabled CTI Records label. His first album Worlds Around The Sun, released under his name Bayeté, was quite popular despite not getting much airplay.

Todd Cochran’s 2023 album From The Vault: Notes For The Future features some intriguing instrumental music that combines, experimental soundtrack music, neoclassical Avant Garde and electronic synth sounds, with each unfolding track becoming a fitting showcase for his work as a composer, keyboardist by way of a range of conceptual sounds. Astute purveyors of this brand of music might have to go back to early experimental legends like Harry Partch and Luciano Berio to find some comparison. Fans of Ennio Morricone’s more esoteric soundtracks might also find a kindred spirit in Todd Cochran’s music.

Fittingly, on his website Todd describe his eclectic music as “contemporary American art music.” With some of the music here even fitting tenuously into the progressive rock-fusion genre, one can hardly find a category of music that is untouched here, making Todd Cochran’s From The Vaults one of the undiscovered musical gems of 2023.