POW!: The John Escreet Project

Friday and Saturday are jazz clubs' make-or-break nights—the most prominent acts play, the biggest crowds gather, and the drinks flow most plentifully. Because of that, those nights have a brisk, stressful energy at New York clubs. The bartenders and managers are never quite ready for those snaking lines of patrons; they're just eager to get everyone in, seated, and out as soon as the music's over.

Sunday is a connoisseur's night. Clubs are half-full, no one is in a rush, and musicians feel more comfortable experimenting. It's a sure-fire cure for end-of-weekend dread.

This Sunday at the 55 Bar, the keyboardist John Escreet will play with his Project, an all-star band that features David Binney on alto sax, Ambrose Akinmusire on trumpet, Zack Lober on bass, and Nasheet Waits on drums. Binney is one of the most prolific saxmen in the world, Akinmusire won the 2007 Thelonious Monk competition and has been rising ever since, and Waits is my favorite drummer on today's scene—dexterous, exuberant, and far more interested in texture than bombast. I don't know Zack Lober at all (or for that matter Escreet) but the endorsements of Binney, Akinmusire, and Waits speak highly of their musicianship. This Sunday late show is my pick of the week.