Today is release day for Brad Mehldau's latest Nonesuch album, the double-disc Highway Rider. The album has already been described as "impressive" by the New York Times and "an inspired set" by the Times of London. The Guardian gave it five out of five stars and called it "the real deal." Now, the Los Angeles Times adds another perfect review, giving four out of four stars.

"Let it never be said that Brad Mehldau lacks ambition," writes Los Angeles Times reviewer Chris Barton, who describes the new album from this "gifted pianist and composer" as "a sprawling, two-disc travelogue of sorts that might be his most fully realized work yet."

Highway Rider marks the reunion of Mehldau with Jon Brion, the producer of his groundbreaking 2002 album Largo. "But instead of re-creating that record's arresting, electronics-flecked sound," says Barton, "Mehldau has upped the ante."

Noting the classical influences on this jazz pianist's work, Barton points out that "while there's plenty of gorgeous orchestral sweep involved ... what's striking is how much the album feels like two disciplines on equal footing."

That reviewer concludes: "Full of unexpected twists and lush, evocative detours, Highway Rider is most definitely a trip, and one well worth taking."

Read the complete four-star review at latimes.com.

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Highway Rider is "triumphant," exclaims the Hartford Courant. "With its lush voicings, breathtaking range and bold invention, Brad Mehldau's piano music resonates with an orchestral richness and fluent variety that many an orchestra might envy," writes reviewer Owen McNally. And now, on the new album, "the celebrated pianist/composer ... evokes all of those artistic qualities and more."

McNally, too, looks back to the "daring venture" that was Mehldau's original pairing with Brion to say that with Highway Rider, "Mehldau soars creatively even beyond Largo." The reviewer cites as stand-out musical contributions "Mehldau's lyrical piano artistry, his empathetic trio collaborators ... and the exceptionally apt, cohesive soloing" from Joshua Redman.

And even with all of that, McNally says "the big news here is Mehldau's vibrant, skillful orchestrations for the chamber orchestra. With its array of strings and horns, the big ensemble offers a luxurious tonal palette that this master keyboard colorist avidly and skillfully applies to his expansive new work."

There's much more at courant.com.

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The BBC's Kevin Le Gendre describes Highway Rider as "a work that stretches the artist’s conceptual scope without stifling his essence," and gives a nod to Brion for his contribution to that effect. Pointing to the album's "expansive palette of lush orchestral textures and subtle nuances of dance music," Le Gendre recognizes a dialog between the composer and producer "on how to reach beyond jazz parameters while avoiding any obtuse forays into ‘fusion.'" The reviewer finds Mehldau's use of chamber orchestra to be "a rich bonding agent among the assemblage of sonic building materials" he gathered for the album. Read the review at bbc.co.uk.