Johannes Wallmann isn’t just releasing albums—he’s building worlds.  Not Tired follows the wonderful duet album, Holding Space, with saxophonist Dennis Mitcheltree. The Wisconsin-based pianist and composer returns with Not Tired, his twelfth outing as a leader, and it’s the kind of record that takes a simple everyday moment and stretches it into a sweeping cinematic landscape. The catalyst? Watching his daughter insist she wasn’t sleepy at bedtime. The result? A ten-track journey through memory, imagination, and the liminal space between wakefulness and dream logic.

Reuniting Wallmann with bassist Nick Moran, Ingrid Jensen on trumpet, Dayna Stephens on saxophone, and the ever-expressive Adam Nussbaum on drums, the album digs into emotional terrain with the confidence of musicians who know how to get out of each other’s way. Instead of utilizing his usual Wisconsin stomping ground, Wallman recorded at Samurai Hotel Recording Studio in Queens. 

The title track, “Not Tired,” is a lullaby turned meditation—opening gently before drifting into abstraction, as if lights dim but thoughts won’t settle. “Into the Rain” brings shifting rhythmic patterns that build like clouds thickening before a storm. Textures accumulate, melodies intertwine, and suddenly you’re shoulder-deep in a downpour. The song is my favorite among these gems. 

Wallmann shakes things up with “Blind Spot,” a jagged, funky urban sprint where angular lines dart like headlights in traffic. That motion kicks straight into “Twelve Thirty-Four,” a number that builds momentum in two movements, giving Moran’s bass space to carve out the pulse before the full band floods in.

The second half of the record feels like a trip through shifting environments. “Ice Planet” freezes the air with stark harmonies and barren textures before thawing into a searching ballad. “Towel Snapper,” a high-energy burner reminiscent of competitive playground antics, swings hard and features rapid-fire exchanges that feel like musical dodgeball. “Near Orbit” floats freely, cymbals suspended in zero gravity, melodic lines tracing circular paths in space.

The penultimate track, “Bad Apple,” tightens everything back into visceral ensemble interplay—rhythmically slippery and structurally daring—before the album closes with “Annus Mirabilis,” a reflective finale that gathers earlier motifs and lands gracefully on its feet. Oh, yes, “Annus Mirabilis” is also featured on Holding Space. In this setting, it’s just as lovely and thought-provoking. 

Not Tired is the sound of restless creativity refusing to turn out the lights. Wallmann continues his track record of thoughtful, thematically rich compositions, and this lineup brings them vividly to life.  Wallmann continues to take his listeners on thoughtful journeys. I am glad to go for a ride with him.