If you have read any articles on Marquis Hill or heard him in interviews, you already know that he counts Nicholas Payton and Roy Hargrove as some of his early musical influences. When Hill takes the stage and starts to play, there’s no doubt those influences have made an indelible mark on his musical journey.

That said, it’s clear that Marquis Hill and the Marquis Hill Blacktet stand on their own as they continue to embrace and blend genres like neo-soul and hip-hop into a defining artistic vision that has been met with critical acclaim.

Kicking off a two-night stand at Jazz Alley in Seattle, Hill opened his set with “Twin Flames.” Here, we get another glimpse of Hill’s philosophy on music as he samples some musings about rap and its relationship to what’s been going on musically – invoking the names of Louis Armstrong, Charlie Parker and John Coltrane.

As Hill and alto saxophonist Braxton Cook knock around the melody, trading off riffs, they set the stage for Joel Ross on vibraphone to showcase the skills he’s honed through the years playing with Herbie Hancock, Christian McBride, and fellow vibraphonist, Stefon Harris. Also flexing some percussive muscle on the piece, at times in lockstep with Ross and others in interplay, is Jonathan Pinson on drums.

Hill and the band immediately leaned into the second song of the night, “It’s All Beautiful” which was driven by some cool and solid undertones provided by bassist, Jeremiah Hunt. Hunt took no time to launch into the next piece where he took center stage with an extended solo that captivated the audience, as well as his band mates.

At one point in the performance, Hill fashioned a Crown Royal velvet drawstring bag on his trumpet’s bell in place of a mute, underscoring, I guess, just how smooth his sound can be. It was a perfect set-up for his Marvin Gaye-inspired, “Vulnerable,” a soulful vehicle that gave the band plenty of room to explore.

The Marquis Hill Blacktet are on an upward trajectory. They know it, the audience knows it, and it’s fun to be along for the ride – even if it’s just for the night.

With the passing of Roy Hargrove, a Jazz Alley regular, the Marquis Hill Blacktet helped ease the pain of that recent loss. Perhaps it was wishful thinking, but I thought I heard saxophonist Braxton Cook quote a little piece of Hargrove’s classic “Strasbourg-St. Denis” during the encore as the evening came to an end.

The Marquis Hill Blacktet plays Jazz Alley tonight at 7:30 before heading to the Red Sea Jazz Festival in Eilat, Israel. Tickets for tonight’s performance and additional information on upcoming acts are available at jazzalley.org.