A grid of 12 images adorns the cover of Almost Native. It includes a po-boy, a pair of maracas, and the Arc de Triomphe. If that seems too subtle, the track listing includes titles like “Tandé Sak Fè Loraj Gwondé”, “Chorando Em Paris”, and “Tango Ambiguo”. Styles range from waltz to blues to choro and from New Orleans to Brazil to Paris.

But the geographic multifariousness of the record never feels forced. McDermott and Christopher are both among the top practitioners of their respective instruments in New Orleans today, and they deftly sidestep some of the traditional pitfalls of a duet session. The tracks never lack energy—consider the excitable “Heavy Henry,” where McDermott’s churning bass lines play against Christopher’s rhythmically elastic melodies.

Christopher is one of only a handful of clarinetists today to play the “Albert-system” instrument favored by the original New Orleans players. Its characteristic dark, breathy sound is especially distinctive in the sparse setting of Almost Native. The contrast between Christopher’s fuzzy, wailing clarinet and McDermott’s polished keywork imbues extra interest into what could otherwise have been a staid outing. McDermott takes a few solo turns, like the somber, Chopin-esque “Musette in A Minor” or “The Don’t-Mess-With-My Two-Step,” a raggy number full of adventurous harmonies and executed with unflagging accuracy.