JAZZ REVIEW : Hot-Tempo’d Artist at His Best on the Drums : Never content to just track the beat, Alphonse Mouzon constantly challenges his quartet during a pleasing performance at El Matador.

Thundering tom-tom rolls. Crashing cymbal explosions. Sizzling snare chatter.

Of the many sides percussionist-keyboardist-composer Alphonse Mouzon displayed Tuesday at El Matador, the one most apparent was Mouzon the drummer.

The many-faceted musician’s blend of potent timekeeping and polyrhythmic accents enlivened the first set of his original funk and ballad tunes, a program of predictably melodic numbers that might have become tedious over its 90-minute length were it not for Mouzon’s potent ways at the traps.

Never content to just track the tempo, Mouzon constantly challenged members of his quartet--saxophonist Gary Meek, keyboardist Steve Bach and bassist Bruce Lett--by echoing their lines on his kit and setting up changes well in advance with fiery bridges. His dynamic range covered the gambit from deafening attacks on a half-dozen toms, a move that often brought him right out of his seat, to quiet, impressionistic touches on his cymbals.

Mouzon showed a special empathy for his bassist, puffing up Lett’s electric tones with stomping-good bass pedal work, or by providing relentless, fast-fried hi-hat heat for the bassist’s agile, thumb-powered solo. The drummer sometimes worked in unison with Lett’s line, working on top of the beat before releasing a shower of cymbal accents or cross-handed exclamations from his skins.

Making a valuable contribution to the evening’s mood was saxophonist Meek, who added well-rounded soprano tones and soulful alto ways. Meek showed himself adept at turning the lyrical themes of Mouzon’s compositions into pleading, confessional statements without heavy reliance on shrieks, overtones or the requisite high-end squealing.

His ballad excursions grew from warm, romantic phrases into well-developed, swirling climaxes that would retreat to a single rich note or a restatment of the melody. Keyboardist Bach balanced smooth sensitivity on slower numbers with searing electronic effects on up-tempo tunes.

Mouzon took Bach’s place at the keyboards for an unaccompanied version of his own “Alone in Paris.” Though the simply constructed piece provided little to test his pianistic talents, Mouzon coaxed a variety of string, pipe and piano sounds from the rack while letting the melody do most of the talking.

As a composer, however, Mouzon was less impressive. By alternating funky, uptempo numbers with lyrical ballads, he kept the pace of the program varied, but one looked in vain for more involved material from a band certainly capable of taking it on.

Mouzon displays a wonderful sense of melody with an ear for relaxed, pop-oriented hooks in his compositions. His “Straight From the Heart,” though based on a single repeated line, was an emotional statement of percussive ideas, reinforced by Meeks’ sincere soprano. “I Remember Spain” moved at the kind of lightning pace that made the drummer’s split-hair timekeeping all the more impressive while providing Meek with an opportunity to show speed and breadth.

Yes, it’s true that Alphonse Mouzon is more than a drummer. But it’s his drumming that steals the show.