JAZZ : ALBUM REVIEWS : Bobby Matos Sets Miles, Coltrane to a Latin Beat : * * * Bobby Matos Afro-Cuban Jazz Ensemble, “Chango’s Dance,”

They’re not necessarily easy to find. But these small-label albums from Southern California-based jazz musicians can be every bit as rewarding as the well-publicized releases from Verve, Blue Note or the other major labels.

These recordings have shared characteristics that mirror, in mood and tempo, the tenor of our contemporary California culture, belying the once accepted “cool-school” cliche of West Coast jazz. The common threads include deeply reflective improvisational styles, strong rhythmic bases, use of ethnic instrumentation and musical forms, a willingness to merge a variety of jazz genres and a reverence for classical traditions from America, Europe, Africa and the East.

But most of all, these discs share an artistic aspiration that is uncompromised by commercial interests. These are musicians looking to establish their own voices and vision, without the help of big record company contracts.

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Cubop/Ubiquity. Percussionist Matos packs this energetic recording full of a colorful array of Latin-jazz rhythms. The tracks range from mambo and rumba to charanga and Afro-Cuban jazz, with some bits and pieces of Cuban poetry and several marvelous drum conversations thrown in for good measure.

In addition to the familiar “Manteca,” there is a mambo-drenched version of a medley of Miles Davis’ “So What” and John Coltrane’s “Impressions.” First-rate soloing is provided by saxophonist Michael Turre and trombonists Steve Baxter and Dan Weinstein. A fine sampling of music that is too often relegated to an obscure corner of the jazz world.