Kamasi Washington - The Epic (Brainfeeder Records)

Let's talk Jazz.

A 34-year old American saxophonist, Kamasi Washington rose from a difficult LA hood, to now affirm himself as one of the most promising musician of his generation, with the recent release of a debut LP that should leave a lasting mark on the long history of Jazz music.

The Epic's genesis is an intense 2011 month-long recording session with his friends from the West Coast Get Down band. From spiritual ballads, to groovier parts with vocalists to Pharoah Sanders-like furious musical riots, his sax leads a 20+ musicians pack in an almost 3-hour long journey, that takes you away, far away. And who else than Alice Coltrane's nephew, Flying Lotus, and his groundbreaking Brainfeeder label, could host such a cosmic effort? A perfect match.

So, make some room on your iphone/ipod/whatever, because, Jazz fan or not, I guarantee this fascinating one will durably eat some memory space!


Extracts below, but this one is a long-haul album experience, "single culture" freaks beware!

V4YS Album Review - Thundercat - Apocalypse (Brainfeeder Records)

Back in 2011 Thundercat (aka Stephen Bruner) made himself a special place in the hearts of futuristic soul lovers, with his (now turned classic) debut album, The Golden Age Of Apocalypse. A charismatic musician playing with his bass like others would play with their electric guitars, he also revealed himself at the time as a tremendous singer, able to convey as much feelings when going through mellow or funky moments.

Under the colourful producing umbrella of Brainfeeder label founder Flying Lotus, he is now spreading more spacy vibes around with his second LP, Apocalypse, which will be released early July.

From laid-back soulful astral moments carrying sweet "FlyLo" signs flashing (Tron Song, Tenfold, Seven...) to the wicked modern disco Oh Sheit It's X or classic Thundercat-made grooves like Lotus And The Jondy or Evangelion, the versatility and creativity of this groundbreaking artist once again works wonders. The magical interlude saluting the memory of Brainfeeder artist Austin Peralta (a truly amazing young pianist who sadly passed away a few months ago) is an extra source of emotions in an album I strongly endorse !

Extracts below :




En 2011 Thundercat (aka Stephen Bruner) se faisait une place de choix dans le coeur des fans de soul futuriste avec un premier album novateur, The Golden Age Of Apocalypse.
Musicien charismatique, jouant de sa basse comme d'autres jouent de leurs guitares électriques, il s'y révélait aussi un chanteur talentueux, aussi émouvant dans des passages mellow, qu'explosif lorsque le beat devient funky.
Avec l'aide de l'incontournable producteur Flying Lotus, il tire une épatante nouvelle salve cosmique, sous la forme d'un second album intitulé Apocalypse à sortir début Juillet sur le label californien maison Brainfeeder. On y retrouve des morceaux qui fleurent bon l'abstract beat astral de "FlyLo" (Tron Song, Tenfold, Seven...), un ovni modern disco (Oh Sheit It's X) et bien sur des grooves apaisants dont il a le secret  (Lotus And The Jondy or Evangelion). La polyvalence et la créativité sans bornes de Thundercat font une nouvelle fois merveille, tout comme son émouvant interlude en hommage au jeune pianiste Austin Peralta (espoir de Brainfeeder malheureusement disparu trop tôt l'an passé) procure une extra dose d'émotions, dans un album qui n'en manque pas.

Extraits ci-dessus.

V4YS Album Review - Flying Lotus - Until The Quiet Comes (Warp Records)

If the term "concept album" still has a meaning these days, Flying Lotus (aka Steven Ellison) has to get some credit for it.
After Los Angeles and Cosmogramma, his new musical U.F.O. will take you far away, if you let it take full control of your i-pod or cd player for three quarters of an hour. Out on Warp Records, Until The Quiet Comes is a suspension bridge whose base lies on solid Jazz roots while its futuristic structure answers to no regular musical rules.
Once again reinventing an abstract beats world he designed in the first place, Flying Lotus designed a fascinating kaleidoskop of sounds.
More soulful than his predecessors, this new LP also gives a larger space to vocals (from hi-profile names like Thundercat, Erykah Badu or Thom Yorke) that he subsequently reworks with one of his magical digital effects. Dream, reflect, meditate...until the quiet comes !

Superb video teaser below :



Si le terme concept album a encore un sens, le producteur californien Flying Lotus (aka Steven Ellison) n'y est sans doute pas étranger. Après Los Angeles et Cosmogramma son nouvel ovni musical vous emmènera loin, très loin, pour peu que vous le laissiez prendre contrôle de votre i-pod ou platine CD l'espace de 45 minutes. 
Sorti ces jours-ci sur le label Warp Records, Until The Quiet Comes c'est une sorte de pont suspendu dont les fondations sereaient solidement arrimées par de profondes racines Jazz alors que sa structure futuriste ne répondrait à aucun canon traditionnel. Réinventant une fois de plus un monde abstract beats qu'il a lui-même inventé, Flying Lotus nous offre un nouveau kaléidoscope sonore, coloré et voluptueux. La sonorité plus soulful que les deux précédents opus doit sans doute à la part plus belle accordée aux vocals (avec notamment les participations de Thundercat, Erykah Badu et Thom Yorke) qu'il retravaille ensuite à l'infini à l'aide de ses innombrables effets digitaux. Rêvez, méditez, évadez-vous...until the quiet comes !

Ci-dessus le superbe teaser vidéo.

V4YS Concert Review - Gilles Peterson Worldwide Awards - Koko, London, 220111

Another year, another great Worldwide Awards evening set-up by Gilles Peterson and his great crew at Brownswood Recordings and BBC Radio One!

This 2011 edition took place at Koko in London and offered an ambitious line-up focusing mostly on the up-and-coming electro/dubstep/abstract beats scene that was the source of many of last year most interestings releases.

The highlights of the evening were the remarkable live acts from James Blake, Flying Lotus and Mount Kimbie as well as cool dj-sets from the likes of Ramadanman, Scuba and LeFto.

James Blake

On vocals, keyboard/vocoder & piano, James Blake came on stage in a trio format with a drummer and a guitarist/sampler. 

He offered a glimpse of his long-awaited first LP to be released early february. 

A mixture of beautiful folk melodies and innovative electro samples & rythms, his sound signature is already easily recognizable by those (like me) who are addicted to his first few astonishing Ep's (see our 2010 favorite records review for more info on these!).

Still, I had never seen him perform live and this short set was enough to definitely convince me that James is much more than a talented home-studio producer.  

I was impressed by the pureness of his singing as well as his mastering of voice effects in live conditions. His Feist cover of the song "Limit To Your Love" was a moment of grace!

Can't wait for the LP!

Flying Lotus

Featuring as a surprise guest and being awarded the album of the year award for "Cosmogramma", Flying Lotus energized the crowd with a condensed live version of his brilliant LP (on that matter also check the brand new "alternate takes" of the album just released on Warp records).

Obviously really happy to receive such a warm welcome, he insufflated a breeze of laid-back californian coolness inside a Koko room that would surely have voted for a much longer session of his magical discontructed abstract beats if the timing of the evening had permitted it.

Below a rough video of "A Cosmic Drama" & "Computer Face/Pure Being" :

Last but not least, let’s mention the great live act from the Mount Kimbie duo. 

Buzzing around their samplers, a drum-set and an electric guitar, they interpreted a few tracks from their must-have LP “Crooks And Lovers”. 

A short but outstanding vocals impro by James Blake on their last song should give them some ideas!

So overall a stimulating musical evening (with also nice performances by artists like Brandt Brauer Freak, Four Tet & Rocketnumbernine) that gave an extended snapshot of a musical space currently blooming.

Thanks a lot to Gilles and all his team for consistently setting up events of this quality!

V4YS Album Review - Flying Lotus - Cosmogramma Alternative Takes (Warp Records)

As a gift to those who own a copy of his outstanding "Cosmogramma" album released in 2010, Warp Records and Flying Lotus just released 9 alternate versions of some of the album tracks.
Feeling groovier and jazzier than the original versions, these alt takes are a great extension of the LP.
I particularly enjoy the magicals strings from Miguel Atwood-Ferguson on "Computer Face" and the brilliant track "Archway" by Teebs who recently released himself a really good album called "Ardour" on FlyLo's label Brainfeeder.

Below a streaming of Miguel Atwood-Ferguson version of "Computer Face" and  "Archway", remixed by Teebs :





Dès qu'un album électro connait un peu de succès on est souvent rapidement bombardé de remixes divers et variés de qualité souvent très moyenne.
Warp Records et Flying Lotus sont plus éxigeants. Les heureux possesseurs de "Cosmogramma", sorti en 2010, se voient offrir sur le site du label une série de 9 versions alternatives de certains morceaux. Plus jazzy et groovy que les originaux, ces titres sont un superbe prolongement à l'album. 
J'apprécie tout particulièrement la version de "Computer Face", magnifiquement orchestrée par l'incontournable producteur et violoniste Miguel Atwood-Ferguson ainsi que le titre "Archway" de Teebs, jeune producteur qui a lui-même récemment sorti un album intéressant "Ardour" sur le label de Flying Lotus "Brainfeeder". Streaming de ces deux morceaux ci-dessus.

Miguel Atwood-Ferguson Ensemble Live Feat. Aloe Blacc, Flying Lotus & Bilal

Miguel Atwood-Ferguson is one of my favorite musician/producer in the spiritual jazz/experimental grooves space. Whether he teams up with his friend Carlos Nino, his own amazing orchestra (where he plays violin) or working as a producer for other artists, his has consistently been offering us outstanding music these last few years, blending subtle classical music vibes with soulful sounds.
On July 23d 2010 he gave a free show in LA with his ensemble and was joined by a host of first-class artists like Flying Lotus, Aloe Blacc, Bilal or Chris Dave on the drums.
He recently broadcasted on his bandcamp site three stunning extracts of that very special show :
-  "Deliver The World" feat. Aloe Blacc (cover of "Betrayal" from Guru/Gang Starr)
- "Someday We'll All Be Free" feat. Bilal (cover from Donny Hataway)
- medley feat. Flying Lotus of "Drips" from Flying Lotus recent "Cosmogramma" album and "Take Notice" from the late J Dilla 

Considering the quality of the recording and video below I guess (hope!) there may be an upcoming release of the whole show to come.
Anyway in the meantime, enjoy this!

Miguel Atwood-Ferguson met depuis plusieurs années sa formation de violoniste classique au service d'un large éventail d'univers musicaux, du spiritual jazz au hip-hop expérimental. Ses productions de grande qualité ont en commun une certaine forme de poésie, sans doute une des conséquences de l'intrusion subtile d'intruments à cordes classiques dans un cadre musical en général toujours "soulful".

Le 23 juillet dernier il a donné avec son orchestre un concert gratuit à Los Angeles accompagné par une pléiade d'atistes de premier plan comme Flying Lotus, Aloe Blacc, Bilal ou encore un de mes chouchous, le batteur Chris Dave dont j'ai beaucoup parlé récemment suite au festival de La Villette.

Miguel vient de mettre en ligne trois superbes extraits de ce show. La qualité des vidéos et des enregistrements me laisse espérer qu'il y aura peut-être un release de l'intégralité du concert dans les mois à venir, à suivre!

Le tracklisting et les streaming ci-dessus.

Enjoy!

V4YS Album Review - Flying Lotus - Cosmogramma (Warp Records)

Flying Lotus (Steven Ellison) is one of the most sought-after avant-gardist electronic music producer.
Several highly acclaimed Ep's and two first albums ("1983" and "Los Angeles") had many people categorize his musical style as "abstract hip-hop" but various high-profile collaborations like on José James latest Lp, "Black Magic", showed that the man can wear many (musical) hats. The richness and diversity of sounds found in "Cosmogramma" confirms he breaks all musical codes. To me this is his most interesting production to date, a must-listen.

We're talking about a real "Album" here, meaning a musical piece where it's difficult to extract such and such individual track.
Actually I should use the word "journey". To me the best travel experiences require a bit of effort (to adapt to a new environment), open-mindedness (to leave any prejudices aside) and sensibility (to be able to "feel" the unknown). Well these also probably are essential components to fully enjoy "Cosmogramma".
No clearly identifiable musical styles, no easy melodies or chorus, but an exquisitely dreamy musical atmosphere blending discontructed beats, creative keyboard waves, mesmerizing voices samples or bits and pieces of spititual jazz. Get ready to enter a brand new musical country!

In 2009 one of my favorite Lp was Bibio's "Ambivalence Avenue" which also was a musical ufo transcending electronic musical genres. I have a feeling that I already enjoy "Cosmogramma" as much if not more.
You should try it, really.

Below "And The World Laughs With You" Feat. Radiohead's Thom Yorke (but once again keep in mind that on this record each track is only a piece of an amazing puzzle):