Word: albums
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...best way to think about Lady Sovereign’s new album “Public Warning” is to think about that game “Telephone.” For those of you who have blocked out your childhood, this is a game where kids whisper a phrase from one end of a line to the other. Things are intelligible enough at first, but before long the message is horribly garbled...
...Grand Unification Theory,” excessive aspiration sometimes edged out simple musicality. “African Tarantella” is no different: the simple appeal of the blues is often buried under the weight of ambition. When sparser arrangements allow the musicians to stretch out, the album succeeds; when lush orchestrations dominate, the music loses clarity and distinction...
Harris and his unconventional ensemble (a nonet including viola and cello) begin the album auspiciously with pieces from Ellington and Billy Strayhorn’s 1970 “New Orleans Suite.” Here, Harris’ playing is at its bright-edged, percussive best, and his relentlessly-swinging approach pervades the whole band’s sound. Drummer Terreon Gully and bassist Derrick Hodge play with a bluesy intensity that recalls the hard-charging rhythm section of Dannie Richmond and Charles Mingus, and Steve Turre’s forceful trombone backgrounds make the ensemble sound twice...
...astounding abilities as an instrumentalist. On Harris’s own “Gardner Meditations” suite, the group attempts a return to their early form, but never quite gets there: a few moments of great ensemble playing do arrive at the last moment to conclude the album on an upswing...
...goal—none of the pieces recorded here rank among Ellington’s best-known works, and they certainly deserve wider exposure. But good intentions don’t always make the best music. The philosophizing, orchestrating, and conducting aren’t enough to sink this album, but they’re plenty reason to make a listener wish that Stefon Harris would stick to what he does best: playing the vibes...