Kendrick Scott Oracle - The Source

World Culture

In a time when concepts like “fusion” and “freedom” have been reduced to marketing tactics, it’s nice to hear a disc that employs both in mainstream but interesting fashion. Kendrick Scott, best known as Terence Blanchard’s drummer, presents a debut disc that is extremely well crafted in that it maintains a unified vision while exhibiting, without overdoing it, the stylistic variants and references so important in the aftermath of the death of post-modernity.

Scott’s compositional voice can be heard, often softly, somewhere between Andrew Hill and Alan Holdsworth; he has a gift for counterpoint that is bolstered by gorgeously wistful harmonies. “View from Above,” in two radically different versions, shows what Scott can do with a very simple melodic motive, reshaping and reharmonizing it, adorning it with countermelodies and then bringing it back in original form. The band latches on perfectly, sharing fully in what I can only describe as a romantic vision. The playing of pianist Aaron Parks deserves special mention, his pianissimo work delicious as each note and chord drops, like a pearl, perfectly into place.

Related, but strikingly dissimilar, is the hauntingly hypno-groovy “VCB,” a powerfully understated study of sound placement; keys and guitar lock and load in polyrhythm as bassist Derrick Hodge and Scot hold down an airy but forceful homage to hip-hop. There’s another arresting melody at play here, but the sweetness of rich timbral manipulation is the track’s sugar and spice. The slow fade and return of wah-wah strings and keys hints at a longer form unrealized, reminiscent of Miles circa Get Up With It, and I wish the tune had gone on for twenty minutes instead of two.

Yes, the album veers into the dreaded “Smooth” jazz territory from time to time, as with the vocal interjections on “Retrospect,” but there is a constant attention to detail, both in terms of timbre and arrangement, that keeps stagnation at bay. Kendrick’s playing is sparse yet full, just like his charts, as he seems to complement every musician individually, drawing like-minded contributions from band members and collaborators alike. Check out special guest Lionel Loueke’s subtly effected high-register guitar workout on “Mantra” to see what puts this record above many others like it, not to mention back in my player. Even the Bjork cover, “107 Steps,” comes off sounding fresh. If “VCB” is too brief, and if “View from Above” fades just as things begin to heat up and expand too far into the clutches of freedom, these are minor quibbles, hopefully even providing a little food for thought regarding future projects, for which I have high hopes.

~ Marc Medwin