Nubya Garcia : Odyssey
Odyssey, the sophomore release from London-based saxophomist Nubya Garcia following 2020’s Source, is a sprawling exploration of jazz’s past, present and future. Joined by a core ensemble of pianist Joe Armon-Jones, bassist Daniel Cashimir, and drummer Sam “Barrell” Jones, Garcia puts these young lions of the UK jazz scene to good use on a program of 12 original compositions.
The proceedings commence with “Dawn,” a slinky 12/8 groove featuring vocals by the Grammy-winning esperanza spalding. Lyrically, this piece deals with the metaphorical maze of the human condition. A lush string section provides a magic carpet for spalding’s vocals to ride through the sunrise. The vocal and saxophone frontline is used to great effect when they double the melody an octave apart, lending the pairing an almost electronic timbre reminiscent of Bon Iver’s best work. The title track follows, an obvious homage to the legendary John Coltrane Quartet, which along with the legendary saxophonist featured McCoy Tyner on piano, Jimmy Garrison on bass, and Elvin Jones on drums. Each member of Garcia’s quartet has evidently studied these forebearers on their respective instruments deeply.
Cashimir’s warm upright bass tone introduces “Solstice,” with Jones layering a deftly executed triplet pattern on the hi-hat that brings to mind the work of drummer Bob Moses on Pat Metheny’s Bright Size Life. The funk of “Solstice” takes the listener directly into the hip-hop pocket of “Set It Free,” featuring Richie on vocals. Once more, Garcia demonstrates her ability to collaborate ably with a vocalist both in performance and compositionally.
“The Seer” keeps things funky until its finale, where the band suddenly transitions back into swing mode, restating the melody while never returning to the original groove. The string section of “Odyssey (Outerlude)” softens the dynamics to ease listeners into the samba rhythms of “We Walk in Gold,” a showcase for guest vocalist Georgia Ann Muldrow. The string section returns to bookend this piece with another solo feature “Water’s Path,” a beautiful composition in 5/4 time that really lets Garcia’s compositional chops shine, making full use of both arco and pizzicato playing.
“Clarity” is another well executed Latin-tinged number that shows that Jones is equal parts finesse and bombast behind the drum kit. As his drums drop out at the end of the piece, the ensemble segues into “In Other Words Living,” a piece that makes use of the ensemble’s ability to use a wide dynamic palette, crescendoing into a unison figure playing by Garcia and the string section.
Garcia bids the audience farewell with “Triumphance,” a reggae number that shows a reverence to the greats of this genre, Jones’ delay-drenched drums bringing to mind legendary dub reggae artists of the ’80s like Tenor Saw. With an incantation of “raise up your hands, uplift your soul, and in triumphance together all as one,” the record comes to a close on the note of triumph that it invokes, Garcia raising the bar ever higher.
Label: Concord Jazz
Year: 2024
Similar Albums:
