Rarely am I blown away by Jazz. The music has become such a museum piece, with legions of fans who are all too old to remember how cutting edge it once was and how it got to where it is today by breaking the established rules. Even the pioneers seem to be suffering from a disengaged myopia. I actually heard Ron Carter say that nothing good has come out since “Kind of Blue”. That type of dismissal is a severe blow to all the amazing classical Jazz musicians still emerging from the fertile cultural tidewaters down in New Orleans and New York. Even Boston has a couple of ace musicians still hanging out, see Esperanza Spalding for one (and yes, I know she hails from Portland, OR but she undoubtedly cut her chops in Beantown.) Now, I’m not going to pose like I know shit about the Jazz the NEA wants to freeze in time, but I know what feels good to dance to, and I certainly know virtuosity when I stare it dead in the eyes. And those eyes, as far as Jazz is concerned, most recently came in the form of Soil & Pimp Sessions‘ Tabu Zombie and Motoharu. The band headlined a show currated by Gilles Peterson this past winter at the Hiro Ballroom – one of NYC’s most beautiful venues. They were preceded by the amazingly talented Rahj and Tita Lima (not to mention Taylor McFerrin), all of whom set the stage for S&P’s high-energy, zombi-kabuki, acid-jazz meltdown. I felt like I was at a Widespread Panic show; I jumped, I bit my lip and I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to focus on the streams of sound that were so precise, from all six performers, that I left feeling like I had been duped and it was all a pre-recorded stunt. This Zed Bias Remix of S&P’s “Sahara” is just perfect. The horns float in and out over devestating sub-bass and those wicked drums. This one strikes that rare balance between light and dark. Sweet melodic leads on horns and piano, evil percussion.

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We’ve crested the mid-week hurdle and now the weekend of Sound Session is upon us. What astounds me about this festival is just how many amazing artists we have already brought and how many we still have yet to present to the city. Last night was a much needed respite after the manic joy of Tuesday (Queen Ifrica and Zili Misik), the calculated solo virtuosity of Monday (kahlil almustafa, KUKU, Monica Mcintyre and Taylor McFerrin) and the surprise knockdown performance by Jaguar Wright on Sunday. But still, Edwin Pabon and Carlos De Leon were killing it! Carlos, our Latin Jazz & Salsa artist in residence at Black Rep, refuses to play Merengue (aka 110 – 120 BPM House with Salsa instrumentation and Spanish lyrics), but I still have to give mad respect to him for bringing together such a beautiful community each and every week. And last night was even more gangbusters than a typical Wednesday. Hopefully this midweek jolt will carry on through Afro-Sonic tonight. Ron Trent is one of the architects of the Chicago House scene. I not only love him for what he pioneered in the windy city, but also for his unrelenting commitment to New York’s Giant Step night. That party paved the way for institutions like ours and as an homage to Mr. Trent, I will be archiving a chugging Atlantic-Jaxx-style take on the classic Ten City anthem “That’s The Way Love Is.” I first got hip to this song when lead singer Byron Stingily re-recorded it during the Disco House days of the late 90s. This version, remixed by Rune RK, tastes like Acid and smells like Funk. Horn punches flutter like angry bees beneath the driving synths and now-classic vocal track and I’m forgetting that it was just days ago I rolled my ankle. Heads up, this is a massive 320kbps version of this track so get ready for mbs and mbs. Thanks to Little White Earbuds for tuning me back in to this joint.

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