Branford Marsalis Quartet
“Four MFs Playin’ Tunes”
(Marsalis Music)

Don’t let the understated title of the new Branford Marsalis Quartet album mislead you into thinking this is some loosely arranged jam session. Saxophonist Marsalis leads one of the most cohesive, intense small jazz ensembles on the scene today. The group’s three long-standing members -- Marsalis, pianist Joey Calderazzo and bassist Eric Revis -- each contribute original tunes to “Four MFs Playin’ Tunes” and there are covers of Thelonious Monk’s “Teo” and the 1930s ballad “My Ideal.”

The quartet’s tight interplay reflects that the group has undergone only one lineup change in more than a decade. That came in 2009 when Marsalis’ collaborator of a quarter century, drummer Jeff “Tain” Watts, left and was replaced by then 18-year-old high school senior Justin Faulkner, who propels the band with new energy on his studio recording debut with the quartet. Faulkner confirms his rising-star status as he engages in intricate dialogues with the tenor saxophonist and pianist on Marsalis’ “Whiplash” before climaxing with a riveting, powerhouse drum solo. On the next track, Calderazzo’s ethereal ballad “As Summer Into Autumn Slips,” the drummer displays his finesse with his soft mallet-and-cymbal accompaniment.

The CD begins with two tunes showcasing Marsalis’ prowess on soprano sax -- Calderazzo’s playful, energetic “The Mighty Sword,” with a catchy calypso-like theme reminiscent of Sonny Rollins, and Revis’ bluesy Monk-influenced “Brews,” where Marsalis turns in a blazing solo. It closes with Marsalis turning down the heat on the romantic standard “My Ideal” with a touching, tender tenor sax solo and on the bonus track “Treat It Gentle,” an original old-style Marsalis ballad that pays homage to his New Orleans roots, drawing its title from the autobiography of Sidney Bechet, who created the vocabulary for the soprano sax in jazz.

This album shows that Marsalis’ quartet hasn’t skipped a beat with the change in the drummer’s chair, effortlessly playing often complex original tunes that are thoroughly modern while referencing past jazz masters.
(AP)

Israel & New Breed offer solid tunes on CD

Israel & New Breed
“Jesus at the Center”
(Integrity Music)

Israel & New Breed, the Grammy-nominated gospel act led by singer Israel Houghton, provides many superb praise and worship songs on their new album, “Jesus at the Center.”

Houghton co-wrote the majority of songs on the double-disc album, offering solid, upbeat gospel tunes that are fused with jazz and rock melodies. The 21 tracks -- some new, some old -- flow easily as the group delivers a series of powerful messages about faith and empowerment.

The musicians recorded the high-energy, well-produced album over three nights at Lakewood Church in Houston. Houghton’s voice is strong throughout, particularly on “I Call You Jesus” and “Your Presence Is Heaven.” The singer collaborates with his wife, Mariah, on the pleasant and slow-paced “To Make You Feel My Love/Name of Love.”

Numerous shouts and applause are heard on the energetic “Rez Power,” and “You Have Me/You Hold My World” featuring Michael Gungor is enjoyable.

(AP)

 

Mexican cheer turns mournful on ‘Politico’

Mexican Institute of Sound
“Politico”
(Nacional Records)

“Mexico, Mexico, ra ra ra.” The cheer is familiar to Mexican sports fans as well as to film buffs who’ll know it as the ironic title of a 1970s cult movie that criticized Mexico as a nation decaying from within. On “Politico,” the darkly pointed new album by electronic artist Camilo Lara (aka the Mexican Institute of Sound), the cheer is a lopsided refrain anchoring the breakout single “Mexico,” which sadly declares that the stench of rot remains.

Layered over a drunken horn line, Lara chants “Todos somos victimas de un estado confiscado/ Con un gobierno involucrado en las ganacias del narco/ Es una nacion podrida con la poblacion herida,” meaning, “We’re all victims of a confiscated state/ With a government involved in narco profits/ It’s a nation at rot, with the population wounded.”

On “Politico,” Lara departs from his earlier MIS albums that were overtly joyous in celebrating Mexico’s rich musical culture. Lara, who is president of EMI Mexico, uses his extensive knowledge of Latin music to smash up diverse sounds: tuba-driven banda rhythms; 1960s pop harmonics; vocal samplings; folk instruments. Mexicans take pride in an ability to pull together odds and ends, whatever is on hand to form creations that are unique, unexpected and delicious in an entirely new way. That “a la Mexicana” style is Lara’s charm, even as he mourns the corruption tearing apart his homeland.

(AP)

New drummer propels Branford Marsalis Quartet