At the risk of oversharing, I’ll divulge the musical component of one of my proven methods of relaxation. Deploying shuffle mode on a playlist with a few hours of lowkey Brazilian grooves from the ‘70s and ‘80s almost always makes me feel better.
Azymuth is a key component of these emergency decompression sessions. The group’s Brazilian twist on effervescent instrumental funk and lilting jazz fusion provides engaging but undemanding background music. The release of
Demos (1973-1975), Vol. 1 & 2 is an unexpected windfall. Most of the 80-minute compilation is musically preferable- if sonically inferior- to Azymuth’s most popular material. Songs like
“Laranjaeiras” are in keeping with watery instrumental jams of the era like Deodato’s reading of “Also Sprach Zarathustra” and Bob James’ “Nautilus” while the least pleasing tracks are compelling studio workouts. The unfortunate inclusion of a seven-minute drum solo that’s of interest only to beat pilferers kills the otherwise sublime restorative vibe.
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I
reviewed StrangeFest for
The Kansas City Star.
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I write
weekly concert previews for
The Kansas City Star.
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I
reviewed Ralph Peterson & The Messenger Legacy’s
Legacy Alive, Volume 6 at the Side Door
at Plastic Sax.
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Ivan Conti’s impressive new album
Poison Fruit doesn’t qualify for inclusion in the playlists I reference above. Not only does it not fit into my arbitrary time frame constraints, the project by Azymuth’s adventurous 72-year-old drummer includes contemporary electronic and hip-hop elements.
(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)
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