I'm not sure when ambient new age jazz started to have a renaissance or make its way into the world of indie music publications, but we seem to be at a cultural moment for the genre and one of the artists leading the way is Shabaka Hutchings. Best known for making waves with his groups Sons of Kemet and the Comet is Coming, Shabaka recently ended those bands and moved away from his main instrument, the saxophone, in favor of woodwinds, notably the flute. As he gears up to release his first solo album (billed only to his first name), the artist has made the transition away from the sharp and vigorous music from his previous groups and has settled on distilled, tranquil, and meditative music that acts as a more transportive vessel towards the cosmic and spiritual sides of jazz. On his new single "I'll Do Whatever You Want," Shabaka has arranged one of the more impressive lists of guest musicians I've ever seen and leads them all through a sprawling journey of contemplative and moving music that reaches an astral plane far beyond our own world and into a universe that sounds ripe with opportunity. For this one, Shabaka takes on the Shakuhachi (an ancient Japanese end-blown flute made of bamboo) and recruits the legend Laraaji for wordless vocals, André 3000 on the Teotihuacan drone flute, Floating Points on Rhodes Chroma synthesizer and vibraphone, Esperanza Spalding and Tom Herbert on bass, Dave Okumu on guitar, Marcus Gilmore on drums, and Carlos Niño on percussion. Bringing the leaders of the new vanguard in this soundscape is a triumph in and of itself and Shabaka's remarkable coolness provides a well of serenity and bountiful joy. Join him on this trek to the outer cosmos and ascend to a new realm of wonder.
Perceive Its Beauty, Acknowledge Its Grace is out April 12.
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