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Eric Harland's Voyager: Eric Harland's Voyager: Vipassana
ByDrummer Eric Harland has come to embody all that is right and good in jazz and drumming today. He's a drummer's drummer, a musician's musician, and a supremely gifted communicator, capturing the spirit of sound and soul in his every beat. That's evident on countless recordings. You can hear it when he lays down a simple and perfect groove on "Mo' Better Blues" from pianist Jacky Terrasson's Smile (Blue Note, 2002); it's apparent when he plays the role of a rhythmic mystic behind saxophone shaman Charles Lloyd; it's plainly obvious when he adds a high-octane kick to the SFJAZZ Collective's trips through the work of Horace Silver, Stevie Wonder and others; and you notice it without fail when he digs in his heels with bassist Dave Holland's Prism. The fact that Harland is such an in-demand side man has driven him to play different parts for different people, perhaps suppressing his own personality a bit in the process. His Voyager project has rectified that issue, giving him the chance to put himself out there for all to see and hear.
This band's debutVoyager: Live By Night (Space Time Records/Sunnyside Records, 2011)found Harland working different moods, but residing in a singular stylistic camp. It wasn't all charge-ahead, firing-on-all-cylinders music, but all of the songs fell squarely under the admittedly all-too-broad "modern jazz" category. The music presented on Vipassana isn't as unidirectional. Songs like "Relax" and "Passana" aren't "songs" at all. They're groove jams built in a Robert Glasper-turned-meditative vibe. That's not at all surprising when you consider that the album's title is a Buddhist-connected term that's often translated as "Insight Meditation." The same vibe can also be felt throughout "VI," a short vehicle for pianist Taylor Eigsti.
Those hip-hop-laced tracks show off a side of Harland that many may be unfamiliar with, but they don't define this record. This isn't Eric Harland's arrival as a fully converted neo-soul jazz-er. The modern jazz, and quite a bit more, is still here. Harland and company create songs built atop cross-rhythmic streams ("Raghavan" and "Eminence"), boil over with enthusiasm, paint poignant and semi-ethereal pictures ("Greene"), and, in an odd twist, turn toward rock balladry on a single occasion ("Normal").
All of the musicians that appeared with Harland on Voyager: Live By NightEigsti, saxophonist Walter Smith III, guitarist Julian Lage, and bassist Harish Raghavanreturn here, and guitarist Nir Felder joins up, adding another dimension. But it's the other new arrivalvocalist Christopher Turnerthat serves as a game-changer. He's the focal point on "Normal," he adds to the wonderful mayhem of "Dhyana" with his wordless vocals, and he ushers in the album with a dreamy, shifting, layered request: "You don't need to worry; just relax your mind." Following his advice isn't a bad idea. It adds to the mind-altering experience of hearing Vipassana.
Track Listing
Relax; Raghavan; Passana; VI; Eminence; Singularis; Normal; Greene; Anjou; Capacity; Maiden Voyage; Dhyana.
Personnel
Eric Harland
drumsEric Harland: drums; Walter Smith III: tenor saxophone; Taylor Eigsti: piano; Julian Lage: guitar; Nir Felder: guitar; Harish Raghavan: bass; Chris Turner: vocals.
Album information
Title: Eric Harland's Voyager: Vipassana | Year Released: 2014 | Record Label: GSI Records