Drummer Kendrick Scott Releases Debut CD "The Source" on April 10

Kendrick “KADS" Scott is not your average drummer. Yes, he went to Berklee. Yes, he endorses many of the same drums and accessories as the next guy. And of course his influences include Tony Williams, Elvin Jones, Jack DeJohnette, Roy Haynes, and Philly Joe Jones. But Scott distinguishes himself from his peers with unrestrained energy, acute sensitivity to his fellow players and a sense of rhythmic personality that is genuinely lacking among so many drummers, young and old. Scott releases his debut album The Source April 10 on his own label, World Culture Music.

Scott's maiden voyage as a bandleader on The Source finds him at the helm of a collective he calls Kendrick Scott Oracle. Of the name he explains, “Oracle was conceived through the influence of Art Blakey's name for his band. The Jazz Messengers were very significant [as a group] because they made music to reach out to the people. I personally connected with that name and idea in my own struggle to find a name that would represent my vision. In our music, there is passion and sincerity in every note (written and unwritten), so that every listener will interpret the music in their own way, without an absolute outcome."

Kendrick Scott Oracle is comprised of a talented crop of young musicians making a name for them-selves on the New York scene and on the world stage. Not only are they part of a vibrant downtown scene focused around clubs such as The Jazz Gallery, Smalls and Fat Cat, many are also Scott's close friends that go back to his high school days at Houston's High School for the Performing and Visual Arts. Pianist Robert Glasper attended high school with Scott as did fellow sidemen Mike Moreno (guitar) and Walter Smith III (tenor saxophone).

On The Source, Scott packs a tactical punch as a fine composer. He shows his compositional prowess writing for an array of instruments with unique qualities and timbres from bass clarinet to voice. Thought it starts out slow, “View From Above" builds to towering heights all the while underscored by a tapestry of clashing cymbals and thunderous toms. On top of Scott's set work, saxophonists Seamus Blake and Myron Walden construct refined harmonic lines that complement each other. “Mantra" is a medium up-tempo tune played in double time. “I wanted to have this lush and slow moving harmony over a groove feel," notes Scott. “This song is one that I wrote back in my Berklee days when I was just beginning to write. On this piece, each player took the music in completely different directions than what I originally heard in my head. That is the beauty I find in playing with such spontaneous, and creative cats." The tune starts out with a synthesized tone akin to a drop of water hitting the surface of a pond filtered through an echo chamber. This tone punctuates a lift in every bar and is somewhat reminiscent of the Headhunters' use of synthesized tones in their layered compositions.

Scott draws on contemporary genres as much as straight-ahead jazz to inform his stylistic palette. Evidence of one of his extracurricular listening interests comes in “107 Steps," a Bjork song which tastefully uses Walden's mystical bass clarinet over sparse rhythm accompaniment. Eventually the tune grows and grows, peaking as Walden switches to soprano and engages in a subtle dialogue with guitarist Lionel Loueke.

When called upon by players ranging from Terence Blanchard and John Scofield to Joe Sample and David Sanborn, Scott brings his unique personality to bear. Ask any of his employers why they use him and they'll tell you it's for his precision and attention to detail just as much as his imagination.

Most notably the current the drummer of choice for Terence Blanchard, Scott follows in the footsteps of now-established players like Jeff 'Tain' Watts and Eric Harland. “Being a part of Terence's group for three and a half years has been a godsend. He has given the members of the band freedom to grow and cultivate our voices," says Scott. “When we went in to record 'The Source” on Terence's [2005 Blue Note] album Flow, and producer Herbie [Hancock] said he would play on it, one can only imagine how I felt."

Additionally, Hancock's solo on “The Source" was then nominated for a 2005 Grammy Award. “I knew when I went in to record my debut record that “The Source'" would be the title track. It's an homage to humanity." With its dense layering and thematic development from bass line to melody, this piece is one of the cornerstones of Scott's compositional journey.

The drummer feels that composition is as much a part of his musical voice as the drums. “On my first record, I wanted to write some pretty music that was out of the norm for a record by a drummer - so that you wouldn't know it was my record, but rather an ensemble with a cohesive balance and flow."

Kendrick Scott Oracle
The Source
World Culture Music
Release Date: April 10, 2007