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Tribal Tech: X
ByIn its early days, TT was much more about preconceived composition, and that's what makes X so strongan album that sounds very much how Weather Report might, had it been a more rock-edged guitar-keys-bass-drums group rather than the saxophone line-up that defined its entire career. Henderson was an alum of keyboardist Joe Zawinul's Syndicate in the late 1980s, but the touchstones were already showing on earlier TT recordings like Dr. Hee (Passport, 2007)even clearer with Willis' markers in a run of WR bassists, from Alphonso Johnson to Victor Bailey and, of course, Jaco Pastorius, but long since absorbed into something more personal. Kinseywho continues to mine Zawinul-innovated space on albums including Kinesthetics (Abstract Logix, 2006)remains a perfect fit, as is Covington, whose ability to drive a groove with near-relentless energy fleshes out the group as a fusion juggernaut still capable of surprising subtlety.
After three recordings together, the group moved away from preconception and began composing around lengthy studio jams with Thick (Zebra, 1999). If the idea of pulling form from the ether is not particularly new, TT certainly rivals the best of them in sculpting pieces from open-ended improvs that belie their lack of preconception and, instead, feel more intrinsically structured. What makes X a significant leap over Thick and Rocket Science is that while the mid-tempo swinger "Let's Get Swung" feels like a jam, "Anthem" absolutely does notpossessed, as it is, of more complex changes, though when it kicks into Henderson's incendiary solo near the end, it's over an unrelenting groove. The gentle "Palm Moon Plaza" is similarly episodic, with Kinsey's dense synths creating a gorgeous cushion over which Henderson's whammy bar-driven intro swoops and soars, while "Got Faith 'n' Phat" is gospel on steroids.
There's plenty of muscular solo spaceand everyone has grown considerably since they were last togetherbut what X represents, a decade on, is the ultimate destination of TT's compositional approach, one which leverages on in-the-moment spontaneity, but then revisits and applies the greater sophistication that underscores every member of the group. Whether or not Tribal Tech will touror if it will record againis uncertain, but if X is its overdue final statement, it allows the group to go out on one heckuva a high note. And there's no reason not to wish for more to come from a group that feels fresh, reinvigorated and creatively revived.
Track Listing
Mech X; Got Faith 'n' Phat; Time Lapse; Anthem; Palm Moon Plaza; Gravity; Working Blue; Ask Me a Question; Let's Get Swung; Corn Butter.
Personnel
Tribal Tech
band / ensemble / orchestraScott Henderson: guitar; Gary Willis: bass; Scott Kinsey: keyboards; Kirk Covington: drums.
Album information
Title: X | Year Released: 2012 | Record Label: Tone Center
Comments
About Tribal Tech
Instrument: Band / ensemble / orchestra
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