Recording of the Week, R+R=NOW - LIVE

Nu-jazz trailblazer Robert Glasper is the kind of accomplished, well-connected player that can play with whoever he pleases, and that’s exactly what he’s done with his recent project R+R=NOW. The project name itself stands for ‘Reflect and Respond’ which Glasper attributes to a Nina Simone quote when challenged for her political consciousness: “an artist’s duty, as far as I’m concerned, is to reflect the times”; to reflect and respond, and be present, as Glasper interprets it. In many ways the project is itself a reflection of the modern sounds of New York jazz, where the genre is often seamlessly blended with sounds of hip-hop, electronica and electric funk. The group itself saw its formation in 2017, when Glasper was tasked with assembling a lineup for a show at SXSW festival in Austin, Texas. The show itself was almost totally unrehearsed, with Glasper being so pleased with the result that he took this same lineup to the studio to commit the music to wax, 2018’s Collagically Speaking on Blue Note. The band itself is indeed made up of an all-star cast of modern jazzers; besides Glasper on keys, he’s accompanied by Terrace Martin on alto sax, vocoder and synthesisers, who also has production credits on hip-hop artist Kendrick Lamar’s 2015 album To Pimp a Butterfly. Brainfeeder Records regular Taylor McFerrin also fills in for synth duty, while trumpeter Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah also makes an appearance having just recently finished his Centennial Trilogy of albums the year before recording, and you can hardly ask for a better rhythm section with bassist Derrick Hodge and Esperanza Spalding drummer Justin Tyson.

The tunes are heavily swung in that loose hip-hop-inspired feel, with a proper solid rhythm foundation that prevents the band from falling out of line even in some of the set’s ‘loosest’ moments. While Glasper’s piano opening to the track ‘Change of Tone’ is incredibly fluid, chock full of juicy jazz harmony with a driving rhythm of drums and synthesisers backing him up, he goes totally off-tempo in his improvisation later on in the track with big chordal stabs with almost no regard for rhythm. While bassist Derrick Hodge does an excellent job at grounding the sextet, he also creates some great little melodic moments like the opening of ‘Been On My Mind’, a vibey yet melancholic tune. Tyson shows off his drumming prowess with both tightly-locked patterns and fast, frantic almost drum & bass-reminiscent passages. Particular highlights include the melody ‘Perspectives/Postpartum’ - the former a Christian Scott tune while the latter is Taylor McFerrin - featuring these incredibly dreamy chords and harmonised vocoder vocals, as well as the group covering Kendrick Lamar’s ‘How Much a Dollar Cost’ from the aforementioned To Pimp a Butterfly, itself inspired by jazz and funk music. Influences really do come full circle sometimes. ‘Needed You Still’ finds the band takes it back a notch to make room for guest rapper Omari Hardwick; the band immediately welcome his presence, playing off his verses like Glasper adding some deliberately clumsy and discordant piano parts in response to a line by Hardwick commenting on his lack of keyboard skill. The set ends with ‘Resting Warrior’, an extended 25-minute-long jam between the band, intense drumming and aggressive melodies contrasting with the more melodic and dreamy vibes of the rest of the setlist.

The recording captures a performance full of energy and a relaxed, celebratory atmosphere; the crowd cheering throughout and laughing along with the band when Glasper pops up on the mic with the odd bit of tongue-in-cheek stage banter, be it Glasper and Martin’s comedic call and response with Martin replying to Glasper through his vocoder, or Glasper requesting the sound technician add an echo to his microphone for dramatic effect, much to the enjoyment of the crowd. With Glasper’s sextet all on top form, the lively crowd only add to the energy in the room, making for an absolutely killer live recording.

Check out R+R=NOW's debut studio album while you're at it...