Zack: This album made me realize how painfully
unequipped I am to discuss jazz music. I’ve mentioned before about how I’ve
enjoyed a lot of what we’ve come across, but even when I like something I don’t
quite know how to express it. It’s very different than talking about hip-hop or
alternative rock or just about any other genre, where I know the language. With
jazz, I always feel like I should have a translation dictionary on hand. Which
is why it’s so hard to write a post about why I enjoyed Heavy Weather. It was a
really solid album, and I loved how it…sounded. That’s about the best I can do.
Something about it really stuck with me, and hopefully listening to it a few
more times will shake some useful adjectives out of me so I can say why.
Favorite Tracks: Birdland; The Juggler; Harlequin
Emily: I was catching up on the New York Times as I listened to this album today, and by the end I was reading an article about Kamasi Washington. If you don't know who Washington is, you should, because his debut album The Epic is simply fantastic. Washington is a contemporary jazz musician that very well might bring jazz back to the forefront - he's already started by working with Kendrick Lamar on To Pimp A Butterfly, and from the article I also learned that he's toured with both Snoop Dogg and Lauryn Hill. Washington's jazz comes from many different eras and influences, creating something entirely his own. It made a lot of sense, then, that I was listening to Heavy Weather while reading about him. Heavy Weather is a jazz-fusion album, with elements of rock and funk alongside the quintessential jazz arrangements and feel. The jazz artists of today - like Kamasi Washington - pull from contemporary influences as well (like hip-hop and electronic). I'm sure there's a long line of this tradition within the jazz community (and probably a lot of naysayers and purists as well), but the two artists I've connected with today at least begin to tell that story.
Favorite Tracks: Birdland; Palladium; Teen Town
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