Positive, intention, sound, technique and old souls are a few elements that keep us grounded in the rich history of the music. Wallace Roney puts together a fierce team of burners and although their identity is maintained, you feel the presence of Miles and Trane.
A tsunami* of sound crashes and blankets our beings with a tenacious fire reminiscent of years past. The quintets and sextets of the sixties are alive and well only this time they are accompanied in 2005 with a DJ who scratches and blends beats and sounds under, on top of and all through the music.
The Roney boys are kicking some serious ass and backed up by a rhythm section that lives on the Autobahn. Out front tonight with Wallace and Antoine, Azar Lawrence adds on more embers to the already flammable content.
I peer to my left and see that the Jazz Bakery has some new art on the wall. One of the most evident is a painting of Miles and Trane, I knew they were here!
The set is one tune right into the next. The ballads are long tone beauties with mystical spoken word mixed in by DJ Val, creating a séance like feel. “Brown Sugar, Brown Sugar, you taste so good”.
No
resolution from the ballad and straight into the deep, dark, scratchy,
vampy, full funk sound. From resolution to revolution with no
restitution!
It’s a new millennium and the players of today are morphing the music to higher heights and expanding the boundaries of jazz music to the outer limits while still keeping tradition alive. The Wallace Roney band is an exciting ride into the present and the future. Catch them when you can!
LeRoy Downs
* (my appologies if the use of this word is offensive or insensitive. I truley do not mean it to cause harm or ill feelings)
