Label: Contagious Music, 2025
Personnel - Devin Daniels: alto saxophone; Jeff Parer: guitar; Billy Mohler: bass; Damion Reid: drums.
On his latest album, The Eternal, LA bassist and composer Billy Mohler applies his signature groovy formulas with a firm grip in the rock music, delivering another striking album of originals alongside a new quartet of influential LA-based musicians. After three albums featuring reedist Chris Speed, trumpeter Shane Endsley, and drummer Nate Wood, his lineup now includes saxophonist Devin Daniels, guitarist Jeff Parker, and drummer Damion Reid.
The album opener, “Those Who Know”, was written for Reid, who stuns with a rock-infused feel in the beat. Mohler sets everything in motion with a dynamic groove, over which sax and guitar flow effortlessly in parallel. Parker’s harmonic support and liquid tremolos stand out, as does his work on “Hawk Wind”, another piece built around a mesmerizing bass figure, and where he employs volume swells to create a warm ambiance. He then solos through a spellbinding sequence, adding elegant tension to his phrasing with half-tone shifts. The rhythm section remains finely attuned to the soloists, with Reid simultaneously delivering a hi-hat pulse and mallet-driven eloquence in support of Daniels’ beautifully crafted improvisation.
For blues enthusiasts, this band offers two distinct takes on the genre: “Adaptation” is an intrepid, jittery excursion in six, brimming with restless drum work and a whimsical guitar improvisation, while “Sooner”, inspired by Mohler’s late uncle Doug—a member of the Chippewa tribe—emerges as a full-figured 4/4 blues. Additionally, the album features five ‘Eternal’ pieces—short solo bass stories, exquisitely expressed through thick, resonant tones and a refined pizzicato technique.
“Reflection” is a sophisticated ballad, elegantly balanced with harmonic and melodic tunefulness, whereas “Destroyer” is a formidable powerhouse, an energetic rock-infused foray that culminates in an unexpected resolution. On “Tsunami”, Mohler ignites the groove with an intense yet controlled heat, achieving a fine equilibrium between tension and release. Despite its foreboding title, the piece radiates a thoughtful optimism, shaped by tempo shifts and soulful statements from Parker and Daniels.
Mohler unquestionably knows how to throw down a groove, providing a fertile foundation for his bandmates to explore freely. His approach—firmly rooted in the contemporary post-bop school—frequently arrives with rock-like muscularity. The Eternal, a brew of heady, spirited groovy magnitude and boldly creative hybridity, ensures that no listener remains static.
Favorite Tracks:
01 - Those Who Know ► 04 - Hawk Wind ► 07 - Destroyer ► 12 - Tsunami