Label: 577 Records, 2022
Personnel - Thomas Sayers Ellis: bandleader poet; James Brandon Lewis: tenor saxophone; Devin Brahja Waldman: alto saxophone, synthesizer; Heru Shabaka-ra: trumpet; Bonita Lee Penn: poet; Randall Horton: poet; Nettie Chickering: voice; Jenna Camille: piano, vocals; Melanie Dyer: viola, vocals; Brandon Moses: guitar; Luke Stewart: bass; Warren "Trae" Crudup III: drums.
The newest outing from Heroes Are Gang Leaders consists of previously released material recorded live in Paris. Under the baton of poet Thomas Sayers Ellis, the group delivers five tracks inspired by New Jersey poet-activist Amiri Baraka, whose powerful words toward the Black liberation and racial justice made a difference. All pieces were culled from the 2019 album The Amiri Baraka Sessions, with the exception of bassist Luke Stewart’s “Mista Sippy”, which was first presented on record in 2020, on the album Artificial Happiness Button. This number, initially stripped down to a piano-vocals duo, follows a slow triple tempo while embracing a cool-jazz mood that serves spoken word reason. However, at more than 16 minutes long, it feels stretched beyond what it should be.
The opening piece, “Amina”, was penned by the tenor sensation James Brandon Lewis who took Amiri’s wife as an inspiration. Here, it takes the form of a three-part suite that offers a more enveloping sound than the scattered short stories presented in the studio work. The first section, “The Dutchman’s Three Buttoned Suit” makes for a slow, prayerful entrance with sax and viola, followed by thin layers of keyboard and guitar. This is succeeded by “Poetry iz Labor”, whose ghostly drone functions as a loop. A nicely marked hip-hop feel comes with the piano harmony while the horn players articulate beautifully atop. The sequence ends with a rowdy, free interplay that swells to a catharsis in the the third part, “Forensic Report”.
Another highlight, “LeAutoRoiOgraphy”, pairs up soulfully quiet piano playing and sensitive vocals at the outset. The pianist, Jenna Camille, then charges with a striding cadence in 3/4. She’s joined by the spoken-word poets and singers, the rhythm section, and ultimately the horn players, whose lines skew across in celebratory activity. By the end, the meter changes once again to simple quadruple in a vamp infused with pumped-up energy. The album ends with “Sad Dictator”, motivated by Baraka’s poem Valéry as Dictator. There’s grit in the saxophone and an unfettered eclecticism that unites soul jazz and hip-hop with a sense of whimsy.
Bobbing and weaving through the arrangements, this roster of fascinating musicians continues to run their stylized gamut, from observantly reflective to passionately incendiary. This is a very listenable but not essential recording.
Favorite Tracks:
01 - Amina ► 03 - LeAutoRoiOgraphy