The decision to include Nala Sinephro’s debut LP in the blog three years ago was taken after about 30 seconds of skipping through it; her sophomore, now I’m actually aware of her, probably took me half that time, and since its release this morning I’ve been luxuriating in its ambient electronic, spiritual jazz and orchestral riches. In this age of digital workstation born, over compressed music by numbers it really is an unusually plush, timeless affair.
Four of the original players return and, in the genres best tradition, more new generation London jazzers are given a chance to shine, Nubia Garcia being the best known and the only one I was aware of. But what really gives this album a touch of class are Orchestrate’s 21 string players, whose arrangements hark back to a golden age of record label budgets and oversized studios. Their strings scoop up the percussion, synths, brass and harp before sweeping them through the speakers, whilst the swirling instrumentation replays the favour by swirling in and around the classical swathes, making them new, keeping them on the right side of smooth and instantly dismissing any charges of cinematic schmaltz.
Endlessness explores the cycle of existence, so if you’re having health issues perhaps avoid the last track, although it’s more ascending to the light with a promise of reincarnation than descending into eternal darkness. The various stages of life are threaded together by a continuous arpeggio heartbeat with Sinephro spending most of her time buried in her modular synths, although she also straddles the harp from time to time to further enhance the LP’s spiritual dimension, one that Alice and The Pharoah would surely approve of.
The playing from all in the studio is top notch, but what really elevates this LP over the competition and into the realms of a classic recording is the seamless arrangement. I’m sure Sinephro can rip it up on stage if she wants, but this is all about her compositional ability. It’s a rare gift, especially from one so young, to imagine such a big picture, let alone unite twenty nine moving parts to meditate on life, revive a golden age and celebrate the now whilst gazing into the future. Highly recommended.
Playlist Companion:
Find a who’s who and what’s what of new jazz sounds over at the Slow Jazz Playlist.
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