From the depths of the music mastermind that is Mr. Washington comes the highly anticipated album release titled "Heaven and Earth".
9.3/10
Multi instrumentalist and contemporary tenor sax legend Kamasi Washington expands his reputation as a soloist and jazz ideator to an outstanding composer and arranger with the release of his groundbreaking double length masterpiece Heaven and Earth. The album no doubt builds on top of Washington’s success with his debut album The Epic, in which Washington burst into the scene with in 2013. The musician leaves a sizzling album over two hours long with a theme that sparks listeners both creatively and politically. The theme, as witnessed in the album title, is Heaven and Earth.
Washington explained recently on Twitter that “The Earth side represents the world as I see it outwardly, the world that I am a part of. The Heaven side represents the world as I see it inwardly, the world that is a part of me.”
Born and raised in Los Angeles, California, Washington attended UCLA studying ethnomusicology. Since playing with many of UCLA’s music faculty member’s, Washington has played with musicians including Snoop Dogg, Chaka Khan, Herbie Hancock, Flying Lotus, Lauryn Hill and Thundercat. Washington has also been credited with playing saxophone on Kendrick Lamar's To Pimp a Butterfly.
Heaven and Earth shows the unique type of genius Kamasi Washington is. The first half of the album (the Earth side) is just over 71 minutes, and delves into the current state of the world. The album starts off with the extraordinary track that is Fists of Fury. The track is just under 10 minutes, and it serves as an anthem for the people. Touching on global cultures throughout the song, Fists of Fury is an epic fight song. The purpose of the song is perhaps a modern equivalent to Charles Mingus’ Haitian Fight Song, giving modern generations a song to voice their current state politically (as Mingus did back in 1957). With lyrics that come and go inconsistently through the song, Washington uses instrumentation to portray the message of the song as well as lyrics. With a cooking rhythm section and Washington’s wicked 3 minute solo, he uses his sax as a mic to further communicate the song’s significance.
“I use hands, to help my fellow man. I use hands, to do just what I can. And when I’m faced with unjust injury, then I change my hands, to fists of fury”.
“Our time as victims is over, we will no longer ask for justice. Instead we will take our retribution.”
Lyrics from Fists of Fury
The Invincible Youth captures the pressures put on modern day youth, and how we as youth respond to these pressures. The song results in a musical conversation voicing the relationship between newer generations and the surrounding environment/world. Conversing through powerful solos, the somewhat “freeness” of young age is captured.
With the second side of the record, listeners experience the Heaven aspect. As touched on earlier, Washington explores the world that is a part of him, and how he views the world inwardly throughout this side of the record. Washington brings listeners just over 73 minutes of imaginative, utopic depth.
The Space Travellers Lullaby starts off with an orchestral introduction, flowing with vibrato on cello and violin. The soaring orchestral movement is then joined by the soft sound of tenor saxophone and a choir. Washington clearly explores the Heaven theme through this free flowing utopic song. In 10 and a half minutes, the song communicates the transition between different stages of life.
Street Fighter Mas is the second shortest song on the album at 5:58, however it is easily one of the most catchy, fascinating songs on the whole record. When asked about the inspiration fo the song, Washington explained that he was inspired by a video game called “street fighter” he gew up playing with his friends at a local arcade. The song starts off with a groovy drum beat, shortly before being joined by the deep brooding bass groove. The glorious funk track delves further into the Heaven concept of the record, leaving listeners with a whole new perception of the theme. On June 20, he released a music video (more like an epic 6 minute short film) to compliment the track, check it out here.
To conclude, Kamasi Washington brings some much needed meaning and significance into the modern day jazz scene. His masterpiece is an experience in itself to listen to, showing parallels and differences between both imagination and reality.
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