-
admin
- No Comments
Jeff Parker’s ‘Happy Today’ Glows In Slow Motion
“Where’s Jeff?” The question weighed heavily at Tortoise’s live shows over the past year, during which his integral contribution to the Chicago instrumental legends’ heady sound was often missed. Indeed, it seems the L.A.-based guitarist is focusing on his solo career and plentiful side hustles with, among others, Meshell Ndegeocello, Makaya McCraven and (checks notes…) Flea. Bittersweet news, but hold your tears: outside of Tortoise, Parker is on a torrid creative run, which continues with Happy Today.
The new LP follows the path of 2024’s The Way Out of Easy: long-form improvisations performed in front of a live audience – in this case, 400 people at L.A.’s Lodge Room. There’s nothing here as pounding as Easy‘s “Freakadelic,” which bears the relentless monomania of Tony Conrad/Faust’s Outside the Dream Syndicate. Rather, these two long tracks dwell in more tranquil modes, gradually building from quietude to poised busyness.
More from Spin:
Parker inaugurates “Like Swimwear” with a cyclical, introspective motif that points to his affinity for minimalism. Saxophonist Josh Johnson, bassist Anna Butterss and drummer Jay Bellerose paint in pastels around the periphery of this stoically beautiful riff. Butterss’ double-bass throbs ground the music in chamber-jazz austerity; later, Bellerose shifts into slack, funky drummer mode, as Parker’s guitar takes on a muted highlife gait, then morphs into concentric ripples of distortion that psychedelicize your mind. The rhythm and vibe evoke Sun Ra’s “Twin Stars of Thence,” and the crowd goes wild.
An air of restraint prevails on “Happy Today,” as every musician is in perfect equilibrium contributing to this expertly sculpted mosaic of muted bliss and cool-browed funk. One of the least flashy guitar heroes working today, Parker knows it’s not how many notes you play but how you shape the ones you’ve rigorously selected.
To see our running list of the top 100 greatest rock stars of all time, click here.
The L.A.-based guitarist is focusing on his solo career and plentiful side hustles.Dave Segal{authorlink}https://www.spinmagazine.com/feed/SPINMusic News, Album Reviews, Concert Photos, Videos and Morehttps://static.spinmagazine.com/files/2023/08/cropped-logo-spin-s-340×340.png
