We’ve arrived at the vibrant intersection of contemporary R&B and jazz on Cautious Clay’s Blue Note debut, KARPEH, named for his given name, Joshua Karpeh. The album is revelatory. Few artists dabble in as many genres or play as many instruments as Karpeh, heard here on vocals, flute, tenor saxophone, soprano saxophone, bass clarinet, guitar, synthesizer, and bass. This is no frivolous effort or grandiose experiment either as evidenced by the quality of his supporting cast – guitarist Julian Lage, trumpeter Ambrose Akinmusire, saxophonist Immanuel Wilkins, vibraphonist Joel Ross, keyboardist Julius Rodriguez, bassist Joshua Crumbly, drummer Sean Rickman, his uncle, bassist Kai Eckhardt, and Pakistani vocalist Arooj Aftab. Most of them are bandleaders, and, like Clay, Lage, Wilkins, Aftab, and Rodriguez had their own sets at Newport two weeks ago.
The album is both autobiographical and forward-looking, divided into three sections across the generous 15 tracks with audio interludes containing audio recordings recounting bits of family history. The first section, “The Past Explained” has six tracks about his youth, growing up in Cleveland. Following the intro “102 Years of Comedy,” comes “Fishtown,” a brief, flowing R&B-flavored track, featuring much of Clay’s arsenal – synth, flute, guitar, and vocals while backed by Lage, Rodriguez, Crumbly, and drummer Alwyn Robinson. That sets up the first single, “Ohio,” with Clay’s voice floating above an ethereal backdrop and Crumbly’s sturdy bassline. Somewhat buried in the mix is Clay’s flute and bass clarinet as it’s the groove driven by Crumbly and Robinson that holds sway. Yet, on “Karpehs Don’t Flinch” and “The Tide Is My Witness” we hear a most robust, resonant Clay on tenor saxophone, the latter driven by Rickman on drums and background vocalists Georgia Heers and Sarah K. Pedinotti.
Clay dubs the second section, “The Honeymoon of Exploration,” depicting some of his experiences with reflection-inducing psychedelics. The ballad “Another Half” has Clay’s voice coming across most intimately, backed by impressive guitar work from Lage, who proves to be the ‘second star’ of this effort as evidenced even more so on “Repeat Myself,” “Unfinished House,” and in the latter section on “Blue Lips,” “Tears of Fate,” and “Moments Stolen.” The two relatively smooth songs in this section dissolve into the reverb-soaked spacey, dizzying “Glass House” with Clay’s and Aftab’s dreamy vocals weaving around his uncle Kai’s bass. “Unfinished House” is the sparsest tune in terms of instrumentation, rendered just by Clay (vocals), Lage, and bassist Daniel Pappalardo. The unfinished house traces to an incomplete project in Washington state by his paternal grandfather and serves as a metaphor for the fractious relationship his grandfather had with his grandmother and their seven children.
The third section called “A Bitter & Sweet Solitude” looks forward and consists of four songs, free of interludes. Brimming with jazz and improvisation, these both contrast and seem naturally evolved from the first two sections, beginning with the Lage feature, “Blue Lips,” which also has Clay on soprano saxophone and Joel Ross adding colors as only he can. “Tears of Fate” features an extensive flute (the first instrument Clay learned). Rendered by a quartet with Robinson on drums, the interplay between Clay, Lage, and Crumbly is a stirring highlight of the album. The buoyant instrumental “Yesterday’s Place” has Rickman’s insistent groove driving a fierce tenor solo from Clay, a fiery answer from Akinsumire, and a stratospheric take by Wilkins to take it home. The calm closer, the ballad “Moments Stolen,” again features Clay’s vocals, emphasizing the theme of solitude. It’s a reimagining of his song “Stolen Moments” which appeared on his 2018 EP Blood Type which here includes an expressive tenor solo floating over Lage’s comping until Clay’s voice seemingly floats into the ether.
One can’t help but marvel at Clay’s talent in this ambitious effort which may seem a bit uneven at first but reveals its cohesiveness in repeated listens.
