Renowned saxophonist, NEA Jazz Master Kenny Garrett, follows his former bandleader, Miles Davis’s muse into electronic territory for his first album in that vein, Who Killed AI? Collaborating with the acclaimed electronic producer Svoy, the album features just the two of them. In one way it reminds this writer of Pharoah Sanders’ collaboration with Floating Points, Promises, but Garrett claims to be more influenced by Andre 3000’s flute project, New Blue Sun. In any case, in comparison to the Sanders project, we hear both a mellow, ethereal side of Garrett together with his energetic, often danceable hard bop compositions set to electronic beats and digital colors. Like that project, Garrett intends this to be a full listen. He wants the listener to ‘take a journey’ even though the music has seven distinct tracks, running for about 35 minutes.
While the designation of NEA Jazz Master suggests ‘elder,’ Garrett places himself in the contemporary group of those who are merging jazz with more popular music such as hip hop or indie rock. Although recent history has us thinking mostly of Garrett’s post-bop and spiritual jazz albums as a leader, we may want to rethink the term ‘surprising’ that appears in the headline. Garrett has crossed over into rock and fusion. He’s always been forward-thinking. Garrett is heard on alto and soprano saxophones and voice while Svoy is credited with programming, piano, and voice.
The album commences with the single, “Ascendence,” Garrett and Svoy motoring along with blinding speed. It’s the kind of music ideal for a car chase scene in a movie. The incessant beats of the programmed drums and swirling electronics set a blistering tempo for Garrett’s alto, decelerating, and segueing seamlessly into “Miles Running Down AI.” This tune is obviously in the spirit of Miles’ classic “Miles Runs the Voodoo Down” from Bitches Brew, an album recorded almost two decades before Garrett’s tenure with the trumpeter. Musically, besides the electronics, it bears little comparison with Svoy’s electronic soundscapes and takes precedence over Garrett’s horn. The gorgeous “Transcendence” brings us into ethereal, spacey territory with echo effects on Garrett’s soprano, as it floats over the meditative electronics and slow-motion hip-hop beats.
“Divergence Tu-da” merges voices with infectious hip-hop beats, with Garrett’s horn entering the fray in shrieking, staccato style about two minutes in, transforming the tune into a head bobbing, dance number. Maybe it’s the infusion of voices, but this one just seems weirdly overdone in comparison to the others. “Ladies,” which begins with a DJ-like announcement sounds much more like conventional dance club fare. It’s the type we’d expect from the London jazz purveyors. Perhaps in another nod to Miles, an unrecognizable “My Funny Valentine” follows, the surging electronics and Garrett’s floating horn, make this akin to “Transcendence,” giving the album a strong spiritual jazz component. “Convergence” closes with a series of cool vamps, not unlike those that Garrett delivers with his regular touring band. At this point we’re well accustomed to the swirling electronics and beats. Strip those away, and this is where Garrett’s voice seems as familiar as it ever has. He leaves it Svoy and his modulating sounds to exit calmly, priming us to hit ‘repeat’.
This collaboration may seem rather straightforward on the surface, but it’s restless, refusing to settle into just one groove. It’s yet another example of a major artist who refuses to be bound by genres.
