[rating=3.50]
The 1998 John Scofield release A Go Go leaned heavily on the chops of the young trio of Medeski Martin and Wood. Eight years later, Out Louder pairs the groove kings together once again. Melding the sonic style of John Scofield with the groove heavy sound of MMW, these musicians easily find common ground on Out Louder.
“Little Walter Rides Again” kicks things off with a heavy influence from the MMW catalog. Scofield paints funky guitar riffs over top Billy Martin’s tenacious drums lines. John Medeski also jumps in and out lacing it up with tight organ work dancing alongside the rock solid bass of Chris Wood. With some shockingly short tracks Out Louder explores more sound, throwing down a raging tempo and screaming guitar on the under three minute “Miles Behind”. Then punch drunk from the speed of the previous track, they slow the pace with “In Case the World Changes Its Mind”.
With the tempo and vibe of a Latin salsa, “Tequila and Chocolate” stretches out a comfortable jam with mind bending guitar work from Scofield and smooth keyboard work, featuring an almost perfect, programmed sounding drumbeat. “Cachaca” starts off with the distorted sound of Chris Wood bending and plucking notes on his doghouse bass, while Scofield continues to drop science with spacey free-form guitar work as the trio builds the groove underneath his playful guitar.
Before letting go, the super group of jazz heads lets loose with the funk on “Down the Tube." Chris Wood continuously drops bass bombs throughout the song while Scofield and Medeski battle it out with psychedelic sounds and Martin’s groove oriented drumming from the pocket. Out Louder serves as a pure example of the boundless opportunities that jazz music can provide, regardless if you are a fan of the genre or not.
