Thundercat: The Beyond / Where The Giants Roam (Colored Vinyl) Vinyl LP

Finally on vinyl!Thundercat’s much anticipated 3rd full length has finally landed, and we couldn’t be more stoked about it(we damn near wore out the mp3 of “Them Changes” waiting for it). WithThe Beyond / Where The Giants Roam, Stephen Brunerascends to newheights, combining virtuosic bass playing with soulfulvocals to bring his unique brand of jazz fusion to the masses. For those unfamiliar with Bruner’s work, the aforementioned “Them Changes” (which borrows drums from The Isley Brothers classic “Footsteps”) is a great place to start and easily one of his most accessible tracks to date. The bass hits are like fat dollops of funk over the steady grooving rhythm, all topped with his own heartfelt lyrics and a sax solo by Kamasi Washington that will have you comingback for more. The rest of the album finds Bruner not wasting anytime connecting the dots betweenthe outer reaches of jazz fusion (“Where The Giants Roam” / “That Moment”) to more beatbased grooves(“Lone Wolf And Cub”). An impressive feat, considering the album is only 6 succinct tracks long. Obviously this one is going towarrant many repeat listens. Recommended.

• red vinyl pressing
• digital download included
• music label: Brainfeeder 2015

reviewed by Al Pastor 02/2016

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