Just as chaos lies within order can we find dissension in resonance. And Kamasi Washington with his band The Next Step bought all the diversity within harmony to the stage of the Sydney Opera House (9 October).
It was a family affair; one where Washington’s father Rickey Washington featured on clarinet and flute alongside childhood friends Ryan Porter on trombone, drummers Robert Miller Jnr and Ronald Bruner Jnr, – because Washington really likes drums – electric upright double bass Miles Mosley, Brandon Coleman on Moog synth and keyboard rig, and singer Patrice Quinn with Washington leading on tenor sax.
Throughout the evening, we were also peppered between tunes with reflections on how the band came together through a richly amusing tapestry of Washington’s childhood stories.
Opening with ‘Street Fighter Mas’, Washington was a striking figure, from his huge Afro to huge frame and flowing robes. His saxophone ran the gamut of the tenor range; tones harshly hitting right in the pocket of the note as he committed to playing outside the melody as the band fell in with his. His skills were indeed top-shelf, only surpassed by his passion and enthusiasm for the instrument.
Image © Daniel Boud
When there’s two drum kits on a stage, there’s always going to be a chance for unbalance, and this was so with ‘Rhythm Changes’. The bass heaviness almost drowned out Quinn’s ardent singing, though her rich, high tones still managed to nicely fill the space between the beats.
Moseley’s skills were extraordinary, as his fingers plucked or bowed deftly across the strings. When Washington launched into the next track ‘Truth’ from the album 'Harmony Of Difference' he bought with him the profound message for diversity to be celebrated, not just tolerated; enforced by the band as they improvised across their individual melodies towards an eruptive pinnacle.
Image © Daniel Boud
This message of celebrating diversity through harmony served as the basis upon which the entire show was performed. If this seems conflicting, it is. Kamasi’s path deviates from jazz as we know it, to challenge our concepts of contemporary music. Ask a seasoned jazz muso, they are likely to tell you Kamasi doesn’t play jazz – especially when he strays from all the conventions of the standard rhythm section to include a second drum kit in the instrumental line-up.
This also seems apt given he played saxophone and arranged strings for rapper Kendrick Lamar’s 2015 album ‘To Pimp A Butterfly’.
From the moment Washington stepped onto the stage with The Next Step, there was an undeniable sense of black pride harkening to the days of the Black Arts Movement emerging as an African-American cultural celebration, from Miles Davis’ ‘Bitches Brew’ to James Brown’s 'Say It Loud', Sun Ra and Maya Angalou.
Image © Daniel Boud
This cultural celebration flowed from their dress sense to their instrumental skills, integrating smoothly into harmonic accordance and musical diversity. And nowhere was this more nobly demonstrated than through prolonged conversations between his two drummers – an incredibly sublime rhythmic exchange – and Coleman’s showcase of ‘Giant Feelings’.
Never before have I seen a double drumming exhibition such as this. Certainly, their presence created a full, thick, dense sound ideal to Washington’s jazz stance. It was intense, propelling the display as a genuinely prodigious meeting of rhythmic minds.
Click here for more photos from the show.
Meanwhile, Coleman’s demonstrations on Moog, keys, keytar and vocoder were also quite monumental. There was little doubt to the talent on stage given it was a masterful display of skill and fusion, to culminate in final track ‘Fists Of Fury’ and a standing ovation.
Washington undoubtedly challenges modern music, presenting a refined union of African-American genres funk, soul, jazz and hip hop within a classical jazz matrix. It’s a very unique and musical message, for an intense show of distinctly measured motion.
