Reverberations is an album created by musician Nevaris (percussion/keyboards) and bassist/producer Bill Laswell, with a lineup that includes DJ Logic, guitarists Will Bernard and Matt Dickey, and Peter Apfelbaum on horns. Sitting in a similar part of the musical forest to the Comet IS Coming, combining horns with electronics this is altogether lighter and more refreshing than Shabaka Hutchings crew.
This is the third collaboration between Nevaris, and Laswell, and is more dub based than their earlier albums. They released those under the name Loud Apartment. ‘New Future’ is an EP of 4 tunes with dub versions of 3, and System Breakdown a full album. They both have a blend of Jazz, Hip Hop and Reggae that is a step away from the more thoughtful dubs on ‘Reverberation’.
‘Disruption is the first tune t really grab the listener with some fine soloing by Apfelbaum. Ninth Sun and Remedy are far moodier, with the horns blending further into the background.
Bill Laswell needs no introduction, but if like me Nevaris is a new name, he is a percussionist, keyboardist, vocalist, and composer heavily influenced by afro-latin, dub, and funk music. He was born and raised on the Upper West Side of Manhattan near Rock Steady Park, and here and on the earlier Loud Apartment releases there is n unmistakable New York feel. You can almost here the traffic noise on ‘Safehouse’. ‘Frequencia’ leads with Hammond Organ, and percussion. ‘Lockatronic’ is a feature for drummer, Lockatron, and reminds me of Denis Bovell’s dubs. It all comes together on ‘Interference’ were horns, turntables, and percussion mesh together to create an urban soundscape of blended sounds.
Nevaris says,”It’s a dub-based project, with breakbeat, funk, ambient, and afro-latin elements. It’s rhythm based music where the pocket is essential. Lockatron is a huge part of that, as, of course, is Bill Laswell, DJ Logic and everyone else involved. Peter Apfelbaum’s horn arrangements are also a core aspect. In my mind, it’s a cohesive piece of music that is best listened to as a whole rather than as individual songs. And Bill takes it where it needs to go with the production like no one else really can”. And he’s right about that. This is a wonderful mix of styles and genres and I’d love to see them live.
Reverberations is out now on Bandcamp. I’d also recommend the Loud Apartment albums
