Project Grand Slam: The Queen's Carnival

Robert Miller has been a mainstay in the Boston jazz scene for a number of years and has been playing jazz for decades. His reputation among his peers as a jazz bassist is second to none. His Grand Slam Project released their debut in 2008 and their brand new album The Queen's Carnival comes hot on the heels of their last release Made In New York which I really enjoyed.

There are a couple of changes this time around. Yasser Tejeda replaces Ben Sher on guitar and Mario Castro takes over saxophone duties replacing Nathan Cepelinski.

If you dig upbeat jazz rock fusion you have come to the right place. The playing and melodies are superb and the solos are invigorated. The guitar tone has plenty of bite, check out the solo on the album's first track "Beyond Forever". The choppy guitar rhythms and floating keys in "The Rescue" and a complete rearrangement of The Kinks classic "You Really Got Me" featuring the sultry vocals of Lucy Woodward, are more highlights. My favourite track is the fiery "Gorilla" where the heavy guitar tone and sax hit you like a ton of bricks. The trippy and hypnotic "It's The Beat" is another cool tune with up front sax, heavy bass and splashes of keyboards. A bit of trip hop vibe in this one. Really, there are no weak tracks and many will try to stick around your head for a few days.

These guys are tight, from the rhythm section to the keys, guitar and sax, this band is well worth hearing if jazz rock and fusion suits your fancy. Highly recommended.

Track Listing:
1. Beyond Forever (3:31)
2. The Rescue (4:34)
3. You Really Got Me (3:57)
4. The Queen's Carnival (3:47)
5. Gorilla (3:35)
6. New Folk Song (3:35)
7. It's The Beat (5:36)
8. Slap Shot
9. Lucky Seven (6:13)
10. You Really Got Me (Instrumental) (3:57)
11. Lullaby For Julesy (2:26)

Added: October 9th 2016
Reviewer: Jon Neudorf
Score:
Related Link: Band's Official Site
Hits: 1699
Language: english

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