This is going to sound ridiculous, but I will write it anyway. I was conflicted whether I want to do a review of KAmasi Washington's new record, because I wanted to keep it just to myself. You know when you are so happy to discover piece of art and you want no one else to find out about it? I know that sharing is caring, but sometimes oversharing degrades the quality of an artist. However, let's hope deterioration of Kamasi Washington does not happen because of me and let's dive into album's dissection.
After first listen of Harmony Of Difference, I knew that this is going to be my album of the year. I love when album takes me by surprise and sweeps me off my feet, and that is exactly what happened here. This record may not be everything I usually adore, but it is combined in such a marvelous whole that I simply couldn't resist. HArmony of Difference is a dreamy postmodern jazz dessert that does not withhold from adding other music flavors to its core, such as soul is.
The first song immediately takes you to imaginary world of Kamasi Washington that we can maybe compare to the sonic universe Koop creates. Still, Kamasi has a unique vision of how to raise the atmosphere, and he pitches that vision on every song. Vocals, If anu, are attached to the songs in a manner that makes it hard to differentiate them from the instruments. Same as with many jazz standards, lyrics fade into the background. Even If there were no words, it would all still sound effective due to magical improvization that is consistently playful and intriguing.
Desire unfolds the album and it's almost as If it serves as tuning before the real deal starts. Such a playfulness impressed me, especially when I heard the crescendo of the second part of the song. Knowledge will dominate the rest of the album. When you get to the final track Truth, it becomes obvious that this is zenith of this year, both when it comes to EPs and albums in general.
