Takuya Kuroda - Rising Son (2014)

A good jazz album needs to be aware of the history of jazz and of its own place within that history. It can't be content simply to recreate sounds that have been done before, but needs to understand jazz as living, vital and evolving. It also needs energy and great playing. 

Takuya Kuroda's Blue Note debut Rising Son understands all of this, and nails it. The grooves are new and exciting, but not in the least bit pedantically avant-garde. The album sits mostly at the meeting point between funky fusion in the tradition of Bitches Brew (emphasized on tracks like "Afro Blues" and "Call") and a heavier hip-hop beat ("Piri Piri," "Everybody Loves the Sunshine"). Kuroda's soloing is innovative and energetic, but also technically precise and not shy to make auditory references to his predecessors. 

The heads on this album are crunchy and smooth, and serve as good taking-off point for the solo sections. Each track is balanced, and never devolves into a show-offy 'extended solo.' The rhythm section is extremely solid, although I might have preferred a piano to a keyboard on a few of the tracks. The interplay between Nate Smith's drums and Solomon Dorsey's bass is especially good. Listen for Lionel Loueke's guest guitar work on "Afro Blues" and producer José James' vocals on "Everybody Loves the Sunshine." 

Simply put, this is an excellent album. In an age in which most jazz players see their work as being more appropriate for a museum than a club, it is refreshing to know that people like Takuya Kuroda are carrying the genre forward with enough style and confidence to hold new grooves in their pockets. ~ jeremytroy, RYM. 

Blue Note, B001 966302, 2014
Recorded At ‘The Motherbrain’, Brookylyn and At Sear Sound, New York

Musicians:
Takuya Kuroda - Trumpet (#1- 6,8-10), Flugelhorn (#7)
Corey King - Trombone (#1-3,5,6-9)
Kris Bowers - Rhodes Piano (#1-3,5-10), Synth (#1,2,5,8,9), Piano (#4)
Lionel Loueke - Electric Guitar (#2)
Solomon Dorsey - Bass (#1-4,5-8,10), Synth [Bass] (#1,9);
Percussion (#1,4,8), Vocals (#5,10)
Nate Smith - Drums, Percussion (#1,2,4,8,9)
José James - Vocals (#5,10) 

Tracks:
01. Rising Son {Takuya Kuroda} (4:43)
02. Afro Blues {Takuya Kuroda} (7:23)
03. Piri Piri {Takuya Kuroda} (7:04)
04. Mala {Takuya Kuroda} (5:59)
05. Everybody Loves The Sunshine {Roy Ayers} (9:25)
06. Green And Gold {Roy Ayers} (4:58)
07. Sometime, Somewhere, Somehow {Takuya Kuroda} (6:35)
08. Call {Takuya Kuroda} (9:14) 

Total Time:  55:21

Bonus Tracks on: Blue Note - TYCJ-60050, Japan, MP3
09. Unchain {Takuya Kuroda} (4:27)
10. Promise In Love {DJ Mitsu The Beats, Jose James} (4:11) 

Credits:
Producer - José James
Recording & Mixing Engineer - Brian Bender
Additional Engineering - Jon Anderson
Assistant Engineer - Jon Anderson, Taft Masburn, Owen Mulholland, Todd Carder
Mastering Engineer - Nathan James (Vault Mastering Studios, Phoenix, Arizona)
A&R - Don Was
A&R Administrator - Steve Cook
Design, Layout - Hayden Miller