![]() I was still then (and am now) dedicated to it becoming the Pitchfork for jazz (but, as we continue to grow and as I continue to figure this whole thing out, it is very much its own animal). I wanted it to be a part of the narrative. I wanted the publication to grow alongside this century-old genre. I was extremely proud of what the site was building to be under my leadership and Nextbop co-founders Sébastien Hélary & Justin Wee built. I liked the idea of it but I didn’t want to leave behind Nextbop. She loved Nextbop and she wanted me to write the blog for AoC. Sleep Deprivation and Emotional Fragilityīefore I knew anything, I knew this festival was mad legit.Īrt of Cool Project Co-Founder and President Cicely Mitchell started needling me quite some time ago, maybe about a year ago. The Electrical Code of the State of North Carolina What follows is a collection of random thoughts about Durham, music festivals, journalism, Art of Cool (an organization that I have quite quickly learned to love like they’re some of my best friends on earth), and any other random thoughts that have come to mind in the midst of being emotionally overwhelmed and deprived of sleep. While I did manage to see a great many shows and review them as a legitimate music journalist typically would, there was just so much more to say about last week - the most rewarding, fulfilling week of my personal and professional life so far - than show reviews can say. The intention was for me to “cover” the festival, but me being me, I embedded myself into every facet of it possible, hanging with various musicians, constructing and organizing and helping out wherever I could. I spent much of last week in Durham, North Carolina, for the first ever Art of Cool Festival. ![]() I commented that as a writer, I’m more like Jim Kirk– I break that notion all the time. But it's an independent outfit under very independent direction, and hopefully it can reconvene often enough to grow.Recently, a fellow bar patron and photographer friend of mine said on Facebook that photographers should follow the Prime Directive- the guiding principle of Starfleet wherein one should not interfere with a developing civilization. He talked too much for a 90-minute set – a luggage-transit glitch had lost several instruments, and probably made a hole in this new group's planned repertoire. Mendez-Scott then returned for a patiently imploring R&B vocal embroidered by the soul-sax alto of Braxton Cook, and Ku-Klux Klan Police Department, with its tension between soft horn harmonies and urgent percussion, brought exhortatory fierceness and darkly insinuating low sounds from Scott. The reflectiveness of Thom Yorke's The Eraser brought a mix of windy swoops and flawlessly timed runs from Pinderhughes. The Latin-inflected twister Jihad Joe cruised for a while on the deft riffing of pianist Lawrence Fields, bassist Kris Funn and drummer Corey Fonville before the leader began swerving between flaring New Orleans-inspired outbursts and more cryptic, electric-Miles phrasing. An intro of staccato motifs and rumbling percussion developed into an Afro-Latin pulse with tight flute-brass dialogues, and a slow soul-anthem, mimicked by the crowd. He opened with New Orleanian Love Song – inspired by stories of early collaborations between Native Americans and black slaves. Miles Davis, early New Orleans brass exhortations, Latin music, neo-soul and Radiohead all influence Scott, and his Jazz Cafe set cannily balanced all these and more.
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