We do our best here at Nostalgia King to keep up on all of the latest need to know releases from labels across the globe but sometimes there’s something that slips by that we neglected to cover which is the case with the latest LP from Jason McGuiness. “Empyrean Tones” is a perfect meeting point of where Jazz and Funk collide to cause the big bang theory on a cosmic excursion. Empyrean Tones finds producer Jason McGuiness at his best and surrounded by musicians including Phil Ranelin (of Tribe fame), Kamasi Washington, Keyon Harrold, Tim Felton (Surefire Soul Ensemble), Seb Zillner, Randal Fisher, Mark de Clive-Lowe and more.
The role of art, at it’s most brave and brazen, has always been to provide unflinching reflections of reality. Music, the purest of all art forms, has the ability to crystallize moments and make history tangible. We’re living in the midst of current and historical pain, each new individual moment of destruction and despair opens deep wounds. Jason McGuiness, the projects’ producer, is in the old-school tradition of producers who need not pick up an instrument. With a vision and purpose, McGuiness culled an experienced group of music makers to create something that would reflect us back to ourselves.
The instruments you hear are wielded by masters who have shared their talents with the likes of D’angelo, Kendrick Lamar, Kanye West, Robert Glasper, Kamasi Washington, Aloe Blacc and more. But they’ve never done something quite like this. The magic here is in the submission of the individual in reverence of the collective.