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versionJBT
Man, I hate to say it but I'm torn on this album. On one hand I really like the concepts and dynamics, Washington clearly has some serious chops when it comes to composition and arrangement. On the other hand, the solos and improvisational elements seem really barebones and milquetoast. Sax, trombone and piano solos have too many superfluous or redundant notes. Plus there really isn't enough going on with structural or harmonic developments, let alone the improv, to justify the length of most of these songs. This album constantly violates the law of "less is more" and would have been better at a shorter, but still sizeable, 2 hour length. I just don't think these particular musicians are talented enough to bring this otherwise really ambitious album to its full potential. Don't get me wrong, I like the record overall, but can't help but feel disappointed Washington doesn't join the ranks of my favorite modern sax players like Matana Roberts, Tim Berne, Ryoko Ono or John Zorn.
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versionJBT
The other weird thing I can't shake is that this album gets praised for being "forward-thinking" or "exploring new ideas" but it's not actually doing any of that. The Epic totally fits in with the tradition of '60s & '70s spiritual jazz done by Sun Ra, Sanders, Coleman, etc., but is actually kinda tame in comparison to albums like, say, Thembi or World Galaxy. On the other hand, an album like Karma is super accessible by free-jazz standards but still had that special otherworldly feeling that The Epic doesn't quite reach. Even his overblown sax notes feel a little too on-the-nose, a little too scripted. They lack the spontaneity & unpredictability that makes it sound so emotional when someone like Coltrane does it. The Epic isn't really pushing any boundaries, it's just an iteration on a specific style of music that's already been around for over half a century. That's not forward-thinking, that's called traditionalism. There's a reason Disc 3 is called "The Historic Repetition" guys
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jdscranton
There are few albums of this duration that leave you wanting more. This is one of them. Truly spectacular.
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TimvanGerner
You know it's a good album when three hours pass and you're bummed that it's already over.
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CYIDOfficial
I know right? I can't blame people but damn, let's crank out some endurance! Throw it in the background of "Wolf of Wall Street", three hours of perfection.
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fieldfires
I like how the listener count gets significantly smaller near the end of the album
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Bentwick09
WIE BITTE??? ""Du hast Kamasi Washington bereits gescrobbelt, aber nie diese Veröffentlichung."" HALLO, GEHT ES NOCH??? Klar habe ich ""diese"" Scheibe gescrobbelt..., WELCHE DENN AUCH SONST??? DAS IST EIN DURCHEINANDER HIER GEWORDEN, ABSOLUT UNGLAUBLICH!!!!
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JustSomeOldJoe
Best jazz album I've heard in a long, long, long damned time. The references to a number of great tunes of the past are also quite cool and worked in extremely well.
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optimistic_tour
I see no downside to the length. If you can't take it in one sitting, listen to each disc separately. They make nice little arcs of their own. Second disc is my favorite, but Re Run Home destroys..
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onthewall2983
For all of it's scope and ambition, it's major strength is melody. There are some catchy tunes that belies it's grandiose presentation.
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