Jason Moran's fourth Blue Note album, a highly idiosyncratic solo piano venture, attempts to reconcile a staggeringly diverse set of influences into a cohesive artistic vision.
Beginning with stride master James P.
Johnson's "You've Got to Be Modernistic," the omnivorous young pianist then takes that title to heart by personalizing everything from Robert Schumann's "Auf Einer Burg" to Muhal Richard Abrams' "Time Into Space Into Time" to Afrika Bambaataa's "Planet Rock." Among the originals are two more chapters in Moran's ongoing "Gangsterism" series, as well as the closing "Gentle Shifts South," one of his simplest, most affecting melodies.
Not unlike Brad Mehldau's Largo, which was released around the same time, Modernistic explodes jazz piano conventions by addressing the issue of sound.
The prepared piano loops and backwards effects on "Planet Rock," the disarming mini-piano heard on "Moran Tonk Circa 1935," the old-school hip-hop beat that crops up during "Gangsterism on a Lunchtable" -- in these instances and more, Moran burns the rule book and presents something so thoroughly individual as to be practically without precedent.
And still it comes across as a statement of love and respect for the jazz piano tradition.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | You've Got to Be ModernisticJames P. Johnson, Jason Moran | Jason Moran | Play | 05:48 | 13 MB | 23 MB |
| 2 | Body and SoulFrank Eyton, Johnny Green, Edward Heyman, Robert Sour | Jason Moran | Play | 03:46 | 8 MB | 13 MB |
| 3 | Planet RockA. Baker, Soul Sonic Force, Jason Moran, John Robie | Jason Moran | Play | 05:46 | 13 MB | 29 MB |
| 4 | Planet Rock PostscriptJason Moran | Jason Moran | Play | 02:01 | 4 MB | 7 MB |
| 5 | Time into Space into TimeMuhal Richard Abrams, Jason Moran | Jason Moran | Play | 03:20 | 7 MB | 12 MB |
| 6 | Gangsterism on IronsJason Moran | Jason Moran | Play | 03:33 | 8 MB | 13 MB |
| 7 | Moran Tonk Circa 1936Jason Moran | Jason Moran | Play | 04:15 | 9 MB | 16 MB |
| 8 | PassionJason Moran | Jason Moran | Play | 03:30 | 8 MB | 11 MB |
| 9 | Gangsterism on a LunchtableJason Moran | Jason Moran | Play | 02:47 | 6 MB | 11 MB |
| 10 | Gentle Shifts SouthJason Moran | Jason Moran | Play | 03:31 | 8 MB | 12 MB |
| 11 | Auf Einer Berg／In A Fortress | Jason Moran | Play | 04:19 | 9 MB | 15 MB |
| 42 mins | 97 MB | |||||
| 42 mins | 166 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Muhal Richard Abrams | Composer |
| 2 | A. Baker | Composer |
| 3 | P.R. Brown | Art Direction, Design, Photography |
| 4 | Frank Eyton | Composer |
| 5 | Johnny Green | Composer |
| 6 | Edward Heyman | Composer |
| 7 | Gordon H. Jee | Creative Director |
| 8 | James P. Johnson | Composer |
| 9 | Kurt Lundvall | Mastering |
| 10 | Joseph Marciano | Mixing |
| 11 | Jason Moran | Composer, Pianette, Piano, Primary Artist, Producer |
| 12 | John Robie | Composer |
| 13 | Robert Schumann | Composer |
| 14 | Soul Sonic Force | Composer |
| 15 | Robert Sour | Composer |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |