THE PRESS RELEASE: “Tom Misch and Yussef Dayes today announce What Kinda Music – a masterful collaboration between two artists of very different disciplines, and one of the most unique and seamlessly original projects of its ilk to date. Moving fluidly through sleek electronica, progressive jazz, vintage hip-hop and so much more, Misch and Dayes take their listener on a ride that is by turns surprising and spontaneous, heady and head-spinning, and nothing less than compelling – a singular vision that fuses the DNA of both musicians with spectacular results, as can be seen in the title track. Throughout the record, there is an utterly joyful feel of two musicians at the top of their game sparking off one another, picking up ideas and running with them — zigging where the other zags, ebbing where the other flows, with Misch producing the majority of the record and both having a hand in the overall sound and feel of the record. In fact, Dayes says that the intentions of the record go even deeper than just music. “Both our parents who’d never met each other before, are now best friends as a result of this — they now see each other more than we do! I’d like to think, in some small way, that this album has a similar impact for people too — everything feels so divided these days, it would be nice for people to hear the record and hear two very different musicians coming together and realize it doesn’t have to be that way.”
MY TWO CENTS: Tom Misch and Yussef Dayes may be stalwarts of the British contemporary jazz world, but they’re still relative unknowns over here. That might change somewhat thanks to their collaborative outing What Kinda Music. Singer-guitarist Misch and hyper-kinetic drummer Dayes pool their individual talents stylishly and successfully here, laying down a dozen mellow groovers that hit the sweet spot between modern jazz, hip-hop, soul, funk and more. If that’s your kind of music, then by all means seek out this sophisticated, low-key treat.
