Unlimited Streaming
Listen to this album in high quality now on our apps
Start my trial period and start listening to this albumEnjoy this album on Qobuz apps with your subscription
SubscribeEnjoy this album on Qobuz apps with your subscription
Digital Download
Purchase and download this album in a wide variety of formats depending on your needs.
Yussef Kamaal is the South London duo of drummer/percussionist Yussef Dayes and Kamaal Williams (Henry Wu) on Rhodes piano and synth. The former is best known for his work as kit man for cosmic Afrobeat ensemble United Vibrations. The latter is also a producer whose dubplates have garnered wide-ranging critical notice. Gilles Peterson signed them to Brownswood based on witnessing a 20-minute live set.
The music on Black Focus is a seamless weave of spiritual jazz funk, broken beat, and global sounds, but it's also more and less. The duo enlisted a who's-who of South London all-stars to assist in various spots: Saxophonist Shabaka Hutchings, trumpeter Yelfris Valdes, bassists Tom Driessler and Kareem Dayes, and guitarist Mansur Brown. The set was produced and engineered by the Heliocentrics' Malcolm Catto. The music is inspired by the distinctly British sources its creators grew up on -- jungle, U.K. garage and grime, hip-hop, post-Joe Harriott British jazz, and the sound of underground radio. The intro to the opening title track begins in the abstract with Gordon Weddenburn's spoken word as the horns fill space (think Joe McPhee’s sax/trumpet duos) amid twinkling Rhodes and hand percussion. Halfway through, kit drums enter the exchange and frame a bumping bassline, a two-chord jazz keyboard riff, and horns that move to a post-bop frontline; the whole jam gets transformed into a sweet, soulful groover. Single "Lowrider" is a funky meld of bass, vamping guitar chords, and swirling synths atop snare-heavy breaks before it becomes a 21st century take on Azymuth-esque fusion. Brown adds a brilliant, arpeggio-rich solo to cap it. "Strings of Light" delivers jungly breakbeat science that ushers in a quick, trance-like pulse amid a rippling bassline and wafting synths. The exploratory urgency of Valdes' horn breaks the mood and the tune moves into the stratosphere -- though the circular groove eventually returns. "Yo Chavez" is a mysterious Rhodes tone poem, but Dayes' brushed, skittering snare and kick drum accents add earth to air. Closer "Joint 17” is a summery bubbler led by cracking breaks and bass, with Williams' Rhodes and synths stitching soul-tinged fills and runs to the changes. Dayes' drumming draws the listener down into the trio's canny polyrhythmic interplay. The music on Black Focus should attract fans of Flying Lotus, Thundercat, and Kamasi Washington (in particular, his Throttle Elevator Music project), but these ferences are aesthetic, not literal. Yussef Kamaal forge a distinct sound here. With South London peers Theon Cross Trio, Ezra Collective, and Blue Lab Beats, they reflect a compelling scene rife with exciting ideas in cultural and sonic cross-pollination. Black Focus is a hell of a first effort.
© Thom Jurek /TiVo
You are currently listening to samples.
Listen to over 100 million songs with an unlimited streaming plan.
Listen to this playlist and more than 100 million songs with our unlimited streaming plans.
From $10.83/month
Henry Wu, Composer, Keyboards - Yelfris Valdes, Trumpet - Yussef Kamaal, MainArtist - Yussef Dayes, Composer, Drums, Percussion - Tom Driessler, Electric Bass Guitar
© 2016 Brownswood Recordings ℗ 2016 Brownswood Recordings
Henry Wu, Composer, Keyboards, Mellotron - Yelfris Valdes, Trumpet - Yussef Kamaal, MainArtist - Yussef Dayes, Composer, Drums, Percussion - Tom Driessler, Composer, Electric Bass Guitar
© 2016 Brownswood Recordings ℗ 2016 Brownswood Recordings
Henry Wu, Composer, Keyboards - Yussef Kamaal, MainArtist - Yussef Dayes, Composer, Drums, Percussion - Kareem Dayes, Composer, Electric Bass Guitar
© 2016 Brownswood Recordings ℗ 2016 Brownswood Recordings
Henry Wu, Composer, Keyboards - Yussef Kamaal, MainArtist - Yussef Dayes, Composer, Drums - Tom Driessler, Composer, Electric Bass Guitar
© 2016 Brownswood Recordings ℗ 2016 Brownswood Recordings
Shabaka Hutchings, Tenor Saxophone - Henry Wu, Composer, Electric Piano, Synthesizer - Yelfris Valdes, Trumpet - Yussef Kamaal, MainArtist - Yussef Dayes, Drums, Percussion - Tom Driessler, Electric Bass - Kareem Dayes, Electric Bass - Mansur Brown, Electric Guitar
© 2016 Brownswood Recordings ℗ 2016 Brownswood Recordings
Shabaka Hutchings, Tenor Saxophone - Henry Wu, Electric Piano, Synthesizer - Yelfris Valdes, Trumpet - Yussef Kamaal, MainArtist - Yussef Dayes, Drums, Percussion - Tom Driessler, Electric Bass - Kareem Dayes, Electric Bass - Gordon Wedderburn, Composer - Mansur Brown, Electric Guitar
© 2016 Brownswood Recordings ℗ 2016 Brownswood Recordings
Henry Wu, Composer, Keyboards - Yussef Kamaal, MainArtist - Yussef Dayes, Composer
© 2016 Brownswood Recordings ℗ 2016 Brownswood Recordings
Yussef Kamaal, MainArtist - Mansur Brown, Composer, Electric Guitar
© 2016 Brownswood Recordings ℗ 2016 Brownswood Recordings
Henry Wu, Composer, Keyboards, Synthesizer - Yussef Kamaal, MainArtist - Yussef Dayes, Composer, Drums
© 2016 Brownswood Recordings ℗ 2016 Brownswood Recordings
Henry Wu, Composer, Keyboards, Mellotron - Yussef Kamaal, MainArtist - Yussef Dayes, Composer, Drums, Percussion - Tom Driessler, Composer, Electric Bass Guitar - Gordon Wedderburn, Spoken Voice
© 2016 Brownswood Recordings ℗ 2016 Brownswood Recordings
Album review
Yussef Kamaal is the South London duo of drummer/percussionist Yussef Dayes and Kamaal Williams (Henry Wu) on Rhodes piano and synth. The former is best known for his work as kit man for cosmic Afrobeat ensemble United Vibrations. The latter is also a producer whose dubplates have garnered wide-ranging critical notice. Gilles Peterson signed them to Brownswood based on witnessing a 20-minute live set.
The music on Black Focus is a seamless weave of spiritual jazz funk, broken beat, and global sounds, but it's also more and less. The duo enlisted a who's-who of South London all-stars to assist in various spots: Saxophonist Shabaka Hutchings, trumpeter Yelfris Valdes, bassists Tom Driessler and Kareem Dayes, and guitarist Mansur Brown. The set was produced and engineered by the Heliocentrics' Malcolm Catto. The music is inspired by the distinctly British sources its creators grew up on -- jungle, U.K. garage and grime, hip-hop, post-Joe Harriott British jazz, and the sound of underground radio. The intro to the opening title track begins in the abstract with Gordon Weddenburn's spoken word as the horns fill space (think Joe McPhee’s sax/trumpet duos) amid twinkling Rhodes and hand percussion. Halfway through, kit drums enter the exchange and frame a bumping bassline, a two-chord jazz keyboard riff, and horns that move to a post-bop frontline; the whole jam gets transformed into a sweet, soulful groover. Single "Lowrider" is a funky meld of bass, vamping guitar chords, and swirling synths atop snare-heavy breaks before it becomes a 21st century take on Azymuth-esque fusion. Brown adds a brilliant, arpeggio-rich solo to cap it. "Strings of Light" delivers jungly breakbeat science that ushers in a quick, trance-like pulse amid a rippling bassline and wafting synths. The exploratory urgency of Valdes' horn breaks the mood and the tune moves into the stratosphere -- though the circular groove eventually returns. "Yo Chavez" is a mysterious Rhodes tone poem, but Dayes' brushed, skittering snare and kick drum accents add earth to air. Closer "Joint 17” is a summery bubbler led by cracking breaks and bass, with Williams' Rhodes and synths stitching soul-tinged fills and runs to the changes. Dayes' drumming draws the listener down into the trio's canny polyrhythmic interplay. The music on Black Focus should attract fans of Flying Lotus, Thundercat, and Kamasi Washington (in particular, his Throttle Elevator Music project), but these ferences are aesthetic, not literal. Yussef Kamaal forge a distinct sound here. With South London peers Theon Cross Trio, Ezra Collective, and Blue Lab Beats, they reflect a compelling scene rife with exciting ideas in cultural and sonic cross-pollination. Black Focus is a hell of a first effort.
© Thom Jurek /TiVo
About the album
- 1 disc(s) - 10 track(s)
- Total length: 00:43:42
- Main artists: Yussef Kamaal
- Composer: Various Composers
- Label: Brownswood Recordings
- Genre: Jazz Jazz Fusion & Jazz Rock
© 2016 Brownswood Recordings ℗ 2016 Brownswood Recordings
Improve album informationWhy buy on Qobuz?
-
Stream or download your music
Buy an album or an individual track. Or listen to our entire catalog with our high-quality unlimited streaming subscriptions.
-
Zero DRM
The downloaded files belong to you, without any usage limit. You can download them as many times as you like.
-
Choose the format best suited for you
Download your purchases in a wide variety of formats (FLAC, ALAC, WAV, AIFF...) depending on your needs.
-
Listen to your purchases on our apps
Download the Qobuz apps for smartphones, tablets, and computers, and listen to your purchases wherever you go.