The Valley Of The KingsThe Valley of the Kings, Sebastian Whittaker’s fourth release for Justice Records, is unquestionably the drummer and bandleader’s most intimate record to date, a confluence of intense personal strife, spiritual mission, jazz education and raw sonic energy. Drawing upon the lessons “Bash” absorbed while studying John Coltrane’s great spiritual quartets – the groups that produced such masterpieces as Crescent and A Love Supreme – the Houston drummer applies his own hard-earned emotional truths to Trane’s modal approach. What’s more, Bash remains faithful to his own hard-bop instincts, crafting a singular session that combines Art Blakey’s intensity with Coltrane’s purity of feeling. To realize this ferociously personal music, Whittaker has stripped down to a quartet format, abandoning his usual swinging septet. The players, particularly broad-toned tenorist Shelley Carroll Paul, bring Whittaker’s tunes to life in an aching yet uplifting manner. “I knew Shelly could interpret the music the way I needed it to be interpreted. I knew he had been through some hell, too,” Bash says. “We played very raw on this album. We just let it hang. The music just kind of dictated that.”
THE VALLEY OF THE KINGS
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