Let Emotions Take Control

Roy Ayers, Adrian Younge, and Ali Shaheed Muhammad “Synchronize Vibration”

Roy Ayers’ collaboration with Adriane Younge and Shaheed Muhammed is true to the progressive jazz/funk Ayers made in the ’70s, but isn’t a full-on retro thing. The sound is rooted in the present and in Young and Muhammed’s established polished neo-soul aesthetic, but they’re not afraid to nod in the direction of Ayer’s classics. “Synchronize Vibration,” the opening track of the new record, feels like a deliberate sequel of sorts to Ayer’s most famous song “Everybody Loves the Sunshine.” You can hear echoes of the song in the lyrics and melody, but most importantly in the cool psychedelic haze of the arrangement. The keyboards and strings feel like shifting overlapping clouds, gentle and gradual in their movements but always in communication with the groove. It’s very particular sort of atmosphere, one that’s been imitated through the years but it seems that only Ayers himself can nail it.

Buy it from Bandcamp.