Kip Hanrahan
Vertical's Currency

Kip Hanrahan is a legend in all of Afro-American music, a great percussionist, an excellent composer but above all a brilliant conductor, in the sense of having that ability to blend many musicians with the most diverse backgrounds. Born in the Bronx in '54, you will read about him that he embraces all variants of jazz from bebop to free to cool, but you will notice very little "coolness", his records are fiery like this "Vertical's Currency" from 1984.

The discography is enormous and the contributions to other artists are countless. It is said that his concerts are a unique experience, a cascade of Afro-Caribbean sounds that never bores. The songs on this album are crooked melodic lines that never go in the direction you expect, the rhythms are enveloping, but we are not talking about club dance music. The pieces are mostly intense with slow rhythms and lyrics, apparently, very political.
If you can compare this to another person, it is perhaps Arto Lindsay, who collaborates on this production along with Jack Bruce, Bill Laswell, Carla Bley, and many other musicians orbiting the Latin scene, including in this term even Hawaii. Don't even talk about light sounds, in every piece there is always a melancholy that is not just Brazilian saudade but something that has deeper origins, that starts from old Europe and envelops the entire American continent.

It's hard not to be captivated, hard to find other musicians who have managed to create these high-level sound melting pots. In "Describing It To Yourself As Convex", the singing integrates into a carpet of conga and in a guitar that slightly recalls the style of Pat Metheny and which finally, with a very complex turn, accompanies a sax. More sax, but less distorted in "Dark", where instead the voice whispers very sweet notes. "Shadow Song" is a spectacular cha-cha with a crescendo of brass band that blossoms in an impressive singing performance.

A purchase you won't regret.