{"product_id":"makaya-mccraven-universal-beings","title":"Makaya McCraven - Universal Beings","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"tralbumData tralbum-about\"\u003eParis-born, New England-raised, long-time Chicago-residing Makaya McCraven has been at the forefront of genre-redefining movements in jazz since 2015, when he introduced the world to his unique brand of ‘organic beat music’ on the breakout album In The Moment. Culled, cut, post-produced \u0026amp; re-composed by Makaya using recordings of free improvisation he collected over dozens of live sessions in Chicago, through incubation \u0026amp; experimentation In The Moment established a procedural blueprint that he has since been sharpening \u0026amp; developing.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHoning this process on narrower sets of source material, Makaya followed up In The Moment with 2 mixtape releases – 2017’s Highly Rare, a lo-fi free-jazz-meets-hip-hop suite he made from a live 4-track recording, and June 2018’s Where We Come From (CHICAGOxLONDON Mixtape), which he produced using live recordings from London jazz hub Total Refreshment Centre (captured at a showcase called CHICAGOxLONDON).\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eNow, after 4+ years of refining his approach, Makaya McCraven puts forth an ambitious new work – Universal Beings – a culmination of concepts conceived by In The Moment, and his most elegant \u0026amp; articulated\u003cspan class=\"bcTruncateMore\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003ework yet.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSpurred by a desire to connect with old friends \u0026amp; new collaborators in places where similar spirits \u0026amp; diasporic jazz innovations are thriving, Makaya worked with International Anthem across late 2017 \u0026amp; early 2018 to setup intimate live sessions in New York \u0026amp; Chicago, and pop-up “studio” sessions in London \u0026amp; Los Angeles. Though the contexts and logistics were D.I.Y. (as they almost always are with IARC), the friends \u0026amp; friends-of-friends that Makaya was able to enlist are top tier players across the board. Some might call them super groups of “new” jazz musicians from their respective cities, with Makaya as a common denominator. But more importantly, collectively they make an inspiring display of the organic global inter-connectedness of the Black American music tradition in 2018.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePhysically spanning national \u0026amp; international borders to create an album that musically spans deep spiritual jazz meditations, pulsing post-bop grooves \u0026amp; straight-ahead boom-bap, Makaya McCraven defies the simplifications of revisionism \u0026amp; regionalism while celebrating the sounds, settings \u0026amp; stories that define the provenance of his work. Universal Beings projects an all-encompassing message of unity, peace \u0026amp; power by embracing transcendence in all its expressions.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e \u003ca\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003ch3 class=\"credits-label\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cdiv class=\"tralbumData tralbum-credits\"\u003ereleased October 26, 2018\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTracks 1-6 (New York Side) recorded live @ H0L0,\u003cbr\u003eRidgewood, Queens, NY, August 29th, 2017.\u003cbr\u003eBrandee Younger (harp)\u003cbr\u003eJoel Ross (vibraphone)\u003cbr\u003eTomeka Reid (cello)\u003cbr\u003eDezron Douglas (double bass)\u003cbr\u003eMakaya McCraven (drums)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTracks 7-11 (Chicago Side) recorded live @ Co-Prosperity Sphere,\u003cbr\u003eBridgeport, Chicago, IL, September 2nd, 2017.\u003cbr\u003e*Shabaka Hutchings (tenor saxophone)\u003cbr\u003eTomeka Reid (cello)\u003cbr\u003eJunius Paul (double bass)\u003cbr\u003eMakaya McCraven (drums)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTracks 12-16 (London Side) recorded @ Total Refreshment Studios,\u003cbr\u003eStoke Newington, London, UK, October 19th, 2017.\u003cbr\u003eNubya Garcia (tenor saxophone)\u003cbr\u003e**Ashley Henry (Rhodes piano)\u003cbr\u003eDaniel Casimir (double bass)\u003cbr\u003eMakaya McCraven (drums)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTracks 17-22 (Los Angeles Side) recorded @ Jeff Parker's house,\u003cbr\u003eAltadena, Los Angeles County, CA, January 30th, 2018.\u003cbr\u003eJosh Johnson (alto saxophone)\u003cbr\u003eMiguel Atwood-Ferguson (violin)\u003cbr\u003eJeff Parker (guitar)\u003cbr\u003eAnna Butterss (double bass)\u003cbr\u003eCarlos Niño (percussion)\u003cbr\u003eMakaya McCraven (drums)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e*Shabaka Hutchings appears courtesy of Verve Label Group\u003cbr\u003e**Ashley Henry appears courtesy of Sony Music Entertainment UK Limited\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eRecorded \u0026amp; Mixed by David Allen \u0026amp; Dave Vettraino\u003cbr\u003eArtwork by Damon Locks\u003cbr\u003eInsert Portrait by Fabrice Bourgelle\u003cbr\u003eInsert Design by Craig Hansen\u003cbr\u003eProduced by Makaya McCraven\u003cbr\u003eExecutive Production by Scott McNiece\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003ch3 class=\"license-label\"\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cdiv id=\"license\" class=\"info license\"\u003e\n\u003cspan class=\"cc-icons commercial\"\u003e\u003c\/span\u003eall rights reserved\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"International Anthem","offers":[{"title":"CD - Compact Disc","offer_id":53918415716693,"sku":"IARC0022CD","price":12.0,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1049\/0419\/6437\/files\/0014644948_10.jpg?v=1779460657","url":"https:\/\/international-anthem.k7store.com\/products\/makaya-mccraven-universal-beings","provider":"International Anthem","version":"1.0","type":"link"}