Next—Soulive

(Blue Note 7243 5 35869 2 8)

Soulive has graduated from a modern jazz funk organ trio to a finger-popping funky quartet with the addition of Sam Kininger on alto saxophone. Next is generously laced with James Brown syncopated horn parts and Neal Evans' Hammond B-3 croons and growls, but Soulive can no longer be conveniently slotted into the soul jazz redux bag.

Soulive

The band dabbles with a broad spectrum of pop crossover prospective. On one end, Dave Matthews sings lead on a rendition of an Ani DiFranco tune called "Joyful Girl." On the other side, Black Thought from the Hip Hop group Roots lays down some serious rhyme. Soulive continues to drift further and further from the Jimmy Smith roots of their earlier works. Still, if you're looking for an adventurous way to break up that late night set with something that would normally accommodate some out—and—out blues or Meters—style New Orleans backbeat, then Soulive is your ticket to ride. Quick jabbing, funky interludes like "Kalen" or the opening "Tuesday Night's Squad" (penned by organist Evans and jazz progressive guitarist Kurt Rosenwinkel) might do the trick. But be careful, the overall mix on Next is very bright and trebly, an exact opposite of many of those customary analog standards in the library.