Customer Reviews

Anthem

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Christian Scott is quite the talent. Anthem, the follow up to his debut, Rewind That, finds Christian expanding upon his distinct sound with a maturity not often found in young musicians.

Christian Scott is exciting to listen to because there is no one that sounds quite like him. Anthem, while certainly a jazz album, incorporates many different styles of music and amazingly it all fits and flows together as one work.

New Orleans is Christian's home town and it should be noted that this album was written in response to Hurricane Katrina. The album is emotive, and it truly does sound like one long elegy to the New Orleans that existed prior to the summer of 2005. The fact that a young man is able to express tragedy through the medium of jazz music with such poignancy shows that Christian Scott is a special musician.

I recommend anyone reading this review buy Anthem. It isn't a five star album but it is a very good album that deserves the listener's patience. If anything, buy it and its predecessor just so you can experience the evolution of one of music's brightest hopes.

I look forward to more releases by Christian Scott in the future. I hope Christian continues to experiment with his sound and expand his musical horizons. This is one trumpeter I can see carrying Miles Davis' torch and this statement should not be taken lightly.

This CD stands out from the average jazz disc, because the band plays a lot like a rock band. The typical song (they all have the same 'sound', except for one which dips into smooth jazz territory) is midtempo, with the drummer hitting the snare on the 2 and 4 (like a rock or R&B drummer). The keyboardist plays a minor key melody, but in a rock style, playing sequential eighth notes. The bass player plays a funky bassline. That sets things up for Christian Scott, who plays a lot of slow moody trumpet on this CD. His trumpet playing is also minimalistic, it's reminiscent of late Miles, but with a stronger tone. I've probably done the equivalent of describing a birthday cake by talking about flour, butter, and whatnot, but it all comes together. The songs on Anthem are about Katrina and violence, and he keeps it consistant -- there's no Lee Morgan hard bop soloing over a walking bassline. This is a very good CD, and it's certainly unique. Mr. Scott walks the tightrope between good-simple and blah-smooth-simple very well. In addition, the final rap song ties together jazz and the spoken word better than Mingus was able to do (though if Mingus hooked up with a time-travelling rapper in 1959 - look out). Anyone who likes jazz with rock song forms should get this.

1 - Very nice. Beautiful styling.

2 - Fitting.

3 - Dark, struggle, almost to triumph... sounds like a story being told.

4 - Reminds me of Rewind That. It's ok. He shows more of his ability as far as technical ability are concerned.

5 - Cool.

6 - Cool. Tense. Noisy. Fun.

7 - Crisp, clean, uptempo by-way of the percussion. Interesting.

8 - My favorite track. Great dynamics, melodies, story, and styling.

9 - I don't know why this song reminds me of Miles... but it does. I like it. Cool lounge vibe.

10 - Very nice. uptempo. Scott really shows what he can do (as far as technical ability) on this track.

11 - Chill. Smooth Jazz if it were actually jazz. j/k.

12 - Interesting...

Overall: Great album. Christian Scott deserves his props. He definitely has his own sound and he does it well. Great line up of musicians on this album too.

There's a word minimum for leaving a review, but I don't have many words to say about this artist and this album other than, "YOU BETTER WORK, CHRISTIAN!" 4 stars!

Without question, this record should be the top Contemporary Jazz album of 2007, if not the top Jazz album of 2007. An incredible, powerful and moving effort by Scott that makes his solid rookie effort, "Rewind That", seem ordinary. That effort was a good listen - particularly for a first album. But try "Anthem" and be moved by what Jazz "iz" today. You will be moved and wonderfully entertained all at once with this terrific cd.

I first saw this young man and his band on PBS; when I brought this CD, I was pleasantly surprised. This young man can BLOW and has a unique style of his own. The title song "Anthem" is "the BOMB"--both the instrumental and rap version.

great contemporary jazz displaying hints of classical composition with a texturality reminiscent of Davis's Blue period and a similar atmospheric moodiness. the style and sound recall Wallace Roney though the composition is a bit more rigourous and methodical. Excellent contemporary Jazz with a traditional feel.

I was listening to a local college station, Temple, driving to work one night and heard Katrina's eyes. It had such an impact on me that while driving I tried to write down his name and the song title. I scratched it on a piece of paper then when I got to work I immediately ordered the CD. I was not disappointed. The rest of the CD is just as good...well worth it!

I had not heard of Christian Scott before stumbling across his new album being promoted at Virgin mega store NY.
Look forward to purchasing his first album and will certainly follow his career.

Christian Scott is a young trumpeter to keep an eye out for, because what he created on "Anthem" is different, but does that make it a five star album? No, I think the album fails on many levels. Let me say that these jazz meets rock meets hip hop recordings aren't really that interesting. What this music doesn't have is any kind of introspection. There is also a lack of improvisation, which is what makes jazz the beautiful music it is. I don't really call backbeat rhythms and distorted guitar something that really appeal to me anymore, but I at least heard the entire album and gave it a chance. I think for anyone who has been listening to rock trying to get into jazz this may be a good start for you, but jazz is much deeper and introspective than this album. This music doesn't even scratch the surface of what jazz has to offer.

I will say that some of this music is downright scary, but again, it just isn't that interesting of a concept. If this is the future of jazz, then I'm thankful for Miles Davis, Thelonious Monk, and Bill Evans, because I don't want any part of it.

If dig your jazz with some rock and hip hop, then you might like this, but if you're like me, and like jazz to swing with lots of improvisation, then you may want to look elsewhere.