Reach Out, the new record from Envisage Collective

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Though subtly defined in the master mix at the onset of its appearance, the percussion we discover lying within the harmonious jazz wonderment of “Habitat” is as key to the mood of this track as any melodic element is in this prime cut from Reach Out, the new record from Envisage Collective. “Habitat,” much like its tracklist mates “Envisage” and “Step on a Crack,” is rhythmic and deceptively simple as it begins to unfold, only to reveal a progressive highbrow aesthetical foundation perhaps even more intriguing than one would expect it to be. Reach Out isn’t for the occasional jazz fan as much as it is the serious connoisseur, but at any rate, it’s a record that demands a reaction out of anyone who gives it a listen.

“Wish,” “Malta House” and “The Omnivore’s Dilemma” (my favorite song on the LP) all feature some incredibly mathy compositional constructions, but I wouldn’t go as far as to say that any of the material on this disc feels particularly overcomplicated, nor sonically indulgent on the part of producers. As I previously mentioned, there’s a hint of simplicity that starts off most every track here, and on some occasions – such as in “The Closer,” for example – where that simplicity extends itself into the arrangement of the melodic components as much as it does the beat. Envisage Collective were wise to make this record as wide-ranging in artistic scope as they did, especially when taking into account the wave of puritan jazz content that their mainstream rivals have been responsible for riding in recent times.

The raw substance of the music in Reach Out aside, I think that the master mix here, as well as the overall production quality, rank among the most supreme I’ve heard in the last couple of years. “The Closer,” “Envisage” and the title cut are all remarkably crisp and clean in presentation, and although there’s a bit more polish on the piano parts in “Malta House” than I would have preferred, I can appreciate the concept that the band was trying to go for regardless. While the finest jazz albums known to humankind have never been deemed as much because of the technical varnishing of their melodic virtuosities, there’s always something to be said about any LP as well-produced as this particular selection is.

You don’t have to be the world’s biggest jazz enthusiast to find yourself swept away by the magic of the sharp harmonies available to us in Envisage Collective’s Reach Out, but for those of us who can’t get enough of this genre’s most erudite content, I can vouch that its eight songs form a special article that any serious fan would be crazy to ignore this spring. Though the mainstream hasn’t offered us much more than a mixed-bag of inspiration and recreation in the last year, listeners can definitely trust this unit to deliver all of the intriguing jazz thrills and chills that devout followers of its ancient school have come to know and love about its most powerful releases.

by Bethany Page