2 LPs
Canadian ensemble BADBADNOTGOOD made their name by crossing genres. Instead of working within traditional jazz standards, the classically-trained group sidestepped them and drew from hip hop and other contemporary genres to create a unique sound rooted in Black American music.
Yet, their latest album and first for XL Recordings, “Talk Memory”, sees the band take a different tact: paying homage to the musicians, composers, innovators and influences that first informed their work. With “Talk Memory”, the trio of Alexander Sowinski (drums), Chester Hansen (bass) and Leland Whitty (guitar/ woodwinds), return to their beginnings.
Following years of touring, the band paused to refresh and look at their history and experiences. Rather than improvising and developing tracks on the road, this time around that gestation process happened in the studio with a bevy of musicians walking through the doors on equal footing.
As a result, the album is an aural odyssey about collective balance and harmony, with all the sense of psychedelic narrative that entails.