Who Killed AI?＜Blue Eco Mix Vinyl＞

Electronic jazz albums are a potentially tricky proposition based on a seemingly contradictory idea that you can create organic, improvisational music in what is usually a more controlled, production-heavy, computer-based style. Saxophonist Kenny Garrett defies such concerns and bridges the gap between in-the-moment improvisation and beat-based productions with 2024s Who Killed AI?. This is Garretts first all-electronic album and finds him working in collaboration with electronic producer/instrumentalist Mikhail Tarasov (aka Svoy). A former student at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, Svoy brings both jazz and classical influences to bear on his work and has garnered acclaim as a solo artist and as a producer for other artists. All of this makes him a perfect collaborator for Garrett, a performer whose work also straddles a wide array of styles, from his early days in Miles Davis crossover fusion band of the late-80s to his own heady post-bop, funk, and world music explorations. Together, they craft sonically adventurous tracks that wouldnt sound out of place at a rave, but they also feature plenty of propulsive, harmonically nuanced improvisation. Much of this is due to Garretts crisp, motivic style and his kinetic lines push nicely off Svoys textured, groove-based soundscapes. Its a vibe they leap into on the opening "Ascendence," where Garrett spirals through Svoys digital buzz and grind like John Coltrane plugging into the Matrix. And while a kind of jazz future shock is the aesthetic at play, they draw upon jazz history, evoking Garretts time with trumpeter Davis on "Miles Running Down AI," a slippery, acid-soaked wah-wah number that works as a wry nod to "Miles Runs the Voodoo Down" off 1969s Bitches Brew. The duo even offer a skittering, EDM-esque rendition of "My Funny Valentine that one can only imagine might have made even the Dark Prince of jazz smile. ~ Matt Collar