Prolific
drummer Ken Serio's latest project is the band The Jazz Warriors. He
assembled an international line-up of musicians, such as Japanese
pianist Tomoko Ohno, Greek guitarist Sakis Zachariades, bassist Jedd
Chlebowski, flautist & singer Ali Ryerson and vocalist Josi Davis. Their eponymous album was several years in the making, and arguably Ken Serio's best to date. They bring an eclectic mix of styles, and composed almost all tracks themselves.
'Pollo Picante' opens with clucking chickens and floats on a nice Brazilian rhythm. This is followed by the quiet 'After the Rain', in which you really hear water flowing, followed by the sung blues of 'Tell Me in a Loving Way'.
‘River Quay’ sounds like fusion, and is a Pat Metheny cover, after which ‘J.B.’ may stand for a whiskey brand. After the ballad 'A Wing and a Prayer', a cover by Mike Stern, hard prog rock follows with 'A Guy with a Tie'. This is less my thing!
'Don't Talk to Me' is a relaxed swing song, while 'Neo' is again a ballad. 'The Haunting' again leans towards fusion, after which 'Adam's Ale' is the last track at the leisurely pace of a ballad.
“The album is more of a group effort,” said Serio. “Tomoko and Sakis are really good writers so they came up with the goods”.
This album is therefore a combination of the two previous albums, which were more fusion and more straight jazz respectively. Overall, this sounds pretty fun!
Tracks:
After the Rain
Tell Me in a Loving Way
River Quay
J.B.
A Wing and a Prayer
A Guy with a Tie
Don’t Talk to Me
Neo
The Haunting
Adam’s Ale