194083-albare-only-human

Albare: Only Human

Albare's Only Human comes as easy listening from top to bottom, but, for the most part, lacks the interpretive flair which defines smooth jazz.
Albare
Only Human
Alfi
2015-05-15

Australian guitarist Albare set out on a singular mission with the development of Only Human: to memorialize the vibrant differences between world cultures that make us collectively whole as a shared humanity. Alongside pianist and composer Phil Turcio, they more or less accomplish the relaxed spirit that one might expect out of an album encapsulating as broad a celebratory worldview as theirs. The end result is a concept album that remains an easy and cohesive listen from top to bottom, though one without most of the frills that one may come to expect out of a jazz trio. A lack of interpretive creativity forces the album into a strange feeling of confinement. It simmers instead of soars, but gets the job done with a few standouts, especially the anti-ennui delivery of Yunior Terry Cabrera’s bass and Pablo Bencid’s drums on surprisingly ardent “Gravitational Pull”.

RATING 5 / 10