Whirligig V: The Robert Glasper Experiment

No music exists in a vacuum. If its not reaching out, it won’t last for long. At least that’s what we think, and each Whirligig looks to join some of the ever shifting dots in the musical world. For Whirligig V, we’ve enlisted the remarkable Robert Glasper, who is taking the two-decade connection between jazz and hip-hop to a new dimension.

Here is an artist supremely at home in both idioms. Three albums into a deal with Blue Note, his piano improvisations bear comparison with the best output of the iconic jazz label, especially the golden era of Herbie Hancock. Equally feted in the hip-hop and R’n’B world, he’s musical director for Mos Def and his meteoric rise has seen him touring and recording with Erykah Badu, Kanye West, Talib Kweli, Maxwell, Meshell Ndegeocello and Q-Tip.

It feels like all the good grooves of American music have distilled down into the hands of this native of Houston, Texas. Burning jazz gives way to gritty streetwise funk, piano lyricism opens up to ecstatic gospel, and the band modulates as one, aided by the elasticity of bassist Derrick Hodges and saxophonist Casey Benjamin. Drummer of the moment Chris Dave brings The Experiment into another level; supple in the best jazz way, accenting his pulse with hip-hop motifs, moving it through the gears, and cranking up the excitement.

Your evening’s fun will be topped and tailed with music from the Dublin scene, courtesy of an opening set from local jazz and emcee collective Mixtapes from the Underground, and an aftershow jam session.

Links

Robert Glasper Official Site
Robert Glasper on Wikipedia
Robert Glasper on YouTube Mix
Robert Glasper Experiment on SoundCloud
Robert Glasper on MySpace

Mixtapes From the Underground on Facebook

Click here to book tickets