KALIPSE

I came into Kalipse knowing East of Eden from their album Snafu many years ago. The studio version of Marcus Junior on that album is seared in my brain for life. Initially I was disappointed with Kalipse, but now I'm OK with it.

One cannot expect so many years later, I guess, for them to sound like the high-energy, crazy eclectic rock outfit with all the rough edges of the 1970 version. Kalipse is very smooth. The Goodbye Pork Pie Hat cover stands out. It has a phrasing change throughout, an extra beat or two near the end of each line, that gives the otherwise sedate, respectful rendition some extra zip. Many of the tracks are dominated by solos over a short repeating riff or bass figure, similar to the aforementioned Marcus Junior, but much more smooth. The soloing is fine, professional-level for sure, but not remarkable enough to prevent the combination of repetitious bass line and adequate soloing from sounding like any other competently-done smooth jazz. The heads or arranged parts, though, e.g. Kalipse and Slow Food, are really nice, well above average.

If I want to hear current music that's like the old East of Eden, maybe Sons of Kemet is close enough in spirit. But as an older guy myself now, I'm more drawn to peaceful sounds, and Kalipse is easily good enough to warrant many listens.