We don’t write too often about NPR Tiny Desk at Waxing Lyrical. I can’t say why, other than being motivated by fear; people are very attached to Tiny Desk performances, and our delicate egos wouldn’t be able to take the heavy onslaught from disgruntled NPR fans if we favour one video over another. That being said, we are very much Tiny Desk fans! For discovering new music, it has to be one of the best online formats. Getting a chance to hear bands perform in a tight space (or at least the illusion of one) with an instrumentally restrained line-up feels like a privilege, particularly when the cast is as prolific as that in as this week’s album of the week.
August Greene are a supergroup formed by Common, Robert Glasper and Karriem Riggins. If you know anything about any of these creatives, then you’ll know how super this supergroup actually is and how upsetting it is that they only recorded one album. That’s right, August Greene (as the album is also called) was their only recorded and released album. I wonder whether that was the point – that one album was all that was needed to say what they were compelled to say – or whether the busyness of professional musicians’ lives drew them away from the highly acclaimed project. Regardless of the reason for its seemingly sudden departure, I am so glad that August Greene not only existed in studio form but lasted long enough to gift us a live Tiny Desk performance.
The album itself offers conscious commentary on contemporary social events and culture delivered through the jazz-hip hop hybrid style that we are now so familiar with – that Glasper and co. helped establish. Somehow this feels more organic and original than ever before. Tracks like “Black Kennedy” prove that Common has not only maintained his flair for creative lyrical concepts and turns of phrase, but that he has been able to balance relevance and dignity in changing times. The motifs that pervade every track in this album not only create a platform for Common to emotively flow over but they establish a meditative, sedate feel that defines the character of the album as a whole. This feel reflects the introspective narrative of the album and packages socially salient messages in a palatable manner. It also helps that guest vocalists Brandy, Estelle, Bilal, and Samora Pinderhughes are absolutely transcendent in this album.
August Greene was released back in 2018, and we’ve heard very little from the group since. Maybe that’s all we’ll ever hear. Selfishly, I’d like to hear more but it is still as relevant and mesmerising today as it was when it was released. Go for a drive and listen.
Waxing Lyrical 