"The Best Music of July: NPR Staff Picks"
NPR Music
August 3, 2021
William Parker: "Tabasco" from Mayan Space Station
The veteran bassist, composer and community organizer William Parker is having an incredible year, with a 10-CD box set and an authorized biography already under his belt. He put out two more new albums in July, and one of them, Mayan Space Station, feels exactly right for the long, hot days and nights of summer. Parker and drummer Gerald Cleaver play just behind the beat, rubbing some funky grit into their hypnotic grooves. And Ava Mendoza's electric guitar sings and soars in a way that might remind you of the late, great Sonny Sharrock.—Steve Smith
(This was my first vocal contribution for NPR… and just my second NPR vocal appearance ever, following my cameo in a Pauline Oliveros obituary reported by Lakshmi Singh in November 2016.)
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