Gilles Peterson has made a living by keeping contemporary musical forms open and responsive to the debris of the "posts" - posthouse, postjazz, posthip-hop, etc. From his label, Talking Loud, to steady DJ gigs since his teens, Peterson has forced all of his musical loves to share time and inspiration with each other. His newest mix CD, "INCredible: Sound of Gilles Peterson," is a sterling synthesis of this approach, a master's thesis of interdisciplinary musical collage.
The CD begins with Incognito's robust "I Can See the Future," filled with sax solos and uplifting female choruses. But Peterson's uptempo jazz sound is merely a shot off the starboard bow. The true beginning of the record lies in the string-laced Latin-soul-house genius of "I Am the Black Gold of the Sun." This is where Peterson lets rhythm and message, melody and freedom bleed into one another. By giving each song its own space and subtle introduction, Peterson sets up each track as its own validation. These tracks speak freedom at every step.
