JoVia Armstrong: Inception
Black Earth Music

Recorded in August 2021, Inception is JoVia Armstrong's third album and follow-up to her well-received The Antidote Suite, though the material on the new set was formulated as a predecessor to it. Six tracks appear, five credited to Armstrong and the sixth to the full Eunoia Society outfit, its hybrid cajon kit-playing leader, five-string electric violinist Leslie DeShazor, guitarist Sasha Kashperko, and bassist Damon Warmack. However much the instrumentation might suggest some modern-day prog-fusion hybrid, the quartet's sound evades easy categorization; instead, the unit traffics in a form of group expression that alchemizes jazz, funk, rock, and soul into a fresh, genre-defying hybrid. Yes, one-half of the line-up does recall the original Mahavishnu Orchestra's tag-team of John McLaughlin and Jerry Goodman, but the only thing common to the bands is instrumentation, not musical style or attack. Improvisation and composition blend comfortably in performances whose durations are likewise carefully measured; consistent with that, the album in total weighs in at a smartly timed forty minutes.

In playing a hybrid cajon kit, Armstrong assumes the role of percussionist/drummer, but the set-up's minimal design makes for a less overpowering presence than the standard drum kit. Her lighter sound thereby allows the other instruments to resound with greater clarity, and at no time does it feel as of anyone's fighting to be heard—a fine balance is achieved, in other words. Armstrong's a member of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM), but the music feels as connected to Detroit, NYC, and California as it does Chicago.

Track titles intimate that an autobiographical narrative of sorts has been devised by Armstrong, one that begins with birth and moves from childhood to early adulthood. Establishing the quartet's persona, “Creation” lays the groundwork with a euphoric solo by DeShazor, a punchy funk groove by Warmack and Armstrong, and raw chordal textures from Kashperko. A smooth tradeoff sees the guitarist contributing his own muscular statement, his biting turn confirming that he's as vital a front-liner as the violinist. The leader caps the performance with an arresting solo that shows the hybrid cajon kit offers its player an endless resource of sonorities and effects from which to choose.

Electronics sometimes come into play to bolster atmosphere, a case in point “Embryo,” which begins with flourishes of ambient shimmer before the violin enters to intensify the contemplative spell. An almost Chinese music character emerges when strings pluck a stately melody amidst cymbal washes and meditative guitar musings. The life story continues when “Embryo” segues into the exuberant “Birth,” its aggressive and assertive spirit conveying the potential power of a newly arrived Earth citizen. A bluesy and sultry lullaby, “Babies” stretches out for ten minutes and as such gives DeShazor an extended stage upon which to work her magic. At album's end, “Hide, Then Seek” alludes in its title to Armstrong's experience of growing up in a sheltered household and having to find ways to sample the forbidden fruits of music and movies. In its radiant upward climb, the music expresses the thrill that self-discovery and illuminating experience brings.

August 2023