Clear Path Ensemble hails all the way from Wellington, New Zealand, presenting their sophomore project that follows a soothing self-titled record released in 2020. Led by percussionist Cory Champion, the band expresses a myriad of influences in their new album Solar Eclipses. From electric jazz to ambient, experimental, house and funk, the DIY, jam-session attitude towards composition provides a mesmerizing moment of sonic contemplation, that also show that New Zealand’s bubbling microcosm in Wellington is exploring its own way of jazz music interpretations.

Solar Eclipse delves into tones that are “expansive and astral” and new paths of electric jazz, carrying an introspective and experimental dynamic. At times it’s fused with catchy synth hooks, smooth basslines and shuffling beats, while other tracks morph into moody electronic soundscapes, and even Sun Ra-esque free jazz. Clear Path Ensemble bottles the energy of all those factors and distils it into moody morsels of differing styles. Available on vinyl via Soundway Records, Solar Eclipse is one of the most surprising jazz records of the year.

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