Shift (Bad Hombre, Vol. 2)

by Antonio Sanchez

Overview

Though Antonio Sanchez is best known as a jazz drummer, composer, and producer, those roles merely hint at the depths of his creative vision. In 2017, Sanchez released the solo Bad Hombre. Titled after a racially derogatory remark made by Donald Trump during the 2016 presidential campaign, the set offered intense sociopolitical critique. It was fueled by an individually developed approach to electronica while exploring various ways to play, record, and produce drums. The set earned a Grammy nomination in 2018. Five years and several releases later, Shift (Bad Hombre, Vol. 2) showcases Sanchez as a drummer and producer, but also as a conceptualist and multi-instrumentalist, in a series of cross-cultural collaborations with a dazzling, star-studded cast. His concept features drums and voices as equals as a grand experiment in texture, yet he also plays guitars, basses, synth, oud, ukulele, and mandolin. The guest list includes his 97-year-old grandfather, Mexican actor Ignacio Lopez Tarso, Dave Matthews and Pat Metheny, Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross, Ana Tijoux, Lila Downs, Meshell Ndegeocello, Rodrigo y Gabriela, Silvana Estrada, Becca Stevens, Portugal's Maro, Kimbra, and Croatian-American vocalist Thana Alexa, among others. Shift was mostly recorded remotely during the pandemic. Sanchez took advantage of quarantine to enlist his busy collaborators. As on the first volume, Tarso, his nonagenarian grandfather, bookends the set with spoken word above intensely layered sound collages combining mariachi, processional, and sporting event music. Former boss Pat Metheny and songwriter Dave Matthews participate in a futuristic read of the latter's "Eh Hee" (here retitled "2.0") joining clattering beats, zigzagging synths, samplers, and distortion. Matthews' chanting and singing engage both Sanchez's freaky basslines and Metheny's squalling polytonal guitar. Single "Mi Palabra" weds a slow, rubbery hip-hop beat with Tijoux's silvery, polyrhythmic rapping, as horns, ambient sounds, and synth bass frame her nocturnal delivery. "The Bucket" features Brooklyn-based vocalist/songwriter Becca Stevens, whose ethereal singing contrasts with and accents Sanchez's cascading layers of drums, cymbals, piano, and reverb in what amounts to a cinematic hymn. He plays all instruments but synth on "I Think We're Past That Now," which is played by Ross with lyrics and vocals from Reznor. With additional mixing from Alan Moulder, it sounds like a deeply paranoid, unissued NiN track. "Risa de Mujer," with Downs, has slow, tribal drumming and moody synths that accentuate her entrancing, resonant vocal. "Comet, Come to Me" offers a new take on the title track to Ndegeocello's 14th album, wedding dub basslines, Latin and Caribbean rhythms, and noir-ish funk under her dreamy, poignant vocal. "M-Power," with Rodrigo y Gabriela, stitches progressive and Latin rock, jazz fusion, and neo-classical with Sanchez's jagged electronica and triple-timed beats in a sonic tour de force. Ultimately, there is nothing remotely substandard among these 16 cuts. Material, performances, and production are all inspired, making Shift (Bad Hombre, Vol. 2) one of the most compelling, varied, and virtually unclassifiable releases to emerge thus far in 2022. ~ Thom Jurek

Product Details

Release Date:	08/26/2022
Label:	Arts Music
UPC:	0190296340154

Tracks

1. Opening
2. Eh Hee 2.0
3. Mi Palabra
4. The Bucket
5. I Think We¿¿¿re Past That Now
6. Alambari
7. Doyenne
8. Risa De Mujer
9. Trapped (Red Room)
10. Comet, Come to Me
11. Waiting
12. Risa De Mujer (Interlude)
13. El Agua Y La Miel
14. Suspended Animation
15. M-Power
16. Closing

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Antonio Sanchez   Primary Artist,Bass,Drums,Guitar,Vocals,Ukulele,Clapping,Mandolin,Keyboards,Bata Drums,Percussion,Synthesizer,Bass (Electric),Synthesizer Bass,Guitar (Electric),Vocals (Background)
Sonica   Primary Artist
Ignacio Lopez Tarso   Primary Artist,Featured Artist
Pedro Alterio   Guitar,Guitar (Acoustic)
Nicole Zuraitis   Vocals,Featured Artist
Becca Stevens   Guitar,Featured Artist,Vocals
Maro   Vocals,Featured Artist,Featured Artist,Vocals
Kimbra   Guitar,Vocals,Featured Artist
Ana Tijoux   Vocals,Featured Artist
Thana Alexa   Vocals,Beat Box,Clapping,Keyboards,Drum Machine,Featured Artist,Vocals (Background)
Shara Nova   Vocals
Julia Adamy   Bass,Vocals,Bass (Electric),Featured Artist
Silvana Estrada   Lute,Cuatro,Vocals,Featured Artist
Pat Metheny   Guitar,Featured Artist
Lila Downs   Vocals,Featured Artist
Rodrigo y Gabriela   Guitar,Featured Artist
Trent Reznor   Vocals,Featured Artist
Atticus Ross   Synthesizer,Featured Artist
Meshell Ndegeocello   Bass,Vocals,Bass (Electric),Featured Artist
Dave Matthews   Vocals,Featured Artist
David J. Matthews   Vocals

Technical Credits

Pedro Alterio   Vocal Engineer,Guitar Engineer
Nicole Zuraitis   Composer,Lyricist
Maro   Composer,Lyricist,Composer,Vocal Engineer,Guitar Engineer
Jorge Tirado   Engineer,Vocal Engineer
Sterling Cunio   Composer,Lyricist
Ay Guey   Images
Mariana Serrano   Vocal Engineer
Becca Stevens   Guitar Engineer,Arranger,Composer,Vocal Engineer
Gabe Noel   Composer,Lyricist
Justin Bettman   Cover Photo
Kimbra   Composer,Lyricist,Vocal Engineer,Vocal Producer,Guitar Engineer,Guitar Producer
Jose Eduardo   Retouching
Ana Tijoux   Composer,Lyricist
Thana Alexa   Composer,Lyricist,Bass Engineer,Vocal Engineer
Nick Hard   Mixing
John Morgan   Image Editing
Shara Nova   Composer,Lyricist
Julia Adamy   Composer,Lyricist
Silvana Estrada   Composer,Lyricist
Chris Bruce   Composer,Lyricist
Ignacio Lopez Tarso   Lyricist
Lila Downs   Composer,Lyricist
Pete Karam   Mixing
Trent Reznor   Composer,Lyricist
Atticus Ross   Composer
Paul Cohen   Composer,Vocal Engineer
Rodrigo y Gabriela   Composer
Meshell Ndegeocello   Composer,Lyricist
Dave Matthews   Composer,Lyricist
Dave McNair   Mastering
Antonio Sanchez   Mixing,Arranger,Composer,Engineer,Lyricist,Producer,Liner Notes,Programming,Orchestration
Alan Moulder   Mixing
David J. Matthews   Composer
Knut Schotteldreier   Artwork,Cover Design
Fernando Aceves   Cover Photo
Roman Martinez   Retouching
Rodrigo Sanchez   Composer,Lyricist
Gabriela Quintero   Composer,Lyricist