Free Nationals

by Free Nationals

Overview

T. Nava (keyboards, vocoder vocals), Callum Connor (drums), Kelsey Gonzalez (bass), and Jose Rios (guitar) took the name Free Nationals after they formed a tight bond with Anderson .Paak. A couple of the players were working with Paak as early as the late 2000s, and the quartet as a unit became integral to Paak's progression on the Grammy-nominated 2017 album Malibu. The L.A. band's distinct identity came into focus with extensive touring in support of their chief collaborator. They take the opportunity here to branch out with a regatta's worth of singers and rappers -- T.I., Conway and Westside Gunn, Kali Uchis, and the late Mac Miller, to name a handful -- none of whom would be out of place on a Paak album. For the most part, the band zeroes in on their hip-hop-minded approach to reconfiguring polished late-'70s/early-'80s fusions of jazz, soul, and funk. Hints of synchronous Herbie Hancock and Stevie Wonder, the Blackbyrds and the Brothers Johnson, and even a little Steely Dan/Donald Fagen, are in the mix. The evocation of the era is strongest when Benny Sings, Nava, and Connor are on the mike, fronting the kind of smooth, feel-good grooves that can make one move involuntarily without breaking a sweat. Elsewhere, FN play vaguely psychedelic pop like a funky Tame Impala, epitomized by first-half highlights like "Beauty & Essex," featuring Daniel Caesar and apparent FN inspiration Unknown Mortal Orchestra, and "On Sight," the vocals of which could have been handled strictly by Kadhja Bonet. There are so many streams-maximizing voices here that they crowd the room and sometimes obscure tracks that would be fine as instrumentals. Unsurprisingly, Free Nationals sound most comfortable when they're either on their own or behind Paak on "Gidget," a sailing (not surfing) jam that drops anchor between Hiroshi Sato's "Say Goodbye" and Stevie Wonder's "Love Light in Flight." ~ Andy Kellman

Product Details

Release Date:	12/23/2022
Label:	OBE
UPC:	0194690795695

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Free Nationals   Primary Artist
T.I.   Featured Artist
Maurice Brown   Trumpet
Benny Sings   Featured Artist
Shafiq Husayn   Featured Artist
Park   Featured Artist
Aaron Shaw   Flute
Jose Rios   Guitar
Mac Miller   Featured Artist
Chronixx   Featured Artist
Daniel Caesar   Featured Artist
Joyce Wrice   Featured Artist
Anderson .Paak   Featured Artist
Kelsey Gonzalez   Bass
Jonah Levine   Trombone
Omar Dominick   Bass
Westside Gunn   Featured Artist
David Pimentel   Keyboards
Kadhja Bonet   Featured Artist
Danny McKinnon   Guitar
Vicky Farewell   Keyboards
Emil Martinez   Trumpet
MIKNNA   Featured Artist
Syd   Featured Artist
T. Nava   Keyboards,Featured Artist
Callum Connor   Drums,Featured Artist
Conway   Featured Artist
Chris Lowery   Trumpet
Erwin Pierce   Saxophone
Wes Lowery   Trombone

Technical Credits

Anna-Marie Lopez   Photography
Andrew Wuepper   Mixing
David Kutch   Mastering
Jose Rios   Group Member
Robert Beatty   Cover Art
Kelsey Gonzalez   Group Member
David Pimentel   Drum Programming
T. Nava   Group Member
Callum Connor   Mixing,Group Member