Terrace Martin’s work on multiple Kendrick Lamar albums made him a part of any serious discussion about the art of production in modern rap. In the parallel dimension of contemporary jazz, he hasn’t experienced the same kind of breakout stardom, though he has been creating new packages for funk and fusion gifts that otherwise might sound rote or expected. The saxophonist makes it easy to spot his influences—including vocoder hooks styled after Zapp & Roger party anthems, or keyboards that specialize in G-funk timbres. But Martin can also mix those tones with warmly synthesized strings, or sizzling rock accents.
On 2016’s Velvet Portraits—the first album on his own imprint, Sounds of Crenshaw—Martin occasionally seemed to be fast-forwarding through his collection of favored textures. The initial seconds of that album presented a yearning, sincere-sounding acoustic piano line that was immediately disrupted by a studio production effect. The producer’s eagerness and roving intelligence were sometimes in tension with the chilled-out aims of his writing. Co-billed to the Pollyseeds (a band that the producer assembled), Martin’s new album breathes a bit more and shows the composer and instrumentalist making real strides.
On “You and Me,” a track that features lead vocals from Pollyseeds member Rose Gold, you can hear a touch of acoustic piano at the outset. But the arrangement’s easygoing quality is established by Gold’s graceful voice, a guitar line, and Martin’s own work on a Korg synth and an MPC sequencer. Three minutes into the track, the synth and the guitar pull back, leaving Gold’s seductive performance in a melodic partnership with the piano. Without exaggerating the decibel-level, the pivot registers as surprising—not a quality typically associated with quiet storm jams. Martin’s ability to make it work speaks to his twin skills as a pop producer and as an instrumentalist.
He’s built a great band, here, too. Rapper Chachi—sometimes known as Problem—sounds deeply at home in the laid-back bounce of “Intentions.” The emcee doesn’t commit the mistake of trying to make the track sound harder than it needs to be; his sing-song interludes and casual ad-libs give credence to the suave persona sketched by the song’s lyrics. “Believe” features vocalist Wyann Vaughn, as well as a sax section of Martin (on alto) and Kamasi Washington (on tenor). But the track’s instrumental honors could just as easily go to bassist Brandon Eugene Owens, who puts resonant, acoustic funk into support playing that’s just too good to stay in the background.
Martin doesn’t take a lot of solos on his various saxes, but when he does, they’re memorable. His playing on a collaboration with Robert Glasper, “Funny How Time Flies,” creeps into its final poses of exultation with a sly, patient poise that is fascinating. On soprano sax, Martin provides tender lines of blues melody during “Wake Up,” while accompanying the noir-ish pianism of Kenneth Crouch.
The moods evoked by Sounds of Crenshaw, Vol. 1 can seem familiar: one track may conjure the body-moving funk of George Clinton, while the next brings to mind the vulnerable romance of a deserted bar room’s last call. But it’s still rare to hear those soulful comforts blended with this much ingenuity. Over time, the album’s subtle ambition becomes impossible to miss. When the emotional climax of “Feelings of the World” cuts off sharply, giving way to a reprise of the hook from an earlier track, Martin’s control of the overall structure starts to sound every bit as good as his beats and his solos.
