PROTOCOL V

Protocol V - what an album!

Simon Phillips' Protocol series is some of the best jazz fusion you will find anywhere, so don't miss out. He collaborates with stellar players and the tunes are exciting and memorable. Especially on this outing, it's very difficult to pick a favourite track, as they are all amazing - there's no filler here.

This is the first time where saxophone has a lot of prominence, as Simon's ensembles are usually guitar led, but Alex Sill on guitar is definitely no slouch! This album is a heady mix of fusion flavours and Simon's playing is just what each track needs - in a drummer-led band, you might expect that there would be drum solos everywhere, but the playing here serves the music. Simon is such an experienced musician and has played with the best; he's clearly got nothing to prove technique-wise and so his parts are always appropriate and they propel the music along beautifully.

If you are a fusion fan, you won't find a better album than this - it's top class playing and enjoyment.

If you enjoyed Simon's previous Protocol albums chances are you'll enjoy this. Protocol V is another fine fusion fiesta. Spicy playing, tasteful tunes, and another sonically superior sounding disc. The drums sound phenomenal. As if you were in the room watching Simon play them. The lineup has changed a bit for this release. Newcomers are - Otmaro Ruiz (keys), Alex Sill (guitar), and Jacob Scesney (sax). This is the fourth Protocol album Ernest Tibbs (bass) has played on and he and Simon groove big time. This is the first Protocol album with the addition of saxophone and it adds a flavor reminiscent of Chick Corea's Elektric Band to the music. There is not one wasted second throughout the seven songs. Every note, nuance, mood, and musicianship is memorable. This is an album not to be missed for fans of fusion.

With no desire to break the traditions of Jazz Rock/Fusion, Simon Phillips gives us a homogeneous, dynamic, exciting, complex -but not complicated- album that steals our attention from the first piece to its inevitable but very satisfying ending. Perhaps the most surprising thing about this work - besides being a strange reason why this one does not bore in any of its 52 minutes - is the ability to establish a single tone* for almost the entire disc - which only seems to be interrupted by the piece " Dark Star", a bit more intimate in nature - making the album flow track after track very naturally and cohesively.

It would be unnecessary to highlight the interpretations of the musicians who are all phenomenal here - without falling into a gratuitous virtuosity that is very fashionable these days - and who integrate and converse in the best way that the genre (Jazz) has accustomed us to. Undoubtedly the best of a rather mediocre year -so far- for what some call Prog Music.

* With regard to 'tone' I mean the character of the album, which in this case is between extrovert and nostalgic, or at least that's how I perceive it.

This is a solid group of musicians that know how to play. On top of that, they know how to create compelling music. All tracks on this album Protocol V are lively, catchy, interesting, and fun.

But...

There have been so many great outputs of fusion for decades. So to make an impact, the record should be different, and push the boundaries. At least, that is how I see it. Especially considering I'm writing this in the context of a prog site. And here, Simon Phillips doesn't stand out. It is an excellent fusion record. But there's no reason to listen to this when you're already having a collection of great records in this genre and you are looking for something new and exciting.

This is why I rate this 2 stars. Not because it is bad. It absolutely isn't. But IMHO it doesn't bring enough to excite me as a prog fan. And the ratings are as they are to shed a light on music for a prog fan.