Last week I gave y’all the definitive list of the year’s best music. On that list was The Epic by Kamasi Washington. Because I have my finger on the pulse of the nation’s music tastemakers, Washington’s album has since appeared on a number of other best-of lists (like here, here, and here, for instance). These guys must read our blog.
Where The Epic is noticeably absent: the GRAMMY nominations. But since “music’s biggest night” is little more than an industry awards show for people who don’t actually listen to music, should we really be surprised?
Enough about that, though. I’m listening to it right now, and I’ve gotta say that Washington’s three-disc jazz debut is a legit masterpiece, as astonishing in its scope as it is breathtaking in its audacity. If there’s a music lover on your Christmas list this year, buy The Epic. They’ll thank you—and you’ll thank me.
In the meantime, take a listen to the 14-minute “Re Run Home”:
