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Patrick Yandall: Laws of Groovity

By Keith Hannaleck

Artist: Patrick Yandall
Title: Laws of Groovity
Genre: Instrumental Jazz
Label: Zangi Records
MySpace Link
Purchase this CD: CD Baby

Patrick Yandall just keeps setting the mark higher every time he walks into the studio. After a different recording session titled New York Blues, which actually focused on his blues playing (as the title suggests), he is back with the trademark smooth jazz peppered with rock and fusion licks.

Yandall can be razor sharp, tasteful, and subtle like Joe Pass or fiery and rockin’ fusion like Al Di Meola on Laws of Groovity-which are not very bad comparisons to make if I should say so myself. This is his seventh album and the fourth that I have covered.

Every time I hear a new album by this artist I want to say that this was the best yet, well at this point everything that I have heard is the best he can be at the time of the recording. That puts it all into proper focus for me. Yandall continues to evolve and take different paths like on “The New Sound,” which features some female vocals straight out of the nightclub mix genre with the familiar jazz notes sandwiched in between. He never lets his guard down and strives for something different for his listeners to sink their “ears” into. He remains steadfast and true to his muse by not veering too far off the norm or becoming too complex or heavy, the quiet storm approach is the status quo for him on this album. The title track is the man at his most funky and flavorful best. The intro bass lines set the pace (played by Yandall, he actually plays all the instruments and writes all the songs except tracks 1 & 8) and then the mood an atmosphere take the nod from that intro and the tracks develops from there.

I remember asking Patrick who his band was on the last release, and his reply was “me.” He is truly an amazing artist that has the knack for putting out excellent albums every year. I know if I get a package and open it up with a Patrick Yandall CD inside there is never a doubt I will not love what I am about to hear, and then proceed to listen to it at least five times before I sit down to write how I feel about it.

If you have not had the pleasure of the Patrick Yandall experience, it is time to check him out now. This collection of songs is superb. The two particular tracks I mentioned are exceptional and personal favorites but to be perfectly honest there is not a weak link on this entire album.

Reviewed - February 27, 2008

Tracks:

01. Always There
02. Laws of Groovity
03. It's Our Time
04. Viejo Amigo
05. Yearning for Your Love
06. Let's Flow
07. Your Satisfaction
08. Turn Down the Lights
09. Law St. Locals
10. Gaviotas
11. The New Sound
12. Madre

About the Author:

Keith Hannaleck, known as “MuzikMan” is a Journalist specializing in independent and major music reviews and the promotion of artists via the various media outlets flourishing online. He has worked closely with artists, management, publicity directors, and webmasters to provide some of the best and far-reaching coverage an artist could have. Focusing primarily on the internet as a medium for his work, Keith has been a pioneer in the industry changing the way a reviewer with his various talents are used by many artists, PR folks, and labels. He has provided strong and valuable work to labels, artists, and publicity people, writing reviews, press releases, and biographies and much more over the years, giving the people he works with the maximum amount of exposure through several top-notch websites that post his content on their sites.

Hannaleck built and maintained his own website in 1998 while networking and building his reputation through thousands of reviews and interviews, creating a special niche for himself. Through many years of dedication and hard work, he has reached a respected level of competence and knowledge that is frequently sought by the music industry today. Known for his speaking from the heart interpretations of music and being able to put it in layman’s terms for music fans, his work is found everywhere in cyberspace and in traditional print media, from press kits to quotes from reviews in magazine advertisements.