Richard X Bennett is a modernist pianist, composer, and filmmaker known for his soulful, genre-defying music, blending jazz, electronica, and raga influences. With six releases on Ubuntu Music and Ropeadope Records, he pairs his groove-driven sound with raw, ambient visuals in art films like WIREPARK — and on his album set for release November 15, “SCAVENGER”, he takes his sound to 11 — keep reading for my thoughts!
Originally conceived as an exploration of discarded sounds and materials, it evolved into a reflection on pain and resilience following Bennett’s pancreatic cancer diagnosis in November 2023. Created during his six-month chemotherapy treatment, SCAVENGER delves deep into themes of emotional power through its unique lens of audio-visual storytelling.
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The opener to “SCAVENGER”, “woven with gold”, is an experimental jazz track that experiments at every turn — and not divorced from Richard’s usual style of storytelling, the influences are from far and wide here; with a signature uptick in the mood from the very start of the track, the brasses play excellently with the pianos, and the mallet instruments make for an extra layer of pizzazz throughout the track, laying down a solid foundation to the track.
“All I Have Left Is My Words”, the sophomore track on “SCAVENGER”, quickens the pace a little bit, with elements of swing, turn tabling reminiscent of 90s hip-hop and boom bap, while blending it with the signature jazz and blues style of this album — and throughout the track, the vocal chops and the gritty vinyl textures of the recording add quite the earthy sound to the track. As the energy builds up with the percussion, there’s a pure class act, as all the elements come together with a charm undeniable. The sections in the track take care of the energy balance quite nicely, all amidst Richard’s endless experimentation with time signatures, making for a very poised, well-balanced listen.
As we journey on over the course of the “SCAVENGER” album, we encounter tracks like “Backgammon” that makes use of its powerful piano motifs and organic percussion sounds to drive the mix forward, “5fu” that brightens the sound up with its melodic writing and faster cadences, while still retaining the progressive experimentalism of the album, and there’s a live version of the alap from the Indian classical raga “Dhanashree” — all executed to perfection, and even solidly more within the reach of the album’s tone.
We bid adieu to the album with “Separation” (quite the apt title, I’d say), a number that’s rich on the atmosphere and the velvety carpet of sound that “SCAVENGER” has gotten us quite used to at this point — but that’s not to say, at all, that it gets mundane. Quite the opposite, I must say — as the album progresses from start to finish, the sound grows upon you, encumbers you as you’re left hankering for the repeat.
All in all, “SCAVENGER” — a number that’s sure to charm you, and with its unique visual presentations, take you into another realm altogether. The album drops November 15!
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