Miles Mosley - Uprising (Verve Records Vinyl LP)

Miles Mosley - Uprising | Vinyl LP - 2017 Verve Records (B0026700-01)

Miles Mosley was named after Miles Davis, grew up in Hollywood, studied bass at the Colburn School and UCLA, and trained under three of the instrument's most respected players: John Clayton, Ray Brown and Al McKibbon. By the time the West Coast Get Down locked themselves in a Los Angeles studio for a 30-day recording marathon in 2012, Mosley was the collective's bassist and the anchor of every session. That marathon produced over 170 tracks. Kamasi Washington's The Epic came out of it in 2015. Cameron Graves's Planetary Prince, Ryan Porter's The Optimist and Brandon Coleman's Resistance followed. Mosley's Uprising completed the set, released on Verve Records in 2017 after an initial independent pressing on World Galaxy Records.

What distinguishes Mosley from the rest of the Get Down's solo output is the upright bass itself. He plays a 250-year-old instrument he calls "Big Mama" and runs it through effects pedals and distortion, treating it the way a rock guitarist treats an electric guitar while keeping the physical discipline of a classical player. "Young Lion" opens the album with the bass distorted and pushed forward in the mix. "Abraham," the breakout single, brings Washington's saxophone over a driving groove. "L.A. Won't Bring You Down" strips back to something closer to soul. The album moves between these modes constantly, with the full West Coast Get Down lineup, the same personnel who played on The Epic, working as the engine underneath. Mastered at Capitol Studios. This is the 2017 Verve Records pressing (B0026700-01).