Though
Antonio Sanchez
is best known as a jazz drummer, composer, and producer, those roles merely hint at the depths of his creative vision. In 2017,
Sanchez
released the solo
Bad Hombre
. Titled after a racially derogatory remark made by
Donald Trump
during the 2016 presidential campaign, the set offered intense sociopolitical critique. It was fueled by an individually developed approach to electronica while exploring various ways to play, record, and produce drums. The set earned a Grammy nomination in 2018. Five years and several releases later,
Shift (Bad Hombre, Vol. 2)
showcases
as a drummer and producer, but also as a conceptualist and multi-instrumentalist, in a series of cross-cultural collaborations with a dazzling, star-studded cast. His concept features drums and voices as equals as a grand experiment in texture, yet he also plays guitars, basses, synth, oud, ukulele, and mandolin. The guest list includes his 97-year-old grandfather, Mexican actor
Ignacio Lopez Tarso
,
Dave Matthews
and
Pat Metheny
Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross
Ana Tijoux
Lila Downs
Meshell Ndegeocello
Rodrigo y Gabriela
Silvana Estrada
Becca Stevens
, Portugal's
Maro
Kimbra
, and Croatian-American vocalist
Thana Alexa
, among others.
Shift
was mostly recorded remotely during the pandemic.
took advantage of quarantine to enlist his busy collaborators. As on the first volume,
Tarso
, his nonagenarian grandfather, bookends the set with spoken word above intensely layered sound collages combining mariachi, processional, and sporting event music. Former boss
and songwriter
participate in a futuristic read of the latter's "Eh Hee" (here retitled "2.0") joining clattering beats, zigzagging synths, samplers, and distortion.
Matthews
' chanting and singing engage both
's freaky basslines and
Metheny
's squalling polytonal guitar. Single "Mi Palabra" weds a slow, rubbery hip-hop beat with
Tijoux
's silvery, polyrhythmic rapping, as horns, ambient sounds, and synth bass frame her nocturnal delivery. "The Bucket" features Brooklyn-based vocalist/songwriter
, whose ethereal singing contrasts with and accents
's cascading layers of drums, cymbals, piano, and reverb in what amounts to a cinematic hymn. He plays all instruments but synth on "I Think We're Past That Now," which is played by
Ross
with lyrics and vocals from
Reznor
. With additional mixing from
Alan Moulder
, it sounds like a deeply paranoid, unissued
NiN
track. "Risa de Mujer," with
Downs
, has slow, tribal drumming and moody synths that accentuate her entrancing, resonant vocal. "Comet, Come to Me" offers a new take on the title track to
Ndegeocello
's 14th album, wedding dub basslines, Latin and Caribbean rhythms, and noir-ish funk under her dreamy, poignant vocal. "M-Power," with
, stitches progressive and Latin rock, jazz fusion, and neo-classical with
's jagged electronica and triple-timed beats in a sonic tour de force. Ultimately, there is nothing remotely substandard among these 16 cuts. Material, performances, and production are all inspired, making
one of the most compelling, varied, and virtually unclassifiable releases to emerge thus far in 2022. ~ Thom Jurek