For a fusion jazz trio inhabiting the Supreme’d and Stussied costumes of normal early 20-somethings, BadBadNotGood boast extraordinary talent. Beyond preternaturally refined chops, they have a patience that affords their songs a natural ebb and flow — the same one mastered by their smoked-out and sedated forebears. The time signatures on “Velvet” alternate between the patience of Octagenarians waiting for life to expire and the energy of young kids awash in the headrush of creativity. These”Riders On the Storm” keys and those drums that just glide and swing. It is funky and relaxing and beautiful — the sort of thing you expected was permanently out of vogue. Maybe it still is and that’s what makes them the rare modern non-conformists that your great-grandfather might admire. Salute these men, some of the few allowed to drape themselves in velvet, whether it is or isn’t socially acceptable.
