Floating Point

about this album

❖ John McLaughlin -- Floating Point ❖ John McLaughlin's greatest strength, other than being the quickest ever electric guitarist in jazz, has been the ability to reinvent himself. With Floating Point, he has vastly improved the concept he originally fomented on the CD Industrial Zen, where he used a variety of different groupings. This ensemble has a relatively finite lineup, modified from the previous combo in that they play to McLaughlin's strong willed ideal of fusing his guitar synthesizer to a more contemporary sound. Where Industrial Zen was more about jamming, the band here is focused and cohesive, playing deft melodies and busy, rhythmic funk that allows the music to breathe considerably deeper. McLaughlin's impressive core sidemen include the formidable electric bass guitarist Hadrien Feraud who is retained from the prior band, and drummer Ranjit Barot. They are active players whose concentrated styles and techniques fit well with the naturally fleet guitar work of McLaughlin. What makes this recording listenable over time is the consistency of the music while avoiding being homogeneous. Raju has that distinctive McLaughlin signature quality, with blurring unison lines and an Eastern Indian flavor so important to the spirit of the guitarist. The darting and dancing melody of Off the One is also pure McLaughlin, as stated over the years. He has forged bonds of steel with this band via the busy drumming of Barot to match the pronounced zig-zag patterns, and a

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more from John McLaughlin

Extrapolation

Electric Guitarist

Industrial Zen

Devotion

The Promise

The Essential John McLaughlin