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Press Highlights
Acclaimed LA / New York bassist, producer and songwriter Joshua Crumbly joins Shahzad Ismaily’s figureight records for the release of beautiful new album ForEver
“ForEver is a letter to tomorrow,” Joshua tells us. His music embodies this sentiment with eloquent gravitas. It is certainly as personal as a letter, handcrafted in the most expressive and affecting ways. Like a letter, it speaks not only of its own words, but of the writer, a soul baring important truths. And it is addressed to “tomorrow”; a sense of hope and conviction illuminate its gentle musical miniatures. “ForEver is a reflection on love, legacy and happenings in the world. A warm hug in inner space.”
Though centred about the bass guitar - Joshua is a sought after bassist whose credits include albums for Blue Note, recording dates with Bob Dylan, and performances with Kamasi Washington - ForEver uses additional instrumentation with subtlety and grace. Key track “THREE” grooves on a balmy percussive rhythm while a jazz-tinged synth melody loops and coils about the repeated bassline. The rolling, free drums of “Higher” offer a chaotic counterpoint to the lilting serenity of its arpeggiated bass chords.
Interestingly, the record’s first vocal lines appear midway through the album (in “To Morrow”), a timely reminder that all of the elegance, power and fluency thus far has been achieved without a single lyric. Towards the end of the record, “Kolkata” is named after the birthplace of Joshua’s mother. Combinations of cultures - Joshua has an African-American father and a South Asian mother - is found in abundance in his music. “I think the sound of the album is flexible and doesn’t inherently lead to any one singular experience,” he writes. “ForEver can be the leaves of a tree in the wind far off in the distance, or the vast sea that you’ve dipped your feet into whilst taking in the infinite, finding your own reflection.”
Joshua made his musical debut aged 10, playing alongside his saxophonist father. A gifted performer, even as a pre-teen, he enjoyed mentorships with renowned bass players Reggie Hamilton (Whitney Houston, Seal) and Al McKibbon (Charlie Parker, Coleman Hawkins) before moving from LA to New York to attend the prestigious Juilliard music school. After years of honing his musicality alongside seminal players, Joshua finally embarked on recording his own solo pieces, beginning with 2020’s Rise album. The starting place of ForEver quickly followed, beginning with encouraging words from friend and collaborator Shahzad Ismaily. “ForEver began with an out of the blue call from Shahzad. He told me that I needed to record a solo bass album. It started out as such, then I added some other instruments. It branched out even further when I reached out to a few friends, whose voice I was strongly hearing on particular songs. I’m grateful they were down to be a part of the record.”
figureight records is a creative project led by Shahzad Ismaily. The label has to date released records by múm founding member Gyda Valtysdottir, NYC super-producer Randall Dunn, Jon Hopkins and Brian Eno collaborator Leo Abrahams, Spotify chart-topping indie artist Toth and several more.