Composer and multi-instrumentalist Joseph Shabason is well known for his longtime membership in Destroyer and DIANA. Shabason also keeps himself busy producing, playing and recording with several other bands, mainly lending his talent on the sax and flute. This year will see him release his debut album, Aytche, an effort inspired and following the work of artists like Pat Metheny who recorded Steve Reich’s Electric Counterpoint, and John Hassell’s collaboration with Terry Riley and Brian Eno.
Marrying minimalism and jazz, on Aytche, and as the press release describes, “Shabason builds a bridge off of the precipice his forbears established, skirting jazz, ambient, and even new age with the same deliberate genre-ambiguity that made their work so interesting.”
Shabason explains his approach to the sax on the album:

“So much sax music is about chops, and being able to solo really fast. I feel like robbing the sax of the ability to shred by effecting it and turning it into a dense chordal instrument really helps the instrument become something that it’s not usually known for.”

The album’s gentle title track is the first single to emerge and you can stream it below.

Aytche is out on August 25th via Western Vinyl.