On his newest outing ‘Blurry Face’, Ari Joshua teams up with two of the most influential figures in groove-driven improvisational music, meeting them on their turf, unfiltered and fully in the moment. Captured live in a single take at Applehead Studios, the track feels like catching lightning mid-bolt. It’s groove-heavy telepathy, spoken in a dialect of distorted guitar, warped keys, and loose-limbed rhythm.
John Medeski’s clavinet snaps, snarls, and dances with the kind of mischief only he can conjure. His organ lines swirl and shimmer like heat off pavement, colouring the track with psychedelic depth. At the centre of the storm, Billy Martin’s looped beat (a repurposed gem from his ‘Loops from the Underground’ collection) grounds the track with earthy precision and just the right amount of unpredictability. His drum work here reshaping the terrain in real time.
Joshua, meanwhile, steers his fuzz-drenched guitar through this heady mix like a cosmic spelunker; searching, responding, pushing. His tone is chewy and rich, full of attitude but never overpowering. What stands out most is how his playing manages to create space. He’s not just jamming with Medeski and Martin; he’s in dialogue because of them. Every bend, every flare-up of sustain, feels like a continuation of a thought.
And that’s what makes ‘Blurry Face’ work. It’s not about perfection, it’s about trust. Trust in the loop, trust in the moment, and trust in each other. There are no overdubs, no studio tricks. Just three master musicians following instinct wherever it dares to lead.
This isn’t just one for the jazz heads or the psych-funk faithful, it’s a snapshot of what can happen when boundaries are ignored and curiosity is in charge. As a teaser for what’s to come from this collaborative trio, ‘Blurry Face’ promises that we’re only seeing the beginning of the conversation. Whatever follows, this moment of spontaneous alchemy is already gold.
