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Black Classical Music is drummer Yussef Dayes‘ debut solo studio album, but he is not a rookie by any stretch. Should you search his name across streaming platforms and the like, you’ll see a short live album recorded with friends out in Joshua Tree. Search a little further, though, and you’ll find that he has been a major player in London’s jazz scene for a while, including his collaboration with keyboardist Kamaal Williams – naming themselves Yussef Kamaal – and his appearance on Tom Misch‘s What Kinda Music.

So, by the time he sat down to record Black Classical Music, Dayes most likely had a clear idea of what he could do and where he wanted to go. And boy, does he go places. Armed with 19 tracks and using almost every square inch available on a compact disc, Black Classical Music takes the listener on a highly groovy and ultimately fulfilling ride through the peaks and valleys inside of Dayes’ musical brain. To say that every stone is overturned would be overselling it. Dayes doesn’t achieve everything, but there are still an impressive number of stones flipped over in the creation of this album. Pop Matters