Shabaka – Perceive Its Beauty, Acknowledge Its Grace

Shabaka Hutchings, or Shabaka, has released a jazz/new-age record titled Perceive Its Beauty, Acknowledge Its Grace. Collaborating with a sizeable team of artists including André 3000, Shabaka has managed to create a deeply personal and experience-oriented project. The end product is something with a unique listening experience.

There are a lot of themes and concepts on this album that could easily be executed in a way where they come off as either too shocking or not shocking enough. Shabaka seems to find that middle ground.

There are plenty of moments to look out for on this record. The sixth track, “Body to Inhabit”, where rapper and producer ELUCID delivers very intense, spiritual, and poetic vocals, packed with energy. “Face behind this mask, behind this face” is a repeated mantra throughout the track, leaving room for the listener’s interpretation. In the fourth track, “Managing My Breath, What Fear Had Become”,Saul Williams does an incredibly gentle and calm spoken word delivery, which pairs wonderfully with Shabaka on the flute and Charles Overton on the harp.

Track nine, “Breathing”, features Shabaka’s first and only saxophone implementation, which was a very pleasant surprise considering his announced saxophone hiatus in Early 2023. Although a short-lived and brief aspect of the song; it’s a burst of energy that adds to the overall merit of the project.

Instrumental tracks such as, “End of Innocence”, “As the Planets and the Stars Collapse”, and “The Wounded Need to Be Replenished”, carry an energy that felt highly reflective of the styles of improvisation and music composition implemented by Shabaka and other collaborators; to play as if it’s the beginning of the outro. This allows for immense notes of curiosity/exploration. Considering Shabaka’s intent for this album as well, which was to create “liminal spaces” or an experience of “suspended animation”, these tracks hit that mark well.

There aren’t necessarily any grand moments on this record, but rather the subtle “explorations” from everyone on this do create an experience of “suspended animation”, which was new and insightful.

Arguably one of the most prevalent themes on this album is spiritual and personal growth. Spoken word lyrics like “A full eclipse right beside me. And I am unafraid. Which would mean nothing if for what fear had become.” on track four, “Managing My Breath, What Fear Had Become”, or “For I am still your song of unity, and I am on the horizon of that far look in your eye.” on the eleventh and final track, “Song of the Motherland” are perfect examples of this.

Rating/Excellent: Shabaka and everyone else behind this project demonstrates an obvious rawness, realness, and a fervent passion for what they do. Hearing this deeply pure and personal record was refreshing, and insightful, and brings me much excitement towards the progression of the modern new-age genre, along with Shabaka’s future ventures.

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