Nick Campbell (Destroys) is an L.A. Child with a noble and not-so-easy calling in life that he's undertaken with the help of his immense bass-playing skills. He's out to Reinvent the Jazz genre for his Generation, and we think he might be doing just that.Nick’s unique penchant for superimposing triadic patterns over static harmony has brought a modern twist to “getting modal,” creating a distinctive yet eccentric sound of his own.

If you end up hearing a profound reminder of Frank Zappa And The Mothers of Invention out of your speakers/Headphones today, then rest assured that your ears be sharp; and if you also hear a bit of Nine Inch Nails, Vulfpeck and Mononeon in there, then you'll be sure you've found yourself in a lucky little spot with this artist.

Mirroring the musical inclusivity of his work, Nick has taken the stage with music artists of all genres. From traditional jazz bands to pop music sensations, he can be seen performing with Pomplamoose, Scary Pockets, Charlie Puth, Vulfpeck, Meghan Trainor, Raquel Rodriguez, Nigel Hall, Josh Smith, Kirk Fletcher, Michael Mayo and Moonchild (to name a few) and composing original music with bands such as Shrek Is Love and Bear Attack.

The name "Nick Campbell" you can figure out yourself, but the "Destroys" part harkens back to the ethos of his work, he "destroys" to make anew, to crumble what it's there and built something up, and "Art" is that in its entirety, and today we're taking a look at it.

"Welcome To Art"

"Eclectic" falls short of fully describing what's in store for you in this album, and believe me that "Welcome to art" is plenty eclectic because I could spend the entire article just picking it to pieces, every little note and weird whirring sound for what I think it might be, but that would be pedantic and robbing you of the wonderful discovery of this exuberant layered candy of a track.

"Drinking Gin At Arby's"

Get ready for a whole host of funny and slightly elongated song titles, this is the first one and it's going to be one hell of a fun ride. On his way to convince us to reinvent Jazz for this generation, NCD came up with some extremely fun tracks that really also push the boundaries of what Jazz is, incorporating healthy doses of rock, funk, pop, and a lot more. "Drinking Gin At Arby's" is kind of a party track and there's not a whole lot else to discern lyrically speaking because the Invite to join NCD for a couple of beers and shots is quite straightforward; what isn't straightforward, however, is how we'll get there.

Nick's music is extremely rich and sinuous. Never do you feel like you end up "getting" him or predicting his next move, and 'Gin at Arby's' definitely makes that very clear.

"Sunday"

Far funkier than before "Sunday" is the track that fully sold me on to this amazing album. "Sunday" is hot and lazy, just like a midday Sunday sun bearing down on you. The sultry grove is one thing, but the vocals by Theo Katzman really elevate the whole thing to being one of the mightiest tracks in the entire album. No wonder Nick released this single out onto the world to let us know that this album was on its way. It is quite simply a flawless, joyful thing.

"Fancy Jeans"

Did someone say funk it up? I swear someone did and it might have been me, and it looks like Nick is delivering, because "Fancy Jeans" really does give "Sunday's" glow a run for its money right away. It's got more fun, more energy, and more funk. This song is borderline euphoria-inducing,

"Your Kisses Taste Like Jazz"

Featuring the vocals of Raquel Rodriguez. "Your Kisses Taste Like Jazz" starts out like this heavenly or even cosmic R&B ballad. A kind of less hyper and more down to venus-&-Mars sensual playing field, held up by some absolutely amazing drums.

The album so far has been amazing, yes, but "Your Kisses Taste Like Jazz" had me audibly sighing and hollering from sheer joy. On musicianship alone, this song is like John Coltrane's "Cosmic Music" directly shot full of acid-washed prog-rock.

No doubt my favorite track in the entire album.

"Life Is Full Of Disappointment"

But this album isn't one of them for sure. There's not much one can say about this piece, as it is basically a violin interlude to the album. Though it is quite beautiful in and of itself, following a track so powerful as the previous is pretty much impossible, so there can only be a transition like this one between that and the rest of the album.

"My Mother is on the Fleek Again"

Even if you've learned to expect the unexpected with this album, this song'll catch you unaware as it did me. The last place where I expected to hear a dembow-like beat was here, in "Art", but I agree to let Nick guide me into the depths of his creativity when I hit play, and here I find myself not caring what "Fleek" is or why his Mother is "on" it again as I bob my head up and down to this supremely amusing and infectious piece of music.

"Tribal Violence is my Love Language"

This song was almost heralded by track number 5, but its commitment to Jazz-rock is far stronger this time. At around the 1:49 mark, "Tribal Violence is my Love Language" reaches its apex in the form of a gumshoe thriller bridge where drums, keys, and horns all come together in a nice big melting pot of contemporary New-age Jazz modes and slight dashes of afrobeat to make something that truly does seem to fulfill Nicks intent of redefining the genre for today.

"How to Find peace In a Love with No future"

There's something so immediately beautiful about this track's name that I think somehow makes it impossible not to love it right away. It wouldn't really be a reinvention of the genre if not for the inclusion of the slow, waltzy Jazz ballad. This one reminds me once again of my John Coltrane but thanks to the freshness of the vocalizations it also unapologetically evokes the sea breeze of Bossa Nova.

3/4 of the track in and things begin to slowly float on and away, you feel like you're no longer listening to just jazz, but to guided meditation, and your consciousness is being taken for a nice (but fearsome) tour of the solar system that really leaves your soul with a soothing warmth about it.

"The End?"

Obviously not. Or at least I hope so, because I am left wanting for a lot more of Nick Campbell's hectic potions. "The End?" joyfully shakes you out of the placid trance that the previous song so gracefully puts you in to shake your hand and roll the album's credits right before you with a true funky goodbye.

If you're familiar with the vaporwave subgenre of Future-Funk. You'll recognize bits and pieces of it all up and down this track, only that in his quest, Nick Campbell destroys managed to complete the subgenre out of its Japanese City-pop origins and back into its western roots, making for a very strong final statement for what has been a relentlessly fascinating and enthralling album.

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Having heard "Sunday" previously, I did expect "Art" to be quite good, but one can hardly ever expect to have one's expectations surpassed to the point of being mind-blown. Now, do I believe Nick Campbell Destroys has succeeded in "redefining the Jazz Genre for this Generation?". To be perfectly honest, not quite yet, but he's definitely very close, perhaps more so than anyone today, and even if such a lofty goal wasn't his, one would still have to bow their heads in respect for his musicianship and the sheer golden-touched quality of his work.

"Art" is Art, and it's *hella* good, It’s got me invigorated for this weekend.

Nick Campbell Destroys and reforms "Art"

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