An Album a Day #2026-33

One thing growing up in the church teaches you is the power of repetition. That power has two sides to it. On the one hand, it grounds you. Knowing what to expect and when to expect it offers consolation in a chaotic world. But there’s a darker side, too. Repetition dulls the axe of reason, wearing it down until it’s incapable of cutting through all but the weakest of arguments.

Gospel Music, the new album from vibraphonist Joel Ross, puts repetition front and center. There is a lot to like about the record. Not least of all the recording quality, which is astounding. Everything is crystal clear. The mix is divine. The playing is top-notch, too, with Ross leading an immaculately tight sextet comprised, besides himself, of:

• Josh Johnson - alto saxophone
• Maria Grand - tenor saxophone
• Jeremy Corren - piano
• Kanoa Mendenhall - bass
• Jeremy Dutton - drums

The group works well together. Such a large ensemble risks cacophony, but Ross shepherds them expertly through tasteful arrangements.

Where Gospel Music stumbles, though, is in its overbearing repetition. The dynamics are fairly flat, and the compositions rely heavily on repeated motifs. From one song to the next, the sameness wore on me.

The album is described as following “the arc of the grand biblical story”,¹ from which one would expect a more pronounced sense of narrative progression. But the songs tunes tend to blur together into a homogeneous mass with little emotional topography.

A couple of tunes manage to stand out. “Protoevangelium” offers a peaceful, meditative vibe with some exceptional textures. Ross’s vibraphone gets borderline fiery on “Hostile.” And on the more traditionally gospel “The Giver,” Andy Louis brings a compelling vocal performance to lyrics inspired by a James Baldwin poem.²

Like my own experience with the church, Gospel Music has its moments. But in the end, it fails to offer the depth and variety of experience that I know is possible.

Listen

What is “An Album a Day”?

Each day in 2026, I’m listening to an album that:

1. I’ve never heard before
2. Was released in the last six months (from the time of listening)