Miles Bennett is carving out a bold new era in jazz fusion with his groundbreaking album Soundscape Journey, released in August 2024. Known for his fearless approach to music, Bennett blends intricate jazz harmonies with unexpected elements of electronica, world music, and funk. With this release, he sets out to redefine the very boundaries of the genre, offering listeners a unique, immersive auditory experience.
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Hailing from Chicago, the birthplace of jazz, Bennett’s musical roots run deep. Yet, his path to innovation was far from conventional.
Chicago, often regarded as one of the heartlands of jazz, provided a natural backdrop for Miles Bennett’s early development as a musician. Surrounded by jazz legends, Bennett’s connection to the genre was inevitable. However, his artistic journey took an unconventional twist. While most of his contemporaries adhered to traditional jazz structures, Bennett began incorporating electronic music and global influences into his compositions, challenging the status quo.
“My goal has always been to stretch the limits of what jazz can be,” Bennett explains. “It’s about pushing boundaries, experimenting with textures, and allowing my influences from different genres to come together organically.”
With Soundscape Journey, Bennett does just that, blending complex jazz harmonies with electronic sounds and world rhythms, creating a diverse, intricate landscape of sound. Tracks like “Echoes of the Past” combine the smooth, soulful melodies of Bennett’s saxophone with deep electronic basslines, while “Rhythmic Horizons” ventures into funk territory with its groovy basslines and syncopated beats. Each track presents a new sonic frontier, inviting listeners to journey through unexplored territory.
The standout track, “Cosmic Flow,” exemplifies Bennett’s fearless approach to genre fusion. The piece features the rich tones of the sitar, the rhythmic pulse of the djembe, and the groovy syncopation of jazz, merging world music with futuristic electronics. The result is a hypnotic and expansive soundscape that feels both ancient and futuristic at once.
“I wanted to create something that transcends genres,” Bennett says, reflecting on the album’s ambitious scope. “Jazz is about exploration, and I want to take people on a journey through sound, a place where no genre is off-limits.”
Bennett’s pursuit of sonic diversity is what has consistently set him apart from his peers. His refusal to be confined by traditional genre labels and his insistence on blending the past, present, and future has made him one of the most exciting innovators in jazz fusion today.