Didja Feel The Music of…Cory J. Wong and Foreign Motion

When is separate not apart? When it’s a skill that is acquired and added to another acquired skill and another, etc. so that the result is so much more than any single piece of the whole. In this case, the separate but acquired skills of rock guitar and jazz guitar and funk and folk and blues guitar, and even Afro-Peruvian have been brought together by one super-dynamic guitarist, Cory J. Wong. 

Mr. Wong seems intent on combining things that are good separately but absolutely stellar when united. For example, along with being a really fine musician, he is a music director, producer, film scorer, and co-founder of Secret Stash Records who enjoys a rather quiet renown in the U.S. and more high-profile fame on the South American continent. These are all great accomplishments that add up to one multifaceted being.

Now comes the combination I can’t wait to share with you, or actually, the combo. Cory Wong has joined with three musicians of diverse musical and national backgrounds to form a vibrant and exciting quartet called Foreign Motion.  I was recently introduced to this group and listening to them I immediately felt their energy and exploration. The fusion of styles is complex and yet fully realized. I move to their grooves and wonder at the subtle melodies that are never lost in their creativity.

The other young musicians in this improvisational jazz collective are: Bassist Yohannes Tona from Ethiopia, drummer Petar Janjic who was born in Serbia, and Kevin Gastonguay, from Minnesota. Cory was born in New York. Now all these personalities, talents and cultures meld with their multiple styles and original compositions and we are all treated to a totally solid musical amalgamation.  

Get a feel for what I mean as you listen to one of the great tracks from their CD, Foreign Motion In Flight. This is, “Pass the Plate”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sitP1c2Exow