Inca Maya – Jason Warburg

If Matt Grondin and Michael Cansler were trying to make you think “Santana” by naming their project Inca Maya, it worked.  Better yet, though, the musical allusion fits.

That’s because Inca Maya – Grondin on lead vocals, guitar and songwriting, Cansler on drums and lyrics, and a substantial cast of supporting players on bass, keys, percussion, horns, background vocals and such – clearly take a page from Santana’s seamless melding of world rhythms and rock guitar, while adding fresh twists of their own. 

For one, on this recording Jacksonville, Florida’s Grondin, Cansler and studio bassist Stephen Andrews (replaced in the band’s current live lineup by Shane Platten) have developed a sort of Southern funk undercurrent to their style that’s clearly related to the work of regional luminaries like Col. Bruce Hampton and Derek Trucks.  For another, Grondin’s mercurial guitar work draws from influences as diverse as Carlos Santana, Michael Schenker and Duane Allman.

Opener “Where You Are” sets you up with an evocative East Indian motif before dropping the hammer with a thundering riff that plays like an adrenaline-fueled stepchild of Led Zep’s immortal “Kashmir.”  Clearly intent on keeping their audience on its toes, Inca follows this bravura opener with the churning, reggae-inflected funk of “Insomnia,” at least until Grondin erupts into another riveting solo.

The boys continue to mix and match tones and styles with “Destinado,” which manages to occupy the heretofore undiscovered intersection between the finger-snapping blue-eyed funk of Steely Dan and the guitar heroics of 70s arena rockers like UFO.  Um, and then he goes Sly Stone falsetto just before the chorus.  A touch of musical ADD here?  Maybe, but this track smokes.

“Let It Roll” is both one of the heaviest and one of most straight-up numbers on this disc, a full-bodied dose of heavy-bottomed Southern rock with a spiraling, frankly spectacular solo that had me thinking Stevie Ray Vaughan for a few seconds in the middle.  So naturally, the next cut is acoustic…

A trio of thumping blues-rockers (“Highway,” “Blink Of An Eye,” “Salvation”) and a couple of steady-builders (the slow-burning “No Tomorrow” and the gospel-blues closer “The Simple Things,”) round out the album, with the second-half highlight being a second dose of hip-swaying Steely funk in the guise of the joyous “Silver Linings.”  The odd track out here is “Ghosts,” which melds a contemporary jazz arrangement with a gospel chorus.  Not sure this one actually holds together, but it does have its moments.

Interesting “rock family tree” footnote: Grondin’s father is founding .38 Special drummer Jack Grondin and his mother was previously married to original Lynyrd Skynyrd frontman Ronnie Van Zant, so calling him Southern rock royalty would not be a stretch.  He’s obviously taken to the family business, even if he’s occupying a slightly different groove…

Overall, Inca Maya’s self-titled debut feels a bit uneven — the variety of styles gets dizzying after awhile and while Grondin gives his all at the mike, he doesn’t have a lot of vocal range — but the music is so strong and the playing so exuberant that the guys definitely won me over.  Inca Maya takes you for an exhilarating ride.

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