Charlie Hunter Trio

Thumping bass and ethereal guitar grace emit from Charlie Hunter’s custom seven- and eight-string axes. The Rhode Island-born Bay Area dweller rose to prominence in the Nineties when his eponymous trio translated blues angst and funk tension into contemporary acid jazz. Later, the guitarist’s patented polyrhythmic riffs helped define contemporary neo-soul on tracks by D’Angelo, Norah Jones, and Frank Ocean. – Jeremy Steinberger