Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Brad Shepik: Hard Believer

Brad Shepik: Hard Believer

By Dan McClenaghan
March 3, 2025
View read count

The first burst of noise from a recording can be telling, predictive of what will come. The Believers' Hard Believer title tune says as much. A guitar, bass and drums group, the music comes to life with some resonant metallic chords. The drums and bass push their weight around. It is assertive music laid down with a gentle and intricate touch. This "Hard Believer" is an introspective entity.

Guitarist

Brad Shepik

guitar

" data-original-title="" title="">Brad Shepik, bassist

Sam Minaie

bass

" data-original-title="" title="">Sam Minaie and drummer

John Hadfield

drums

" data-original-title="" title="">John Hadfield are the Believers. Their "Broken English" finds Shepik soaring over a clamorous ground-bound bass-drums fistfight, and "In the Weeds" gives off a country vibe with Shepik going off-roading on his guitar.

The influences are the music of South Indian and Balkan grooves, traditional Armenian folk songs and Middle Eastern shadings. These are mixed into a brew of hard rock, jazz and

Frank Zappa

guitar, electric
1940 - 1993

" data-original-title="" title="">Frank Zappa-like noodlings,

Compositional contributions are shared. Shepik wrote and contributed four tunes; Hadfield and Minaie each brought in one and

Steve Swallow

bass
b.1940

" data-original-title="" title="">Steve Swallow's "Falling Grace" is also covered. "Ranglin'" is a nod to Jamaican guitarist

Ernest Ranglin

guitar
b.1932

" data-original-title="" title="">Ernest Ranglin. Shepik and company give it a spicy island mood with a laid-back rhythm acting as a cushioning for Shepik's serrated steely guitar. Swaying palm trees and steel drums come to mind..

The weave of sound in this relatively simple configuration is tightly textured in the Shepik-Minaie-Hadfield triangle. Sometimes a good guitar trio diving deep into the music with passion and grit is what the ears crave and the world needs. With, at this writing, as an American coup unfolds, the Believers who believe in the music are good medicine.

Learn more about our star rating system

Track Listing

Hard Believer; Broken English; In the Weeds; Corduroy; Falling Grace; Ranglin; Pilgrimage; Rocinante.

Personnel

Brad Shepik

guitar

Sam Minaie

bass

John Hadfield

drums

Album information

Title: Hard Believer | Year Released: 2025 | Record Label: Shifting Paradigm Records

PREVIOUS / NEXT

Tyshawn Sorey and Sandbox Percussion...
< Previous

Away Towards the Light
Next >

Support All About Jazz

All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.