Holding It Down: The Veterans' Dreams Project

Holding It Down: The Veterans' Dreams Project
Studio album by Vijay Iyer & Mike Ladd
Released	September 24, 2013 (2013-09-24)
Recorded	June 21–22, 2012
Studio	The Bunker, Brooklyn, New York
Genre	Jazz
Length	70:04
Label	Pi Recordings
Producer	Vijay Iyer
Vijay Iyer chronology
Accelerando (2011) Holding It Down: The Veterans' Dreams Project (2013) Mutations (2014)

Holding It Down: The Veterans' Dreams Project is a collaborative studio album by American jazz pianist Vijay Iyer and American hip hop musician Mike Ladd. It was released on Pi Recordings in 2013.

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
All About Jazz	[1]
Financial Times	[2]
The Irish Times	[3]
JazzTimes	favorable [4]
Los Angeles Times	[5]
MusicOMH	[6]
PopMatters	[7]
Tom Hull	B+ [8]

Daniel Paton of MusicOMH gave the album 4.5 out of 5 stars, calling it "compelling and beautiful; troubling and moving in equal measure." ^[6] Mike Hobart of Financial Times gave the album 4 out of 5 stars, writing, "Each track is stalked by the fear, guilt and surrealism of the post-traumatic dreams that were culled from scores of interviews." ^[2]

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Here" (Mike, Cambridge)	Vijay Iyer Mike Ladd	3:07
2.	"Derelict Poetry" (Maurice, Brooklyn)	Maurice Decaul Iyer	4:15
3.	"Capacity" (Lynn, Bronx)	Lynn Hill Iyer	3:56
4.	"Walking with the Duppy" (Rashan, Queens)	Iyer Ladd	3:42
5.	"There Is a Man Slouching in the Stairway" (Maurice, Brooklyn)	Decaul Iyer	3:59
6.	"My Fire" (Brad, Chester)	Iyer Ladd	3:09
7.	"On Patrol" (Maurice, Brooklyn)	Decaul Iyer	4:53
8.	"Dream of an Ex-Ranger" (William, Newton)	Iyer Ladd	3:09
9.	"Name" (Lynn, Bronx)	Hill Iyer	3:37
10.	"Costume" (Mike, Cambridge)	Iyer Ladd	4:08
11.	"Tormented Star of Morning" (Maurice, Brooklyn)	Decaul Iyer	5:09
12.	"Patton" (Calvin, Massapequa)	Iyer Ladd	4:58
13.	"Shush" (Maurice, Brooklyn)	Decaul Iyer	4:06
14.	"REM Killer" (Kirk, Lexington)	Iyer Ladd	3:48
15.	"Requiem for an Insomniac" (Maurice, Brooklyn)	Decaul Iyer	5:14
16.	"Dreams in Color" (Lynn, Bronx)	Hill Iyer	2:39
17.	"Mess Hall" (Merrin, San Diego)	Ladd Pamela Z	6:15
Total length:			70:04

Personnel

Credits adapted from liner notes.

• Vijay Iyer – piano, electric piano, electronics, production, programming, liner notes
• Mike Ladd – vocals, analogue synthesizer, liner notes
• Maurice Decaul – vocals
• Lynn Hill – vocals
• Pamela Z – vocals
• Guillermo E. Brown – vocals, effects
• Liberty Ellman – guitar, mixing
• Okkyung Lee – cello
• Kassa Overall – drums

References

1. Corroto, Mark (October 31, 2013). "Vijay Iyer / Mike Ladd: Holding It Down: The Veterans' Dreams Project". All About Jazz . Retrieved January 13, 2020.
2. Hobart, Mike (October 25, 2013). "Vijay Iyer & Mike Ladd: Holding it Down: The Veterans Dreams Project". Financial Times . Retrieved January 13, 2020.
3. Larkin, Cormac (November 22, 2013). "Vijay Iyer & Mike Ladd: Holding it Down: The Veterans Dreams Project". The Irish Times . Retrieved January 13, 2020.
4. Beuttler, Bill (December 21, 2013). "Vijay Iyer & Mike Ladd: Holding It Down: The Veterans' Dreams Project". JazzTimes . Retrieved January 13, 2020.
5. Barton, Chris (September 10, 2013). "Review: 'Holding It Down' awakens us to veterans' dreams". Los Angeles Times . Retrieved January 13, 2020.
6. Paton, Daniel (September 30, 2013). "Vijay Iyer & Mike Ladd – Holding It Down: The Veterans' Dream Project". MusicOMH . Retrieved January 13, 2020.
7. Garratt, John (December 8, 2013). "Vijay Iyer & Mike Ladd: Holding It Down: The Veterans' Dreams Project". PopMatters . Retrieved January 13, 2020.
8. Hull, Tom. "Tom Hull: Grade List: Vijay Iyer". tomhull.com . Retrieved July 30, 2020.

External links

• Holding It Down: The Veterans' Dreams Project at Discogs