"If told about a band that consisted of only keyboards and drums, one wouldn’t be faulted for thinking, “Where’s the rest of the group?” But one listen to Amendola Vs. Blades, the funky California duo of Wil Blades on Hammond organ and clavinet and Scott Amendola behind the kit, and all fears will be assuaged. Blades’s cutting solos and deep bass lines make for a thick stew of soulful harmony and daring improvisation. And Amendola’s beats are simply unstoppable, simultaneously pushing the duo to heights unknown and sending the listener into a joyful trance. But, in a move away from their debut album, ‘Greatest Hits,’ the new album from Amendola Vs. Blades is bursting not only with creativity, but with personnel. ‘Everybody Wins’ features only three tracks that are exclusively duo. The rest of the album sees contributions from guitarist Jeff Parker (Tortoise), saxophonist Skerik (Les Claypool, Garage A Trois), percussionist Cyro Baptista (Herbie Hancock, Trey Anastasio), and keyboardist Rob Burger (Tin Hat Trio, Laurie Anderson). Unsurprisingly, the music is as outsized as the roster of guest musicians. Moving between any number of styles and moods, ‘Everybody Wins’ is sure to expand minds and preconceptions.

The guests, of course, didn’t find themselves in the studio by chance. Amendola, for instance, partners with Baptista in the Nels Cline Singers, headed up by Wilco guitarist Nels Cline. And Parker appears on Blades’s 2014 album ‘Field Notes,’ also released by independent record label, Royal Potato Family. These musicians have more than just shared experiences in common; the additional players are coming from the same free-flowing arena that Amendola and Blades operate in.

The opening “Hi-Lo” is a thrilling, dark-hued funk piece with some odd-meter progginess thrown in. “’Fess Up (Before Ya Mess Up)” is a New Orleans groove paying tribute to NOLA piano great Professor Longhair. “Wall Town” is a laid-back but purposeful latin-jazz number featuring some shimmery soloing from Parker. And “Hambela” works with a boogaloo groove recalling Lou Donaldson’s Blue Note LPs from the late ’60s. But the standout track might be the epic “Metropolian Hustle,” which begins in an experimental vein before moving into jittery jazz and psychedelic dub. The song has a special emphasis on collectivity.

More than just a confluence of friends and influences, ‘Everybody Wins’ is a celebration of Blades and Amendola’s decade-plus adventure together. The musicians first united in 2006 to perform the Duke Ellington album ‘Far East Suite’ and the ball hasn’t stopped rolling since. There is no end in sight for the organ and drums duo who sound considerably greater than the sum of their parts. "