“Comparisons to Herbie Hancock’s Mwandishi band from the 1970s are purposeful and warranted.”
— Britt Robson, JazzTimes Magazine
“The Future Is JoVia Armstrong”
— John Murph, Downbeat Magazine
August 2022
“…the entire album has the humid magnetism of a weather pattern…”
— Jon Pareles, The New York Times
August 2022
“From the album artwork to the various rhythms swallowing up the energetic aura, it all comes together and unites the body, the soul, and the mind, providing relaxation that comes with a bit of disruption. It is what is needed amidst so much change. It is the antidote to our pain, an energetic release.”
— Jasmine Ivanna Espy, I Care if You Listen
July 2022
The Antidote Suite showcases Armstrong’s superb command of her instrument, inventive writing and confident leadership. It is brief yet poignant, diverse yet cohesive, a strong first statement from a young musician with a bright future.
—Hrayr Attarian
“JoVia Armstrong is a "new" voice that deserves a lot of attention. Until an up-and-coming organizer takes her to the kingdom, and guaranteed afterwards too, "The Antidote Suite" is recommended.”
— Thor Hammerø, Nettavisen
July 2022
“The Antidote Suite is a mysterious, lovely and thoroughly impressive debut leader statement.”
— Michael Toland, The Big Takeover
Bandcamp Artist of the Day, July 22, 2022
“Antidote Suite is an expansive, mostly instrumental work, a soundtrack to the moment when old delineations stop making sense, and intersectionality is less code than new reality—when, as Jason McDaniel’s liner notes say, “the collective consciousness of Black Music is more fluid…than ever before.”
— Piotr Orlov, Bandcamp Daily
NPR, All Songs Considered.
New Music Friday: The best releases out on July 15
While Alice Coltrane, Herbie Hancock, and Pauline Oliveros are cited as influences by Armstrong, Promises, the recent well-received collaboration between Floating Points and Pharoah Sanders, arguably serves as a better touchstone. In her music too, atmospheric electronics and ambient textures merge with jazz elements to generate a heady Afrofuturist swirl capable of inducing meditative altered states.
—Textura.org
2023
Press Release for “Inception”
— Ayanna Contreras
Inception unveils a roadmap to a brave new future.
—JaSupreme
It’s superbly done, winning me over despite initial doubts.
—The Wire
Meditative and expressive, Inception is a thrilling exhibition of Eunoia Society’s mesmerizing sympatico and dynamic jazz mentality.
—Alexa Peters
We often talk about Afrofuturism in science fiction, stories where white men and white societies are not the only actors and actresses. The music of JoVia Armstrong and her band Eunoia Society could easily serve as the aural backdrop for these stories.
—JEAN-CLAUDE VANTROYEN
“The result is a production that very much feels like a companion to The Antidote Suite as Armstrong crafts a heady blend of electric jazz fusion, atmospheric soundscapes, and hip-hop-informed rhythms.”
—Matt Collar
“JoVia Armstrong offers something unique- and tough”
“Indeed, Armstrong has once again taken freely from a number of sources in African-American music and put it all together into an exceptionally tasty gumbo.”
—Thor Hammerø