Articles by Dave Sumner
Threads Orchestra: Ranch
by Dave Sumner
Threads OrchestraRanchSelf Produced2012 There is a thriving UK jazz scene that is quickly being redefined by a new generation of jazz musicians, versed in traditional jazz forms, but in possession of an approach that's planted with both feet in the modern day.The Threads Orchestra has now demonstrated over the course of its first two releases that it is a vital part of that new generation.Whereas 2011's Threads was ...
read moreSunna Gunnlaugs: Keys For Traveling
by Dave Sumner
Pianist Sunna Gunnlaugs is back in the USA for a visit. Following on the heels of the critical success of 2011 release Long Pair Bond (Sunny Sky), Gunnlaugs will be touring from coast to coast beginning in Berkeley, California and hitting several cities along the way to a three-day grand finale in Virginia Beach, Virginia. She'll have the Long Pair Bond trio in tow, with Scott McLemore on drums and Þorgrimur Jonsson on bass.Originally from Iceland, Gunnlaugs attended ...
read moreLynne Arriale: Solo
by Dave Sumner
Following up on her strong quartet album Convergence (Motema, 2011), pianist Lynne Arriale returns with a solo recording--a risky venture for any artist. In an ensemble setting, a musician has collaborators with whom to work and exchange ideas before the record button is punched, and more importantly, while the session is on the move. In ensemble play, a musician's unformed ideas or sound can be made whole by the other musicians in the ensemble; this is a big reason why ...
read moreJosh Maxey: The Language of Sound and Spirit
by Dave Sumner
Josh MaxeyThe Language of Sound and SpiritSelf Produced2012Sometimes it's all about setting the tone.If done right, if the musician finds a way to indelibly stamp the album's vision in those brief opening moments, no matter what comes after, those notes are imprinted on the listener's ears. And if the music varies from opening note to last, the juxtaposition of the memory of the introductory sound and that which follows, potentially ...
read moreSan Francisco Latin Jazz Society: This
by Dave Sumner
The San Francisco Latin Jazz Society is standing all by its lonesome in a corner of the jazz room. Filling a largely ignored niche, SFLJS channels late sixties Latin jazz à la Gato Barbieri and fuses it with the rock-jazz fusion that rose to prominence in the seventies with bands like Mahavishnu Orchestra and the Love, Devotion, Surrender (Columbia, 1973) collaboration between guitarists Carlos Santana and John McLaughlin.On its previous release, Now What (Scott Brown Music, 2011), SFLJS ...
read moreWill Fisher: Portage
by Dave Sumner
Whereas some drummers lead the charge and others spur on the ensemble from behind, Will Fisher takes the approach of examining the landscape from above and letting his rhythms settle down into the seams between the notes of others. The opening The Great Karoo" puts this method on display right from word go. Guitarist Mikko Hilden leads with a catchy line that bassist Mike Downes matches step for step. Pianist Nancy Walker adds her voice to the mix, followed by ...
read moreTheo Bleckmann: Hello Earth! The Music of Kate Bush
by Dave Sumner
Theo BleckmannHello Earth! The Music Of Kate BushWinter & Winter2012The 1980s possessed an incongruous hope for the future against a backdrop of possible nuclear annihilation, as if in the darkest of times, society retreated to a naive state. This is a generalization that doesn't, obviously, represent the entire gamut of human experience, yet it was there all the same. The majority of singer and composer Kate Bush's music came from that decade, ...
read moreMotian Sickness: The Music of Paul Motian: For the Love of Sarah
by Dave Sumner
There is an edge-of-sleep quality to the recently departed Paul Motian's drumming, and to much of the music he recorded. It's a dreaminess that reflects the spark of subconscious creativity even as the body sits at rest. For the Love of Sarah is a tribute to Motian's music, and from the opening moments it's like stepping into the middle of a story about a dream.It would be difficult not to draw comparisons with another recent Motian tribute album ...
read morePiet Verbist: Zygomatik
by Dave Sumner
Piet VerbistZygomatikOrigin Records2012Zygomatik has the fiery groove of classic hard bop, but it's not that simple. There is a rock attitude to this album, and it's got a Motown sway. This is the kind of album that can be pointed to as a celebration of jazz and an album that will be liked by people for whom jazz really ain't their thing. It's an album with complex elements and modulating sounds, but ...
read moreAn Open Letter to Musicians: Lemme Hear It!
by Dave Sumner
This begins a series of posts intended to give artists, labels, and promoters some insight into how I use the internet to discover and purchase music and how that knowledge might be used to the benefit of the artists. I don't claim to be the prototypical music listener and buyer. I listen to, and buy, a whole lot of music. I spend uncountable hours on various web sites, including my own, shooting the breeze about what I've heard. ...
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