Album Review
Jim Witzel Quartet: Very Early (Remembering Bill Evans)
by Troy Dostert
While tributes to pianist Bill Evans have certainly not been in short supply over the years, he has unsurprisingly been given far more attention by pianists than from other instrumentalists. Efforts from guitarists have been particularly rare. There are some noteworthy exceptions: John McLaughlin took a stab at it in 1993 with Time Remembered (Verve) alongside three other guitarists, for example, and John Abercrombie worked with pianist Andy LaVerne on Timeline (Steeplechase, 2003) in an homage to Undercurrent (Blue Note, ...
Continue ReadingYoko Yates: Eternal Moments
by Jack Bowers
On her second album, Japanese-born, New York City-based pianist and composer Yoko Yates, ever the genial story-teller, presents ten of her elegant original compositions. Based on feelings and emotions she has experienced while living and working in and around the New York area, they encompass a wide range of phenomena--from outer space and a serpentine river to seasonal changes and even the penultimate day of a flower. Yates leads her quintet along an avenue whose bedrock is ...
Continue ReadingMarshall Crenshaw: From "The Hellhole"
by Doug Collette
In something of a reflection of its sardonic title, Marshall Crenshaw's From “The Hellhole" is not an album of all-new, never-before-recorded original material. It consists instead of revamped versions of recordings the Detroit native 'completed' for release in various forms in recent years (not the least of which is the now out-of-print #392: The EP Collection (Red River, 2015). Like the remix of Rare Earth's Motown hit “I Just Want to Celebrate," the details of the reworkings of ...
Continue ReadingJohn Taylor: Tramonto
by Neil Duggan
British pianist John Taylor (1942-2015) possessed a remarkable talent for eluding the global recognition his skills warranted. A former house pianist at London's Ronnie Scott's club, Taylor probably achieved his widest acclaim through Azimuth, the group he formed with vocalist Norma Winstone (his wife) and trumpeter Kenny Wheeler. His trio recordings with drummer Peter Erskine and bassist Palle Danielsson further cemented his reputation. Tramonto captures Taylor in another trio setting, this time collaborating with American musicians bassist Marc ...
Continue ReadingNatsuki Tamura / Satoko Fujii: Ki
by Dan McClenaghan
The sound of Ki is deeply steeped in deliberation, dignity and old-world stateliness. This, coming from the long-term team of trumpeter Natsuki Tamura and pianist Satoko Fujii, might surprise those who have followed the duo's trajectory over its quarter-century-plus existence. Fujii and Tamura stir up musical pots and pans in a startling array of styles. Most of the dishes they cook up are avant-garde--Fujii's boisterous big band stews, Tamura's truculent treks spiced with electricity and/or extended trumpet technique tom foolery ...
Continue ReadingDom Franks' Strayhorn: Duality Pt: 02
by Neil Duggan
Having whetted our appetite with Duality Pt: 01 (Self-Produced, 2024), saxophonist Dom Franks, together with his band StrayHorn, returns with Duality Pt: 02, revealing another side of the saxophonist's impressive range as a composer. Whilst the first release leaned into funky Hammond grooves inspired by Larry Goldings and Joey DeFrancesco, this follow-up moves in a different direction. This time the inspiration stems from the vibrant sounds of 1970s Brazilian jazz. Central to the project is Brazilian arranger Luiz ...
Continue ReadingTatsuya Yoshida / Martín Escalante: The Sound of Raspberry
by Mark Corroto
This LP may be the revelation of 2025--or a sonic ordeal, depending on your tolerance for noise and your grasp of history. Japanese drummer Tatsuya Yoshida and Mexican saxophonist Martín Escalante met at the perfect moment in December 2023 to record 14 tracks at Tokyo's Bar Aja. The result, The Sound of Raspberry, is the love child of punk rock and free jazz, fed through a grinder and pulverizer until nothing but raw nerve remains. The sound is head-spinning, in ...
Continue ReadingSean Vokes: Mundane Fascinations
by Anastasia Bogomolets
On his second release for his own indie label, Minor Third Records, pianist and composer Sean Vokes invites listeners into a deeply personal sonic world where everyday moments are transformed into vivid, emotionally charged musical snapshots. Mundane Fascinations is a collection of original compositions inspired by images, concepts or fleeting moments and developed with the same emotional precision a film composer might bring to a scene. Vokes shared that the album began with the song “Rain," which he ...
Continue ReadingDave Redmond: All In Motion
by Ian Patterson
There is not too much down time for your average hard-working musician. Between scuffling for gigs wherever and whenever they fall, studio sessions and the inevitable teaching bag, it is often a struggle to keep all the balls in the air. Irish bassist Dave Redmond has managed better than many since the turn of the millennium. A bass teacher at Dublin City University, Redmond is first-call bassist for Kevin Brady, Tommy Halferty and the late Larry Coryell--with whom he recorded ...
Continue ReadingColin Hancock's Jazz Hounds Featuring Catherine Russell: Cat & The Hounds
by Pierre Giroux
Catherine Russell teams up with Colin Hancock's Jazz Hounds for the release Cat & The Hounds, a recording exploring the roots of Black popular music from the early 1920s. Far from simply nostalgic, the project acts as a lively revival of an evolving art form, balancing the syncopated ragtime style and blues-infused improvisations that defined the Jazz Age. Russell's commanding voice, rich with warmth and character, serves as the perfect centre of attention as the band uncovers rare and overlooked ...
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