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Jazz Articles about Eric Hofbauer

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Album Review

Dylan Jack Quartet: Eine Quartett des Grauens

Read "Eine Quartett des Grauens" reviewed by Geno Thackara


Often--or at least usually, or sometimes? Let's say sometimes--the classics are classics for a reason. Any horror buff has their own ideas where to go for some creepy-crawlies and jump scares, but they'll probably all agree (on some level) that the most old-school classics set down the blueprint before moving pictures were even matched up with sounds. As Halloweeny films go, Dylan Jack and friends recognize 1922's silent-cinema staple Nosferatu as one of the true old guard, with a world-of-its-own ...

2
Album Review

Dylan Jack Quartet: The Tale of the Twelve-Foot Man

Read "The Tale of the Twelve-Foot Man" reviewed by Vincenzo Roggero


Rispetto al quartetto che aveva brillantemente debuttato nel 2017 con Diagrams vi è l'avvicendamento del clarinettista Todd Brunel con il trombettista Jerry Sabatini ma la scrittura messa in campo dal batterista leader mantiene, in The Tale of the Twelve-Foot Man, la medesima sofisticata bellezza, con una interessante evoluzione delle dinamiche e degli impasti sonori. Dylan Jack, figura attiva in vari ambiti della scena musicale bostoniana, si intende a meraviglia con i suoi compagni di viaggio, forte delle ...

2
Album Review

Dylan Jack Quartet: The Tale of the Twelve-Foot Man

Read "The Tale of the Twelve-Foot Man" reviewed by Troy Dostert


Drummer Dylan Jack has long been a fixture on the Boston jazz scene and, with assorted partnerships including fellow Bostonians Charlie Kohlhase, Jeb Bishop and Bill Lowe, he has kept very busy. But, of late, his most fruitful collaboration may be his recordings with guitarist Eric Hofbauer. The two released the first-rate Remains of Echoes in 2019 (Creative Nation Music), a wide-ranging effort to reinterpret pieces from the jazz tradition and beyond, from Thelonious Monk and Charles Mingus to Sting ...

3
Album Review

Eric Hofbauer and Dylan Jack: Remains of Echoes

Read "Remains of Echoes" reviewed by Troy Dostert


Always attuned to unusual choices that keep his listeners guessing, guitarist Eric Hofbauer knows no bounds when it comes to his repertoire. One is as likely to hear a Cyndi Lauper or Nirvana cover as something by Thelonious Monk or Charlie Parker. And his stylistic approach on the guitar is similarly idiosyncratic, with a gutbucket blues as likely to spill forth as something more spikily avant-garde. This unpredictable creativity is once again on display on Remains of Echoes, an enticing ...

3
Album Review

Eric Hofbauer: Book Of Water

Read "Book Of Water" reviewed by Mike Jurkovic


Boston based guitarist and rising star Eric Hofbauer obviously isn't afraid of challenges. But then again, no musician/artist should be if they wish to leave a mark. The compositional intent at first come across rather lofty: a five part, multi-ensemble project interpreting wood, fire, earth, metal, and water, namely the five pillars of Chinese philosophy understood as the “Five Agents," with each element its own book or, in this case, album, containing five chapters or compositions, someone's got to take ...

5
Album Review

Eric Hofbauer's Five Agents: Book Of Water

Read "Book Of Water" reviewed by Jerome Wilson


This CD marks the beginning of an ambitious project for guitarist Eric Hofbauer, five connected recordings based on the Chinese philosophical construct of the Five Agents, wood, fire, earth, metal and water. Each of these recordings is to have a different instrumental lineup, but for this first one, Book Of Water, he uses an explosive jazz sextet recorded in concert. Apropos of the CD's title, this music flows continuously like water with only brief pauses between the five ...

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Multiple Reviews

Eric Hofbauer Quintet: Prehistoric Jazz – Volumes 1 & 2

Read "Eric Hofbauer Quintet: Prehistoric Jazz – Volumes 1 & 2" reviewed by Mark F. Turner


With sure workmanship and untamed inquisitiveness, Boston-based guitarist Eric Hofbauer is no stranger to confronting unusual yet stimulating music. Examples include 2008's uncharacteristic guitar duo The Lady of Khartoum with Garrison Fewell or the striking American solo series--American Vanity (2004), American Fear (2010) and American Grace (2013)--which crossed distinctive terrains of improvisation and covers of iconic pieces such Louis Armstrong's “West End Blues," Cindy Lauper's “True Colors" and a raucous take on rock group Van Halen's “Hot for Teacher."


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