Jazz Articles
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Chris Jonas: backwardsupwardsky
by Glenn Astarita
Few artists can translate geography into sound with the spatial clarity that Chris Jonas achieves on backwardsupwardsky. A saxophonist, composer and multimedia artist whose résumé includes collaborations with Anthony Braxton, Cecil Taylor and William Parker, Jonas has always favored creative risk. This two-LP set on Edgetone Records transforms desert solitude--specifically his winters camping on Arizona's Barry Goldwater Missile Range--into a sprawling, multi-ensemble work. The music captures both the intimacy of campfire sketches and the sheer scale of the landscapes that ...
Continue ReadingRent Romus, Tatsuya Nakatani: Uplift
by Glenn Astarita
Venerable woodwind ace, composer and fierce improviser Rent Romus has long been a cornerstone of the West Coast's avant-garde jazz scene. Tatsuya Nakatani, a Japanese-born percussionist and sound artist, is renowned for his innovative approach, wielding an arsenal of drums, gongs and indigenous instruments. He often crafts visceral soundscapes that dance between silence and chaos. Together, on their collaborative album Uplift, these two sonic alchemists conjure a live-recorded odyssey at the Musicians Union Hall Local 6 in San Francisco, blending ...
Continue ReadingMoe Staiano: Away Towards the Light
by Glenn Astarita
Drummer Moe Staiano's Away Towards the Light is a meticulously crafted sonic tapestry that unfolds slowly, revealing its complexities with each listen. Performed at the Edgetone 25th anniversary concert, the piece features four guitar groupings, three groups with two guitars and a group of three--alongside Staiano's snappy attack and bassist 'Jason Hoopes sturdy undercurrent. While not strictly minimalist, the work shares a kinship with composers like Philip Glass and Steve Reich, though one suspects they never cranked their amps to ...
Continue ReadingAila Trio: Shaped by Sea Waves
by Glenn Astarita
Norway-based Aila Trio's, Shaped by Sea Waves on Edgetone Records, offers an experience for jazz enthusiasts interested in the experimental side of the genre. While not groundbreaking, it presents a solid exploration and a genial journey. Bassist Georgia Wartel Collins is the guiding force behind the album. Her intricate and melodic bass lines function as narrative threads, weaving and flowing through the sonic landscapes. These lines occasionally evoke a dreamlike state, creating a sense of mystery and exploration. ...
Continue ReadingRent Romus' Lords of Outland: 25 years under the mountain
by Glenn Astarita
This Northern California powerhouse unit led by multi-woodwind ace Rent Romus commemorates 25-years in the business with a hard-hitting acoustic-electric jaunt featuring the core rhythm section and new addition, guitarist and violaist, Alex Cohen. Over the years, the collective has enjoyed a refreshing progression of shifting personnel. However, this album is grounded in avant-garde jazz fusion and free-form improvisation, where the artists enjoy ample space to engage in tumultuous dialogues and fluctuating currents during these energized performances. The ...
Continue ReadingRent Romus' Life's Blood Ensemble: Rogue Star
by Glenn Astarita
Experimental San Francisco Bay Area record label Edgetone Records states, this band “reflects the influences which make up their collective interest in storytelling, exploring expanded borders, and discovery." No doubt, this red hot ensemble doesn't stay content following a one-dimensional musical path, as they branch out on a recurring basis via these fluid and manifold works. The sextet features the dual bass attack of Max Judelson and Safa Shokari. In effect, the ensemble abides by a flexible but ...
Continue ReadingRent Romus: Deciduous/Midwestern Edition Vol. 1
by Glenn Astarita
This West Coast USA experimental record label always spreads its wings. Part of the fun is anticipating what comes next. Here, label head and distinguished multi-reedman Rent Romus and musical associates pay homage to the avant-garde jazz spirit of the Midwest, citing the birthplace for AACM and innovators such as Albert Ayler, Rahsaan Roland Kirk and others. Romus also advises in the press release that this is an ongoing project as the album title would indicate.Most of these ...
Continue ReadingNoertker's Moxie: druidh penumbrae
by Glenn Astarita
With his 9th album for San Francisco Bay Area-based Edgetone Records, bassist, composer Bill Noertker's Moxie ensemble is captured live during performances between 2011-2015. As a composer, he derives influence from famous visual artists, architects, poets and sculptors. Thus, his compositional impetus contains grounded jazz elements, yet his works feature lyrical mosaics of sound amid geometrical unison flows, whimsical overtones and a storytelling approach. Moxie consists of alternating personnel, spanning the various ensemble configurations of these live performances. ...
Continue ReadingSay Bok Gwai: Trio / Chinese Jesus
by Glenn Astarita
If you ever wondered what an angst-ridden, scaled back version of Sonic Youth would sound like if the musicians were overdosing on energy drinks, then the core duo of Say Bok Gwai may represent that notion rather mightily, and then some. Based in San Francisco, the unit is billed as a Chinese American hardcore rock band. Noted as a double EP, and the first time they've employed a bassist (Josh Martin), the musicians cover the social condition via an extremely ...
Continue ReadingRent Romus' Life's Blood Ensemble: Rising Colossus
by Glenn Astarita
Edgetone Records sent the LP edition of this album that is also available on CD and digital format. Yet I still maintain that most jazz albums are better served via full-bodied analogue productions often equating to a studio-in-your-room experience, coupled with a first-rate turntable and audiophile trimmings that may enhance the listening experience. San Francisco new-jazz saxophonist Rent Romus leads his Life's Blood Ensemble --which has been an ongoing coalition comprised of alternating personnel --through a program framed ...
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