Jazz Articles
Our daily articles are carefully curated by the All About Jazz staff. You can find more articles by searching our website, see what's trending on our popular articles page or read articles ahead of their published dates on our Coming Soon page. Read our daily album reviews.
Sign in to customize your My Articles page —or— Filter Article Results
Lori Williams: Here We Are
by Bridget A. Arnwine
Vocalist Lori Williams has the kind of voice that good singers are made of. With a sound that was honed over years of study and early days in the church, Williams sings with a depth of feeling that reflects both her technical command and her spiritual grounding. When she sings, there is no question about what she is singing and what she is trying to convey. Her words are clear; her message is crisp; her tone is warm; and her ...
Continue ReadingShogo Seifert Rauke: Causes of Imagination
by Glenn Astarita
Berlin-based trumpeter Shogo Seifert, an artist of of German Japanese lineage. unveils his debut album Causes of Imagination with his ensemble Rauke, a curious octet that marries the nimble spontaneity of a jazz quartet to the lush emotive sweep of a string quartet. Released under the Jazz Thing Next Generation series by Double Moon Records, this record offers a sonic tapestry that is as intriguing as its title suggests. Seifert, a Berlin-based artist with a penchant for intuitive creation, sidesteps ...
Continue ReadingJim McNeely/Frankfurt Radio Big Band: Rituals
by Jack Bowers
The first thirty-three minutes or so of Rituals, the latest album by the excellent Frankfurt Radio (hr) Big Band, is an homage to Igor Stravinsky's symphonic suite The Rite of Spring, which premiered in Paris in 1913, reimagined “in the Stravinsky spirit" by the group's director, Jim McNeely, in a big-band framework and featuring the acclaimed American tenor saxophonist Chris Potter. The first three movements are designated “Adoration," the next two “Sacrifice," and McNeely has added a sixth, “Rituals Rebirth," ...
Continue ReadingThomas Kolarczyk Ensemble: Halbtraume
by Glenn Astarita
Germany-based Double Moon Records' long-running series, “JazzThing: The Next Generation" places a spotlight on young European talent attempting to break into the modern jazz rank and file. Indeed, there have been some gems in this series of albums. Here, bassist Thomas Kolarczyk's Ensemble, comprised of German and Polish jazz artists, marks the 72nd volume, and is undeniably one of the top outings culled from this ongoing series. With a four-woodwind attack, sans the chordal component, Kolarczyk looms as a nascent ...
Continue ReadingKarl Latham / Ryan Carniaux / Mark Egan: Constellations
by Fiona Ord-Shrimpton
If you happened to be in vitro fed Isao Tomita during your pre-personage, you're going to recognise Karl Latham's Constellations electronica subliminally--regardless any jazz/Bjork connections. 70's Japanese synth/horn, space music trembling has that tendency to unhinge a certain primeval magic. Space music in the 21st Century has less artefacts than the 70s first steppers, and more of the technician's space time feel of Miles Davis' electric purview. Karl Latham suggests that fundamentally there is an air of Miles ...
Continue ReadingChristy Doran's New Bag: Mesmerized
by Glenn Astarita
Celebrated Swiss guitarist Christy Doran assets pertain to his indefatigable creative sparks, evidenced by his work in jazz-rock, avant-garde jazz improvisation or when tackling world music. And from a fundamental shedding perspective, he could hold his own with most if not all of the present guitar heroes. New Bag was created in 1997, but Swiss vocalist Sarah Buechi joined the ranks in 2012. Her presence is somewhat multifaceted as she harmonizes, scats, and often steers the melodies in ...
Continue ReadingGeoff Goodman: Jazz + Haiku
by Chris Mosey
On the face of it jazz and haiku wouldn't seem to have a great deal in common: jazz, born in the brothels of New Orleans at the close of the 19th century; haiku, an offshoot of age-old Japanese Zen Buddhism, seeking answers to the meaning of life in the quiet life and a pithy observation of nature. Yet, as he lurched from one dive to another in Storyville, might not Jelly Roll Morton, on occasion, have gazed ...
Continue ReadingChristy Doran: Mesmerized
by Ian Patterson
Guitarist Christy Doran's New Bag has negotiated its share of rough waters during its sixteen-year journey. While the ship was severely rocked by the death of drummer Fabian Kuratli in 2008 and the departure of vocalist Bruno Amstad after 12 years in 2011, Doran has soldiered on. His compositions ultimately define New Bag's personality, rather than the individuals in it at a given time dominating. The dynamic Amstad was a hard act to follow, but on the band's eighth recording ...
Continue ReadingMatthieu Marthouret Organ Quartet: Upbeats
by Dan Bilawsky
Necessity is not only the mother of invention, but also of direction. French pianist Matthieu Marthouret initially took on the task of mastering the organ because of problems finding bass players for rehearsals, but he found his own voice on the instrument and discovered a world of possibilities in the process. The debut album from his organ quartet--Playground (MuSt, 2009)--served as a launching pad for his explorations in this arena, but the group is in full flight throughout Upbeats.
Continue ReadingGary Burton: For Hamp, Red, Bags, and Cal
by David Adler
Gary Burton’s new release is a tribute record with a four-pronged twist, and with four different lineups. The vibraphonist’s honorees are Lionel Hampton, Red Norvo, Milt Jackson, and Cal Tjader — a grouping that provides a convenient historical survey of the vibraphone in jazz. While the result may not be a creative watershed, it definitely swings.Three of the five Red Norvo dedications are a deliberate re-creation of Norvo’s classic 1950s trio. Russell Malone and Christian McBride play the ...
Continue Reading
