Jazz Articles
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Fabia Mantwill Orchestra: In.Sight
by Neil Duggan
Slow, haunting strings usher listeners into Fabia Mantwill Orchestra's ambitious album In.Sight. This bold statement involves a 32-piece orchestra with six virtuoso soloists, performing compositions co-written by Mantwill, Snarky Puppy's Michael League and Greek composer Magdalini Giannikou. The album opens with “Satoyama," where those melancholic strings gradually bloom into bright melodic passages. The piece moves through a soundscape that weaves together jazz, classical and cinematic drama before Mantwill's expressive tenor saxophone emerges as the leading voice. Each composition ...
Continue ReadingScott Colley, Edward Simon, Brian Blade: Three Visitors
by Mike Jurkovic
There are the many moments to hold and savor on Three Visitors, the second trio offering from pianist Edward Simon, bassist Scott Colley and drummer Brian Blade. Like their 2017 eponymous debut Steel House (Artist Share), Three Visitors is artful, understated, elegant and so soul deep. A late night disk to rest with and to reflect upon days in the distance and days ahead. Simon (SFJazz Collective), Colley (Andrew Hill and Herbie Hancock) and Blade are '90s post-boppers who have enjoyed each other's ...
Continue ReadingNatalie Cressman & Ian Faquini: Guinga
by Dan Bilawsky
Brazilian guitarist-composer Guinga is something of a legendary figure. A polyglot performer associated with música popular brasileira's all-encompassing ethos, he's made his name fusing the contemporary and folkloric strains of his homeland with classical, jazz, rock and pop stylings. His influence looms large in that particular niche of the music world--and, honestly, beyond--and he receives his flowers on this warm tribute from trombonist Natalie Cressman and guitarist Ian Faquini. This unique duo, which made an instantly positive ...
Continue ReadingBrock, Lanzetti, Ogawa: Drawing Songs
by Mike Jacobs
Encountering new additions to the Snarky Puppy musical diaspora is always interesting. Some members' solo efforts are more direct stylistic offshoots of the mother band while others branch out in very different directions, but it is a safe bet that they will showcase the musicianship which got them into the burgeoning collective in the first place. Drawing Songs, by long-time SP bandmates Zach Brock, Bob Lanzetti and Keita Ogawa, is one of these which is a refreshing musical ...
Continue ReadingHouse of Waters: On Becoming
by Jim Worsley
Flowing in many directions yet forever staying in the moment is largely the challenge and artistic purpose of House of Waters. Here they once again bring forth new and creative concepts that are freely exchanged and intertwined. New beginnings, drawn from multiple sources, as well as further exploration of the past, create the wonder, awe, and awareness of On Becoming. The dulcimer was not part of mainstream culture until Max ZT put it on the map. Joining with six string ...
Continue ReadingSnarky Puppy: Immigrance
by Josh Deakin
Three years after their last release, Snarky Puppy's thirteenth studio album Immigrance makes a statement as a standard for jazz fusion that all modern artists should take note of. The opening track, “Chonks," sets the tone of the record with a fierce drum fill from Larnell Lewis which is reminiscent of reggae tones, an aesthetic which Snarky Puppy enjoy teasing on occasion. The record keeps pace as it weaves together the collection of songs which gives the illusion ...
Continue ReadingMark Lettieri: Things Of That Nature
by Mike Jacobs
Some musicians just have a certain skill set. You know, the one that could make “Mary Had A Little Lamb" entertaining enough for you to go out and buy their cover of it? As on his previous albums, guitarist Mark Lettieri's fifth solo outing Things of That Nature reminds us that he is one of those guys. It also reminds us that despite having those serious chops--and a proclivity to rock-out--Lettieri puts way too much emphasis on musical ...
Continue ReadingHouse of Waters: Rising
by Jim Worsley
A musical instrument with a sounding board or box, typically trapezoidal in shape, over which strings of graduated length are stretched and played by being struck with handheld hammers. Step to the head of the class if you immediately knew this was describing a dulcimer. It's not an instrument generally associated with jazz. Come to think of it, when was the last time you even heard the word dulcimer used in a sentence? What you WILL hear from ...
Continue ReadingBokanté: Strange Circles
by Daniel Marx
Due to Michael League's prolific body of work with his record label, GroundUp Music, he has his fingers in many pies, the latest of which is a new band, started by the Snarky Puppy guitarist/bassist/producer, called Bokanté. The word means “exchange" in Creole, the language of the band's vocalist Malika Tirolien, and the music is meant to represent this idea of a cultural exchange between the melting pot of musicians involved. For the most part, Strange Circles delivers; a vibrant ...
Continue ReadingHouse Of Waters: House Of Waters
by Roger Farbey
The eponymous follow-up to House Of Waters's 2012 album Revolution is no less an iconoclastic offering than its predecessor (or the band's previous two albums Peace The Coats and Elsewhere). Iconoclasm here is a relevant noun because the trio's musical approach confounds traditional perspectives. So although not compositionally similar to say, Philip Glass's extraordinary soundtrack Koyaanisqatsi, or Frank Zappa's Hot Rats the overall effect to the uninitiated is just as startling. Even without the occasional addition of extra ...
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