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Mercer Hassy Orchestra: Duke's Place
by Jack Bowers
If much of the music on Duke's Place seems only vaguely familiar, that is probably because composer-arranger Mercer Hassy has taken more than a dozen songs written and/or made popular by Duke Ellington and his orchestra and turned them, for better or worse, inside out and upside down, playing with melody, harmony and rhythm but always with a clear purpose in mind, and presenting for the most part Ellington as you no doubt have never heard him before.
read morePearring Sound: My Multiverse
by Karl Ackermann
Jeff Pearring has a diverse cross-genre musical background, influencing his development in understated but effective ways. The alto saxophonist/composer, a Colorado native, is based in Brooklyn and had been mentored by the late jazz improviser and pianist Connie Crothers, sharing her tenaciously unconventional approach. Pearring led a group that included Crothers, on her final studio recording, bassist Ken Filiano, and Carlo Costa on drums. The adventurous reed player offers his first solo outing with My Multiverse though recording under the ...
read moreAleka Potinga: Romania: Songs Of Love And Longing
by Ian Patterson
You can take singer/cellist Aleka Potinga out of Romania, but you cannot take Romania out of her musical soul. Classically trained in Bucharest, and Dublin-based since 2012, Potinga has slotted into the city's fluid jazz/improvised music scenes, working with Izumi Kimura, Ronan Guilfoyle, Tommy Halferty and Cello Ireland. Her debut album Person I Knew (Self-Produced, 2019) featured imaginative interpretations of modern jazz classics by Wayne Shorter, Thelonious Monk and Bill Evans. Prior to that, her debut EP Aleka (EM, 2016) ...
read moreKeisuke Kishi: Midpoint Cafe
by Dan McClenaghan
Did drummer Keisuke Kishi, on a continent-spanning road trip, get his kicks on route 66?" Possibly, though he--as anyone making the journey for the first time would--certainly had his eyes opened to wide-open spaces, stark, flat landscapes and pale blue skies. Bobby Troup wrote an R&B song in 1946 called (Get You Kicks On) Route 66." Nate King Cole covered it, as did the Rolling Stones. Troup's lyrics say: Now it goes through St. Looey, Joplin, ...
read moreBilly Marrows and Grande Família: Penelope
by Neil Duggan
London-based guitarist and composer Billy Marrows brings us a new 12-piece chamber-jazz ensemble, Grande Família. It is a family affair with members of his extended family and a wider circle of close friends and musical associates making up the group. Their debut album, Penelope, is released in memory of Marrows' mother, Penny. Most of the music was written by Marrows as a surprise for his mother during her battle with cancer. All proceeds go to World Child Cancer, a charity ...
read moreDani Gurgel: DDG19 Big Band
by Katchie Cartwright
Dani Gurgel was born into a musical family in jny:São Paulo. Her mother Débora Gurgel (a busy pianist and arranger) and father (an amateur jazz saxophonist) met on the bandstand. Following her own musical path, Dani skirted gender biases in jazz culture that might have limited her opportunities by learning to do and play everything," as she put it. She is quick to point out that things are getting better," but hedged her bets by gaining proficiency in many instruments, ...
read moreJill McCarron Trio: Gin
by Jack Bowers
Gin, pianist Jill McCarron says of the title of her second recording as leader of the Jill McCarron Trio, refers to the card game of that name, and not to the alcoholic beverage. She balances the joy of winning with the luck of the draw in her entrancing three-part suite. While McCarron leads an admirable threesome (Paul Gill, bass; Andy Watson, drums), this is a trio album with an asterisk, as saxophonist Vincent Herring sits in on four numbers (including ...
read moreDavid Larsen: Cohesion
by Jack Bowers
For Cohesion, baritone saxophonist David Larsen's tenth album as leader of his own ensemble, he chose as his teammates a quartet of East Coast musicians who so impressed him during a tour of the Northwest that he invited them back to his Seattle, Washington home base to take part in a workshop, play some gigs and ultimately record Cohesion with him. As it turns out, it was a splendid decision, as Larsen and the others, even though ...
read moreCurtis Taylor: Taylor Made
by Troy Dostert
From the classic Blue Note-inspired cover design to the wide range of bop-based jazz influences found within, trumpeter Curtis Taylor leaves no doubt about the vibe he is aiming for with his debut full-length release, Taylor Made. Taylor has been a frequently used sideman by artists such as Gregory Porter, Billy Childs, and Cyrus Chestnut, so it is a welcome occurrence that he is now able to step out on his own more convincingly. Seven well-designed compositions, and accomplished performances ...
read moreIvo Perelman / Mark Hellias / Tom Rainey Truth Seeker: Truth Seeker
by Mike Jurkovic
Saxophonist Ivo Perelman has a very deep understanding of time and space. He knows deep down these things, these oddly elusive concepts that bind us to the irreparable now, are truly meant to serve as agents of creation, of freedom. Of the freedom to create without corruption. He also senses on the most granular level that creation is a minute-by-minute thing. Or it should be. On his umpteenth release of the new year, Perelman, in studio for the ...
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