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Marco Iacoboni's Best Jazz Albums Of 2025
by Marco Iacoboni
2025 has gifted me with deep and rich listening experiences, diverse inspiration, and fulfilling encounters. From the American scene, I will especially remember Johnathan Blake 's concert with his quintet project My Life Matters and the Paul Cornish in trio, two remarkable projects and artists, both heard in the small italian city of Siena at Untubo, a small club always at the forefront of avant-garde programming. Regarding international European music, I'll cherish the wonderful interviews with Yazz Ahmed ...
Continue ReadingGabe Katell: Hear, It Is
by Jack Bowers
After years of paying his dues by gigging around with groups large and small in southern California, baritone saxophonist Gabe Katell has recorded Hear, It Is, the first album with his name above the marquee, and an impressive one it is, both musically and strategically. To ensure its musical success, Katell enlisted the help of three top-notch side musicians--pianist Adam Hersh, bassist Kevin Axt, drummer Kevin Van Den Elzen--who together form a seamless unit that is communal and ...
Continue ReadingSifters: Sifters
by Hrayr Attarian
Drummer Kate Gentile is a restlessly innovative improviser and composer who does not shy away from pushing boundaries. In the equally adventurous guitarist Marc Ducret and experimenting saxophonist Jeremy Viner, she has found kindred spirits. Together, they make up the collaborative Sifters. Their eponymous release consists of seven stimulating originals delivered with seamless camaraderie, as the group often functions as a single dynamic unit. For instance, Gentile's “Flail Maneuvers" is a provocative piece built around a thrillingly riotous ...
Continue ReadingJohn Dikeman: No Kings
by John Sharpe
Recorded live in 2022, No Kings documents a volatile meeting between a formidable European horn partnership and American free jazz royalty. In 2015, expat American saxophonist John Dikeman initiated a trio with bassist William Parker and drummer Hamid Drake. Five years later, he invited Portuguese trumpeter Luis Vicente to join them, resulting in the quartet heard here on its second album, following Goes Without Saying, But It's Got To Be Said (JACC Records, 2020). The reedman and brass player share ...
Continue ReadingFavorite Jazz Albums of 2025
by Jerome Wilson
This program contains my choices for the best jazz albums of 2025. The artists heard include Claire Cope with Ensemble C, Arturo O'Farrill, Branford Marsalis, Jason Kao Hwang, and Patricia Brennan. Playlist Henry Threadgill Sextett “I Can't Wait Till I Get Home" from The Complete Novus & Columbia Recordings of Henry Threadgill & Air (Mosaic) 00:00 Vijay Iyer/Wadada Leo Smith “Kite" from Defiant Life (ECM) 1:02 Paul Cornish “5AM" from You're Exaggerating! (Blue Note) 9:19 Host Speaks 14:33 ...
Continue ReadingStraight Ahead into the New Year: Woody Shaw, Alexa Tarantino, Mike Clark with Mike Zilber and More
by Hobart Taylor
Starting the new year like an OG. Playlist Julie Benko “Ma Belle Evangeline" from Euphonic Gumbo (Club 44) 00:23 Mike Boone “Hymn" from Confirmation (Self-Produced) 3:41 Nnenna Freelon “Changed" from Beneath the Skin (Origin) 8:05 Host Speaks 13:40 Woody Shaw “Obsequious" from Love Dance (Time Traveler) 14:53 Alexa Tarantino “The Roar and The Whisper" from The Roar and The Whisper (Blue Engine) 24:22 Host Speaks 30:32 Marques Carroll “Mode for Mabes" from Live at Winter's Jazz Club (Self-Produced) ...
Continue ReadingThe Final Batch of My Favorite 2025 Jazz Things - Part 4
by Ludovico Granvassu
This episode of Mondo Jazz isn't about rankings or best-of lists. It's about memory. Over the past six months, certain pieces of music kept calling us back. Among them, are the tunes in this playlist. Happy listening! Playlist Ben Allison “Mondo Jazz Theme (feat. Ted Nash & Pyeng Threadgill)" 0:00 Luca Curcio “Fisk" La Bomba (Boomslang) 0:16 Host talks 4:16 Bram De Looze, Hank Roberts, Thomas Morgan, Joey Baron “Flagey Blues Edition X (Live)" Live at ...
Continue Reading2026 Winter JazzFest Marathons: A Survival Guide
by Ludovico Granvassu
For jazz fans who are in New York, when one countdown ends with the Times Square Ball Drop, another one begins--and ends a few days later, when Winter JazzFest officially gets underway with the first downbeat at Le Poisson Rouge. For 22 years, the festival has been the launch pad of the jazz year in the city. This year's edition will run from January 8 to 13, with a program that spreads across 16 venues and well over ...
Continue ReadingKerry Politzer: Alternate Route
by Paul Rauch
Pianist Kerry Politzer had released eight albums before Alternate Route (Whirlwind, 2025), though to many jazz listeners they essentially flew under the radar. Politzer is a Portland, Oregon-based musician on the faculty at the esteemed jazz studies program at Portland State. With this, her ninth offering, more attention and accolades are bound to come her way. The album of ten original compositions not only lends a strong focus on her adept compositional and instrumental skills, it also welcomes in a ...
Continue ReadingMedeski, Martin, Cline, and Metzger In Free Flight
by Dave Kaufman
Just after midnight at Le Poisson Rouge in New York City on December 30, 2025, a late set got underway. Billed as a Phish After-Party, it featured John Medeski (organ and keys), Billy Martin (drums), Scott Metzger (guitar and bass guitar), and Nels Cline (guitar). Phish was in the middle of its annual Madison Square Garden New Year's run (December 28-31, 2025), and people clearly came looking for the celebration to continue. Many were in for quite a surprise.
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