Jazz Articles

like 381

Charles Evans / Neil Shah: Live at Saint Stephens

by Raul d'Gama Rose
January 31, 2010

Live At Saint Stephens with baritone saxophonist Charles Evans and pianist Neil Shah-- together with the Dan Tepfer/Lee Konitz Duos With Lee (Sunnyside Records, 2009)--is certainly one of the most wildly adventurous records in recent memory. It is not quite entirely spontaneous or improvisational as some of Keith Jarrett's records are. But playing under a magisterial dome of sound--both deep and tender--Evans and Shah create sonic matrices that evolve high and mighty as those once woven by the master of ...

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David Sylvian: Manafon

by Nenad Georgievski
January 31, 2010

David Sylvian Manafon Samadhi Sound 2009

Singer David Sylvian has had such an unpredictable and diverse recording career that it is interesting to see what will come next. Over the years he has covered a lot of ground, from pop music to gentle, ambient soundscapes, prog rock and fiery, avant-garde experimentation. So it should come as no surprise that his eclectic muse has led him to a new sonic neighborhood with Manafon. ...

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Dan Berglund's Tonbruket: Dan Berglund's Tonbruket

by Chris May
January 31, 2010

Since the death of pianist Esbjörn Svensson in summer 2008, a few months before the release of e.s.t.'s Leucocyte (ACT Music, 2008)--an album which seemed to promise a second revolutionary stage in the Swedish group's music--fans have been obliged to look elsewhere for rock-infused reorientations of the piano trio tradition. There have been plenty of places to look, but nowhere quite like e.s.t. itself. Inevitably, attention has focused on the surviving members of the trio, bassist Dan Berglund and drummer ...

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Pat Metheny: Pat Metheny: Orchestrion

by Doug Collette
January 31, 2010

Orchestrion is no doubt going to be tremendously popular with Pat Metheny's devoted fan base, and anyone else who takes the opportunity to see the man on his upcoming tour. As one of the guitarist/composer's grandest projects, it will attract more than a few of those casually acquainted with Metheny's fame, curiosity piqued by the unusual concept behind the recording; the CD is enclosed in a triple-fold digipak with an array of color photos, no doubt intended to startle.

No ...

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Ali Farka Toure and Toumani Diabate: Ali and Toumani

by Nenad Georgievski
January 31, 2010

Profound knowledge of African music is not a must to enjoy Ali and Toumani. This recording is the second collaboration between two legendary Malian artists, the now-deceased Ali Farka Touré and master kora player Toumani Diabaté. Ali Farka Touré has always been a truly exceptional and original guitarist and even in his death he remains the symbol of African guitar, as he was the first to introduce desert blues to the world. Diabaté is the world's foremost kora player and ...

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AAJ's Guide to NYC Jazz Venues in the New Decade

by Matthew Miller
January 31, 2010

In its nearly eight years of existence, All About Jazz has become the foremost chronicler of live jazz in New York City. Our monthly issues, like bibles in hotel rooms, have found a place in nearly every jazz venue in the city and concertgoers have looked to its pages to keep them abreast of new arrivals. At the dawn of a new decade, it seems fitting to take a look back at the venues we've covered in our first 92 ...

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Peter Brötzmann: A Night In Sana'a

by Mark Corroto
January 30, 2010

Reaching across cultures is nothing new for jazz artists, and certainly jazz (by definition) is the amalgamation of ethnic European, African, Afro-Cuban and American blues music. With this recording by free jazz patriarch Peter Brötzmann in Yemen, the junction is not only of different cultures but of different centuries.

Record label chief Uli Armbruster shared recordings of traditional Yemeni music with the saxophonist, convincing him to travel to Sana'a in 2004 to perform. He arrived with Chicagoan and ...

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The Late Great Phil Seamen

by Michael Baird
January 30, 2010

INTRODUCTION Phillip William Seamen was born in Burton-on-Trent, Staffordshire, on August 28th 1926 and died on Friday 13th October 1972--he fell asleep in a chair in his abode on Old Paradise Street in Lambeth, south London, and didn't wake up any more. The police were called in quite quickly and their pathologist began by taking a sample of Phil's blood, which is usual procedure. Back in the lab he could not believe his eyes--the level of barbiturates was ...

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The Kandinsky Effect

by David Miller
January 30, 2010

The Kandinsky EffectThe Kandinsky EffectSNP Records 2010

What do you get when you combine an American saxophonist, a self-proclaimed “total gringo" bassist and a French drummer, playing progressive jazz in Europe? There's no one-size-fits-all answer. But The Kandinsky Effect, composed of Warren Walker (saxophone), Gael Petrina (acoustic and electric bass) and Gautier Garrigue (drums), sure as heck blow the roof off the joint trying to figure it out for themselves.

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Emilio Solla & The Tango Jazz Conspiracy: Bien Sur!

by Dan Bilawsky
January 30, 2010

"Tango Jazz," like virtually every other genre-descriptor, is a convenient tag used to categorize what, ultimately, is better understood through listening. Emilio Solla, along with musicians like Pablo Aslan and Pablo Ziegler, are at the forefront of this style. Solla says it best when he explains that the “tango" portion of the title usually refers to the Argentinean origins of the musicians in question, and the “jazz" label addresses the improvisational elements within. Regardless of what it all really means, ...