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Human Being Human: Being
by Neil Duggan
Inspired by the human experiences of living, connecting and creating, leading Danish trio Human Being Human return with Being. The album sees the trio expanding their soundscape as they collaborate with American saxophonist Chris Cheek. He brings his style and energy to the project, aligning perfectly with the trio's contemporary Danish explorations of the acoustic jazz trio format. The trio's first two albums, 2022's Equals and 2023's Disappearance (April Records), positioned the band as one of ...
Continue ReadingChris Cheek: Songs Of Inspiration And Atonement
by Frank Housh
Chris Cheek's Keepers of the Eastern Door (Analog Tone Factory, 2025) was inspired by the suffering and resilience of Native Americans. Cheek grew up in the area of Cahokia Mounds World Heritage & State Park, the largest pre-Columbian site north of Mexico. In his book 1491: New Revelations Of The Americas Before Columbus (Knopf, 2005), Charles C. Mann wrote: Anyone who traveled up the Mississippi in 1100 AD would have seen it looming in the distance: ...
Continue ReadingChris Cheek: Keepers of the Eastern Door
by David Weiner
In Keepers of the Eastern Door, saxophonist Chris Cheek leads a beautifully played, richly melodic and creatively curated set of performances, which split the difference between enchantment and fun. Cheek and his bandmates--Bill Frisell on guitar, Tony Scherr on bass, and Rudy Royston on drums--offer a mix of distinctive Cheek originals and unexpected takes on works by others. The covers are borrowed from genres outside the jazz and songbook repertoires, and the band outfits them with attractive new arrangements, tempos ...
Continue ReadingNew Releases from Cassani, Cheek, Cline & More
by Bob Osborne
A multi-national set of albums of releases this time around, mostly new, but also including a look back at the older work of some current leading lights of the jazz world. Playlist Show Intro 00:00 Roberto Cassani and Graeme Stephen “Empty Chair" from Pictish Spaghetti (577 Records) 00:28 Chris Cheek “Smoke Rings" from Keepers of the Eastern Door (Analog Tone Factory) 07:00 Carlos Mena “Coraza" from Con Personas “With The People" (Pinch Records) 11:14 Nels Cline “Allende" from ...
Continue ReadingAlan Ferber: Up High, Down Low
by Angelo Leonardi
Nel nono disco da bandleader, il trombonista Alan Ferber ritorna col suo abituale nonet, con cui ha già inciso quattro album. L'organico ha subìto qualche cambiamento con le presenze del chitarrista Nir Felder, di Chris Cheek al sax baritono e qualche altro (ma restano i fidi sassofonisti Jon Gordon, Charles Pillow e John Ellis, il trombettista Scott Wendholt) confermando l'estetica di fondo: un modern mainstream caratterizzato da groove ritmico, chiarezza melodica e arrangiamenti leggibili che s'ispirano anche al soul ...
Continue ReadingGuillermo Klein Quinteto: Telmo's Tune
by Angelo Leonardi
Sono passati tre decenni da quando l'argentino Guillermo Klein debuttò a New York col magistrale El Minotauro (Candid) evidenziando quelle doti di fantasioso orchestratore e bandleader che abbiamo apprezzato nei vari dischi incisi col suo ensemble Los Guachos e con la Swiss Jazz Orchestra. Negli anni l'abbiamo visto esibirsi anche con organici ridotti, dal quintetto presentato al Village Vanguard nel 2014 al minimale concept album con Rebecca Martin, Larry Grenadier e Jeff Ballard (The Upstate Project, Sunnyside, 2017). ...
Continue ReadingAlex Hitchcock: Dream Band
by Geno Thackara
Alex Hitchcock has a lot of energy and a lot of ideas; four recordings have apparently left him in no danger of running out. Clearly it helps to have met plenty of friends and collaborators along the way. Besides the mutual inspiration that arises between generous players, he knows he will probably have a voice available (instrumental or literal) for just about any germ of a song that arises. Where each previous recording revolved around a single lineup, the cast ...
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