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Ben Patterson Jazz Orchestra: Mad Scientist Music
by Jack Bowers
Trombonist Ben Patterson's high-powered Jazz Orchestra from the Washington, D.C. area returns virtually intact from 2024's well-received Groove Junkies (Origin Records) with another bold and hard-hitting session that is all but guaranteed to please anyone whose musical antenna leans toward fresh and exciting big-band jazz. Its title, Mad Scientist Music, coined by Harry Schnipper, owner of the D.C. jazz club Blues Alley, is one that was readily adopted by Patterson, who agreed that his office is akin to a mad ...
Continue ReadingBen Patterson Jazz Orchestra: Mad Scientist Music
by Dan Bilawsky
"Mad Scientist Music"--the tag that Harry Schnipper, owner of venerated D.C. jazz venue Blues Alley, admiringly applied to Ben Patterson's creations--is an apt description for this trombonist's work. Synonymous with pure innovation, the titular field is all about pushing the limits, exploring the unknown, and making bold calculations before throwing caution to the wind and letting nature take its course. “I like the idea of my office where I write being a mad scientist's laboratory, a place where I'm creating ...
Continue ReadingBen Patterson: Groove Junkies
by Jack Bowers
When it comes to big-band recordings, commitment and enthusiasm can go a long way toward assuring success. Those benchmarks are fully displayed on Groove Junkies, the third album by trombonist Ben Patterson's Washington, DC-based Jazz Orchestra. While Patterson's compositions and arrangements are not exactly straight ahead--there's an ample measure of funk, back beats and electronic effects to reinforce the customary brass/winds/rhythm--they are never less than animated or intriguing. The groove is invariably up-tempo--there's nary a ballad on ...
Continue ReadingBen Patterson Jazz Orchestra: Groove Junkies
by Dan Bilawsky
Groove junkies searching for a fix need look no further. Mainlining this music--a hard-hitting big band set that satisfies as it soars--offers a serious high. With a pen and mind untrammeled by norms and expectations, and a tight crew of musical compatriots bringing stentorian sound and vision to his book, trombonist-composer Ben Patterson delivers the goods and then some. Patterson's positively electric take on saxophonist Chris Potter's well-titled “Exclamation" offers fireworks at the front end of the ...
Continue ReadingBen Patterson: Push The Limits
by Jack Bowers
It took no more than a quick Google search to find that every member of trombonist Ben Patterson's quintet is (or was) also a member of the U.S. Air Force's flagship jazz ensemble, the Airmen of Note. On Push the Limits, Patterson challenges his fellow airmen to cruise through ten of his elaborate compositions and arrangements, a mission they carry out with what seems to be relative ease. In other words, the technical excellence of the group is undeniable.
Continue ReadingAubrey Johnson: Unraveled
by C. Michael Bailey
What does it take to move music from the strictly aural to revealing the more tactile elements like texture and consistency? Vocal artist, composer and arranger Aubrey Johnson, with her scoring hat on, demonstrates that intelligent instrument choice and subtle arrangement of notes in time coupled with sensitive sound engineering can produce music with a palpable touch and feel. On her debut recording Unraveled, Johnson curates a delicate collection of original and originally-arranged standards with an authentic organic finish and ...
Continue ReadingAubrey Johnson: Unraveled
by Dan Bilawsky
Serving as a statement of elucidation, exploration and emotional reasoning, Unraveled lays bare a unique soul while presenting a clear-headed means of disentangling complex artistic threads. It's an album that's as sophisticated as it is accessible and as personal as it is universal in its line(s) of thought. In short, it's a debut destined to stand out from the pack. Over the past decade, give or take, vocalist Aubrey Johnson has carved out a unique niche with ...
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