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Take Five with Gene Ess
by AAJ Staff
Meet Gene Ess Award-winning guitarist, Gene Ess, draws upon a diverse background to form his unique style. Studying classical piano, Gene's early years were filled with the sounds of Beethoven and Chopin. Originally from Tokyo, Japan and growing up on a U.S. Air Force Base on Okinawa, Gene was simultaneously receiving a mix of influences: he was exposed to the indigenous music of Okinawa and--to the pop and jazz music coming out of the clubs for the American soldiers.
read moreGene Ess: Apotheosis
by Chris Mosey
The inspiration for Apotheosis, Japanese-American guitarist Gene Ess's fourth album, is taken from mythologist James Campbell's book “The Hero with a Thousand Faces," first published in 1949. In this Campbell describes apotheosis as “the expansion of consciousness a hero experiences when defeating his foe." His theories concerning fictional heroes have been used as a template by many modern writers and artists, including George Lucas, creator of the Star Wars films. Now Ess is applying them to jazz. ...
read moreGene Ess: Absurdist Theater
by Jerome Wilson
On this CD guitarist Gene Ess and his group Fractal Attraction have put together an intelligent fusion of jazz, folk and rock concepts led by the glassy clarity of Ess' guitar and the calm beauty of Thana Alexa's voice. Alexa's rising and falling wordless tones are the first thing heard on the disc and they lead into a pretty, slow theme built on a methodical blend of voice, guitar and Manuel Valera's piano. The quiet mood continues on “Circe's Compassion" ...
read moreGene Ess: Eternal Monomyth
by Geannine Reid
Award winning guitarist, Gene Ess, draws upon a diverse background to form his unique style of playing and writing. Eternal Monomyth is a companion piece to Ess' last album, Fractal Attraction. Ess explains, “the music should be heard in that regard. In a transparent sense, it is a continuation of my exploration with the combined timbre of the female voice and the electric guitar wrapped up in original compositions and supported by a piano trio. But acutely, it is about ...
read moreGene Ess: Blending Passionate and Pensive
by Jud Branam
Fresh off the release of Fractal Attraction (Simp, 2013), which blends traditional combo jazz lineups and approaches with a unique take on vocal jazz, Gene Ess is a man with a lot on his mind as it pertains to career, place--and music in general. Ess is enthusiastic about his love of jazz, classical and rock music, but is also pensive about the tough state of the music economy and the prospects for working jazz. He's also excited about ...
read moreGene Ess: Fractal Attraction
by C. Michael Bailey
Using the voice as a melodic and harmonic instrument above and beyond scat singing or vocalese is increasing in popularity, as evidenced in recordings like Beata Pater's Red (B&B Records, 2013) and Lola Danza's The Island (Evolver, 2012). Vocalist Thana Alexa joins guitarist Gene Ess for an expansion of Ess' genre-breaking jazz philosophy, using the human voice as instrument, thus broadening its palette of applications in jazz. On the whole, Ess' compositions are angular, with sharp corners ...
read moreGene Ess: A Thousand Summers
by Edward Blanco
In a rare departure for Gene Ess, who has always favored original music and instrumentals, the veteran jazz guitarist has partnered with acclaimed vocalist and bassist Nicki Parrott for A Thousand Summers, a refined album of familiar jazz standards and love songs. When Ess began developing the project, he naturally focused on new material. One day he performed with a singer at New York's renowned Blue Note jazz club. As he so aptly puts it, the experience “seemed to have ...
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