Jazz Articles about Ian Blunden

About Ian Blunden

Album Review

Austin Di Pietro: Live at Mackenzie Hall Jazz

Read "Live at Mackenzie Hall Jazz" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers
September 7, 2026

Trumpeter and composer Austin Di Pietro, whose musical enterprises span the border between Canada and the U.S., leads a hard-working quintet in a concert recorded in July 2025 Live at Mackenzie Hall in Windsor, Ontario, a few stones' throw across the border from Detroit. Di Pietro wrote four of the album's seven numbers, while tenor saxophonist Ryan Bills contributed the rapid-fire “Hangtet" to complement the standard “If I Had You" and Marcus Belgrave's charming finale, “All My Love." ...

Album Review

The Signal Quartet: Approaching

Read "Approaching" reviewed by James Aren

by James Aren
August 20, 2024

Signal Quartet is not afraid to get messy. You cannot make a musical omelette without cracking some eggs. Approaching has some cracked eggs along the way, but it contains some delicious moments. The band features traditional jazz instrumentation--guitar, trumpet, bass and drums--but something makes it seem progressive. Each musician shows impressive mastery of their instrument. Ben Wolkins plays trumpet and flugelhorn with full-bodied warmth and dexterity. On guitar, Ian Blunden bounces between distortion and clean while seeming equally ...