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Jazz Articles about James Brandon Lewis
About James Brandon Lewis
Instrument: Saxophone, tenor
North Sea Jazz Festival 2019
by Ljubinko Zivkovic
North Sea Jazz Festival Rotterdam, The Netherlands July 12-14, 2019 For a while now, jazz festivals have lost their exclusivity and being a musical source for just jazz fans or those who wanted to get involved in the scene. More commercial artists from other musical genres have actually become a source of sustainability for jazz festivals and in many respects for jazz artists themselves.Even while it was still located in The Hague, ...
Continue ReadingArt Ensemble of Chicago, Marilyn Mazur, Echoes of Zoo and More
by Ludovico Granvassu
New releases keep coming at an exciting place and Mondo Jazz obliges, sharing tons of exicting new releases, in particular celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Art Ensemble of Chicago and its spiritual offspring as well as some great European projects. Playlist Ben Allison “Mondo Jazz Theme (feat. Ted Nash & Pyeng Threadgill)" 0:00 Marilyn Mazur “Space Entry Dance" Shamania (RareNoise) 0:17 Host talks 4:37 Art Ensemble of Chicago “Saturday Morning" We Are on the Edge (PI) 6:57 ...
Continue ReadingJames Brandon Lewis: An Unruly Manifesto
by Phillip Woolever
James Brandon Lewis has been climbing the current jazz pantheon for a good while now. This deserving project should elevate the 36-year old tenor saxophonist from Buffalo even higher in the ranks. Backed by the usual collaborators in his touring trio (drummer Warren Trae Crudup III, bassist Luke Stewart) and a pair of familiar guests, Lewis has crafted another fine testimony to his dynamic skill and progressive vision. An abbreviated cascade of cymbals preludes the opening ...
Continue ReadingJames Brandon Lewis: An Unruly Manifesto
by Mark Corroto
The revolution will not be televised. Those words by Gil Scott-Heron from 1970 are more relevant to today's jazz revolution than any time since the mid-1990s, when conservatively-dressed youngsters mimicked the post-bop of the 1960s and were promoted as liberators. More recently, the touted saviors rehash a quasi-spiritual fusion that stands in for à la mode jazz. But dig a little deeper, and look past the hype, and the true champions can be found. One great example is the saxophonist ...
Continue ReadingJames Brandon Lewis: Radiant Imprints
by Vincenzo Roggero
Da quando è ritornato sulla scena musicale nel 2014 con Divine Travels -dopo l'esordio piuttosto convenzionale di Moments nel 2010 -facendo capire di non essere il solito fenomeno del sax tenore destinato a ballare il tempo di un estate, James Brandon Lewis non ha più sbagliato un colpo, sia sul versante discografico che nelle numerose esibizioni dal vivo. E se fino ad ora il format utilizzato si identificava con il canonico trio -ad eccezione dell'album di debutto in quintetto -con ...
Continue ReadingInterview with James Brandon Lewis & Further Notable New Releases
by Ludovico Granvassu
Great new albums keep coming and we are previewing them for you. In this episode we interview saxophone titan James Brandon Lewis, and sample music from his upcoming duo album Radiant Imprints with Chad Taylor. Playlist Ben Allison “Mondo Jazz Theme (feat. Ted Nash and Pyeng Threadgill)" 0:00 Caroline Davis “Dionisyan" from Heart Tonic (Sunnyside) 00:16 Host talk 7:44 Dafnis Prieto Big Band “Song for Chico (feat. Steve Coleman)" from Back to the Sunset (Dafnison) ...
Continue ReadingJames Brandon Lewis Trio: No Filter
by Mark F. Turner
James Brandon Lewis's authoritative horn is demonstrated in his cultural influenced releases --gospel spirituality in Divine Travels (Okeh, 2014) featuring bassist William Parker and drummer Gerald Cleaver; soulful lyricism and hip hop in Days of Freeman (Okeh, 2015) with heavies bassist Jamaaladeen Tacuma and drummer Rudy Royston. He continues that exploration with a new trio in No Filter an edgy but short LP which pays respect to early 90's hip hop, experimental jazz, and groove. Lewis's inclination ...
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