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About James Brandon Lewis

Album Review

James Brandon Lewis / Chad Taylor: Live In Willisau

Read "Live In Willisau" reviewed by Mark Corroto

by Mark Corroto
April 12, 2020

Saxophonist James Brandon Lewis and drummer Chad Taylor's 2017 studio session Radiant Imprints (Musicube/Off, 2018) was hailed by many critics and fans alike as one of the best recordings of 2018. It was indeed a true revelation, yet that recording wasn't the genesis of a major talent. Lewis' inaugural release Divine Travels (Okeh, 2014) accomplished that feat. As for Taylor, he has been on our radar since the 1990s with Rob Mazurek and the various Chicago Underground ensembles, Fred Anderson, ...

Album Review

James Brandon Lewis and Chad Taylor: Live In Willisau

Read "Live In Willisau" reviewed by Troy Dostert

by Troy Dostert
April 1, 2020

Somewhat forgotten amidst the excitement surrounding James Brandon Lewis' UnRuly Manifesto (Relative Pitch, 2019) was the excellent release that preceded it. Radiant Imprints (Off, 2018), a duo release with drummer Chad Taylor, put the focus squarely on Lewis' extraordinary tenor saxophone prowess and his strong accord with one of the most in-demand drummers in creative jazz. If it didn't have quite the stylistic eclecticism of its successor, it was nevertheless a stimulating release that showed Lewis could more than hold ...

Album Review

James Brandon Lewis: An Unruly Manifesto

Read "An Unruly Manifesto" reviewed by John Sharpe

by John Sharpe
August 4, 2019

An UnRuly Manifesto feels like the album tenor saxophonist James Brandon Lewis has been working towards since his relocation to New York in 2012. His quintet's standout set at the 2019 Vision Festival was based around this program, no surprise given that this is such a formidable disc. Lewis retains the services of bassist Luke Stewart and drummer Warren 'Trae' Crudup III, who fuelled his trio date No Filter (BNS Records, 2017), and also makes that album's guest, guitarist Anthony ...

Live Review

North Sea Jazz Festival 2019

by Ljubinko Zivkovic
July 19, 2019

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, ...

Radio & Podcasts

Art Ensemble of Chicago, Marilyn Mazur, Echoes of Zoo and More

by Ludovico Granvassu
March 19, 2019

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 ...

Album Review

James Brandon Lewis: An Unruly Manifesto

Read "An Unruly Manifesto" reviewed by Phillip Woolever

by Phillip Woolever
March 5, 2019

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 ...

Album Review

James Brandon Lewis: An Unruly Manifesto

Read "An Unruly Manifesto" reviewed by Mark Corroto

by Mark Corroto
January 25, 2019

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 ...