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Zach Adleman: We Make: Stories For A New Day
by Jack Bowers
For someone not that long out of college, New York City-based drummer Zach Adleman has kept a full dance card, leading to the release of his impressive debut recording, We Make: Stories for a New Day, on which Adleman leads a nimble sextet through its paces on 11 charming and upbeat songs, nine of which he composed and arranged. In 2019, the New Jersey native won the Detroit Jazz Festival's annual J.C. Heard National Drum Competition. Two ...
Continue ReadingZach Adleman: We Make: Stories For A New Day
by David A. Orthmann
From beginning to end, Zach Adleman's debut as a leader, We Make: Stories For A New Day, fires on all cylinders. The twenty-something drummer inhabits the roles of player, composer, arranger, and bandleader with the aplomb of a seasoned veteran. A hungry, assertive band includes two generations of compatible hands who produce a fresh and vital sound that mirrors the straight-ahead, acoustic jazz tradition Adleman penned nine compositions that are sturdy, substantive, and melodically rich. We have ...
Continue ReadingLuther Allison: I Owe It All To You
by David A. Orthmann
Radiating an exhilarating, last-set-of-the-night ambiance, I Owe It All To You, Luther Allison's debut recording as a leader, places a premium on momentum, spontaneity and high spirits. An assertive, hard-swinging player residing in the modern, straight-ahead jazz piano tradition, Allison utilizes a bassist and drummer capable of holding down the fort and enriching anything he throws at them. Boris Kozlov and Zach Adleman deftly respond to Allison's changes in emphasis, dynamics and texture. To their credit, they never get in ...
Continue ReadingLuther Allison: I Owe It All To You
by Dan Bilawsky
If you're hip to Luther Allison from his previous and continuing work--ivory tickling for breakout vocal star/Grammy winner Samara Joy, sideman recordings on the 88s and drums for notables like trombonist Michael Dease, clinics and teaching engagements aplenty, performances at upper tier venues in New York and across the country and abroad--then you already know the man is adept at delivering real musical messages. Exuding joy in every effort, and presenting with depth and myriad dimensions, Allison is a rare ...
Continue ReadingUlysses Owens, Jr. and Generation Y: A New Beat
by Jack Bowers
The rhythms presented on award-winning drummer Ulysses Owens Jr.'s latest album are not exactly A New Beat, as they have been heard in various configurations for at least eighty years or more, but they do provide a plausible indication of the path that Art Blakey's legendary Jazz Messengers would presumably have followed had Blakey lived into the twenty-first century. Owens, who teaches at the Juilliard School in New York City, has a knack for spotting and encouraging ...
Continue ReadingUlysses Owens, Jr. and Generation Y: A New Beat
by Glenn Astarita
A New Beat, crafted by the multi-Grammy award-winning drummer Ulysses Owens Jr. and his Generation Y outfit, materializes as a vivid emblem of jazz's evolving dynamics. This album, an amalgamation of nine tracks, epitomizes the fusion of classic jazz standards with inventive perspectives. Among its highlights, “Bird Lives" notably shines for its technical brilliance and tribute to jazz icons, striking a harmonious balance between honoring the past and embracing the new. This track, alongside the production's repertoire, demonstrates the ensemble's ...
Continue ReadingKerry Moffit: What Goes Around Comes Around
by Richard J Salvucci
Kerry Moffit's reputation in trumpet circles preceded him long before this recording. Like so many “you ought to hear this guy" types, one discounts friendships, hangs, boosters, and all the rest. Moffit, however, is “as advertised." There are quite a few people with underground reputations. Moffit's should be above ground. Listening to him, you might think, “ok, Tom Harrell," but then nobody is Tom Harrell except Tom Harrell. So, you are stuck for superlatives. As a player and composer, Moffit ...
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