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Jazz Articles about Medeski Martin & Wood
About Medeski Martin & Wood
Instrument: Band / ensemble / orchestra
Medeski, Martin & Wood + Nels Cline: Woodstock Sessions, Vol. 2
by John Kelman
In retrospect, it was inevitable; why it took so long for veteran jazz jam band Medeski, Martin & Wood to get together with Nels Cline is anybody's guess. The über-guitarist has, since joining Wilco a decade ago, managed to significantly raise his visibility, but anybody who suggests that he's been “moonlighting" in the alt-country/alt-rock/alt-alt band to pay the rent hasn't been paying attention. Like keyboardist John Medeski, drummer Billy Martin and bassist Chris Wood, Cline's career has been largely associated ...
Continue ReadingMedeski, Martin & Wood feat. Nels Cline
by Paolo Peviani
Blue Note Milano 08.04.2014 Erano anni che non assistevo ad un concerto strutturato in questo modo. Primo brano: una quarantina di minuti di serrato pedale. Secondo brano: cinque minuti abbondanti di sola batteria, seguiti da altrettanti minuti di solo contrabbasso, prima di entrare in media re, ovvero in un altro pedalone di circa venti minuti. E con questo, fine del concerto. Non manca certo il coraggio al trio Medeski, Martin ...
Continue ReadingMedeski, Martin & Wood: Free Magic: Live
by Mark Corroto
Free Magic: Live is the first release of by trio Medeski Martin & Wood from its third decade of existence. Maybe I should repeat that. This disc is by a jazz band that has remained intact for more than 21 years. Like a family, the trio has born musical genres, specifically the infamous jamband phenomena, matured, and branched out from electric to eclectic.Perhaps MMW's greatest contribution to modern jazz was its DIY touring philosophy. Like punk bands of ...
Continue ReadingMedeski, Martin & Wood: Sound Sculpting
by Thomas Carroll
Progressive keyboard trio Medeski, Martin & Wood has helped redefine the boarder where musical genres meet since the group's inception over 20 years ago. MMW has experimented with everything from song structure to acoustic-electric instrumental blends, all while appealing to both jazz-specific and mainstream audiences. Free Magic (Indirecto, 2012) is a fine example of MMW's exploratory spirit.Free Magic is five tracks of extended play taken from performances in 2007, when the band was on its first ever all-acoustic ...
Continue ReadingMedeski, Martin & Wood: 20
by Doug Collette
Medeski, Martin & Wood20Indirecto Records2012In an ongoing celebration of its twentieth anniversary, Medeski Martin & Wood released twenty original recordings in digital form over the course of 2011. Sequenced in the order in which the tracks were released, the collection as a whole flows with the expert pacing of an MMW performance and, in truth, with much the same artful pacing as their best studio albums, such as Combustication (Blue Note, 1999).
Continue ReadingMedeski Scofield Martin & Wood: In Case The World Changes Its Mind
by John Kelman
With significant pressure on artists to look for new territory to mine and new collaborations to explore, it's always great to see those that have worked well kept as ongoing concerns, like guitarist John Scofield's first-encounter with jam band darlings Medeski, Martin & Wood on the superb A Go Go (Verve, 1998). The now-named Medeski Scofield Martin & Wood still reconvenes occasionally, with its follow-up, Out Louder (Indirecto, 2006), a more free-wheeling alternative to its predecessor's focus on Scofield's particularly ...
Continue ReadingMedeski, Martin and Wood: Radiolarians - The Evolutionary Set
by Sean Patrick Fitzell
Medeski Martin & WoodRadiolarians: The Evolutionary SetIndirecto Records2009 In an age when jazz is usually driven by individuals and fleeting lineups, the ability of Medeski, Martin and Wood (MMW) to sustain and reinvigorate their collective creativity for nearly 20 years is astounding. Never risk-averse--whether jamming with turntablists or flouting expectations with an all-acoustic record and tour--they've kept the music fresh for themselves and their listeners. So it wasn't ...
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