Jazz Articles about Todd Groves

About Todd Groves

Album Review

The Justin Rothberg Group: Hurricane Mouse

Read "Hurricane Mouse" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers
January 25, 2021

The Justin Rothberg Group is a quintet led by the versatile New York-based guitarist who wrote eleven of the dozen numbers on the group's third CD, a diverse enterprise that covers a lot of ground, from funk, fusion and blues to rock, R&B and occasional mainstream jazz. Funk is the groove in which Rothberg's sometimes abrasive guitar most often lands, a stance that is abetted and reinforced by his solicitous teammates. Even though Rothberg's guitar—and mandolin—serve as ...

Album Review

Charles Pillow Ensemble: Chamber Jazz

Read "Chamber Jazz" reviewed by Jack Bowers

by Jack Bowers
April 29, 2020

Chamber Jazz, alto saxophonist Charles Pillow's eighth recording as leader of his ensemble, is a generally sedate but remarkably engaging series of tone poems that combine contemporary jazz with elements of classical music to produce a hybrid that underlines what is most harmonious and charming in each genre. Chamber Jazz is what it says, and chamber jazz is what it is. For comparison's sake, think of the ensemble as the Modern Jazz Quartet times five. True, there is no John ...