Home » Jazz Articles » Year in Review » John Kelman's Best Releases of 2012

15

John Kelman's Best Releases of 2012

By

View read count
2012 has been another banner year, but one with an ever-present problem: so much good music, but so little time. While there are many other recordings worthy of attention—and inclusion—with the usual condition that only albums that have been reviewed are eligible for selection, here are just a few of the top recorded events in jazz and beyond for 2012, in no particular order:

Jazz New Releases


Eivind Aarset
Dream Logic

(ECM)

Endresen/Westerhus
Didymoi Dreams

(Rune Grammofon)

Simcock / Garland / Sirkis
Lighthouse

(ACT)



Bugge Wesseltoft
Songs

(Jazzland)

Vloeimans/Weber
Live at the Concertgebouw

(Challenge)

Bobo Stenson
Indicum

(ECM)



Joel Harrison 7
Search

(Sunnyside)

Tim Berne
Snakeoil

(ECM)

Kurt Rosenwinkel
Star of Jupiter

(Wommusic)



Oregon
Family Tree

(Cam Jazz)

Nik Bärtch's Ronin
Live

(ECM)

Pat Metheny
Unity Band

(Nonesuch)



Brad Mehldau Trio
Ode

(Nonesuch)

Corea/Burton
Hot House

(Concord)

Tord Gustavsen Ensemble
The Well

(ECM)




Jazz Reissues & Historical Releases


Garbarek/Gismonti/Haden
Magico: Carte de Amore

(ECM)

Loose Tubes
Säd Afrika

(Lost Marble)

Jan Garbarek
Dansere

(ECM)



Jon Balke
Magnetic Works

(ECM)

Michael Gibbs/NDR
Back in the Days

(Cuneiform)

Keith Jarrett
Sleeper

(ECM)




Progressive/Fusion/Funk New Releases


Motorpsycho/Storløkken
The Death Defying Unicorn

(Rune Grammofon)

Alex Machacek
FAT

(Abstract Logix)

Steven Wilson
Get All You Deserve

(Kscope)



Wayne Krantz
Howie 61

(Abstract Logix)

Elephant9
Atlantis

(Rune Grammofon)

Michael Landau Group
Organic Instrumentals

(Tone Center)





Progressive/Fusion/Funk Reissues & Historical Releases


King Crimson
Larks Tongues in Aspic

(DGM Live)

The Brecker Brothers
Complete Arista Albums

(Legacy)

Allan Holdsworth
Hard Hat Area

(MoonJune)




New Discoveries (including new groups)


Ivar Grydeland
Bathymetric Modes

(Hubro)

Pessi/Wallumrød
If Grief Could Wait

(ECM)

Sheppard/Benita/Rochford
Trio Libero

(ECM)



Konitz/Frisell/Peacock/Baron
Enfants Terrible

(Half Note)

Metta Quintet
Big Drums / Small World

(Self Produced)

Niels Lyhne Lokkegaard
Vesper

(Self Produced)




Beyond: Is it jazz? Is it not? Does it really matter?


Farmers Market
Slav to the Rhythm

(Division Records)

Jan Bang/Erik Honoré
Uncommon Deities

(SamadhiSound)

Floratone
Floratone II

(Savoy Jazz)



Stian Westerhus
The Matriach and the Wrong Kind of Flower

(Rune Grammofon)

John Surman
Saltash Bells

(ECM)

Sweet Billy Pilgrim
Crown and Treaty

(Luxor Purchase)

Tags

Comments


PREVIOUS / NEXT




Support All About Jazz

Get the Jazz Near You newsletter All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.

More

Jazz article: Libero Farnè's Best Jazz Albums Of 2024
Jazz article: Giuseppe Segala's Best Jazz Albums Of 2024
Jazz article: Neri Pollastri's Best Jazz Albums Of 2024

Popular

Read Take Five with Pianist Irving Flores
Read Jazz em Agosto 2025
Read Bob Schlesinger at Dazzle
Read SFJAZZ Spring Concerts
Read Sunday Best: A Netflix Documentary
Read Vivian Buczek at Ladies' Jazz Festival

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.

Install All About Jazz

iOS Instructions:

To install this app, follow these steps:

All About Jazz would like to send you notifications

Notifications include timely alerts to content of interest, such as articles, reviews, new features, and more. These can be configured in Settings.