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Liberty Ellman Trio at Crescent Arts Centre

By IAN PATTERSON

Liberty Ellman Trio Crescent Arts Centre jny:Belfast, N. Ireland April 13, 2018 Liberty Ellman was short his pedals for this Moving On Music gig at Crescent Arts Centre--lost somewhere in transit--but he certainly wasn't short of musical ideas during a constantly engaging ninety-minute set. With four releases in twenty years Ellman maybe isn't the most prolific of leaders yet this only tells part of the story, for the New York-based guitarist--a cornerstone of ...

Francesco Turrisi: Northern Migrations

By IAN PATTERSON

For his fifth album as leader Dublin-based Italian pianist Francesco Turrisi strikes out on his own with his first solo piano recording--a format he's well used to in a live setting. These thirteen compositions/improvisations were inspired by his family's migration north from Sicily to Turin, and subsequently by his own northern migrations--first to The Netherlands where he graduated in jazz and baroque music and then to Ireland where he has made his home. As with Turrisi's outstanding debut Si Dolce ...

Dominic Lash & Seth Cooke: Egregore

By JOHN EYLES

Making their Intonema debut here, the occasional duo of Dominic Lash and Seth Cooke dates back to 2013. Egregore is their third album release, following PACT (1000 füssler, 2014) and Canary (Hideous Replica, 2015). However, anyone familiar with those releases and/or Lash's other work may be surprised by this new album as he does not play double bass at all here, opting instead for electronics throughout while Cooke is heard on cymbals and microphones. Their new label may be the ...

Steve Gadd Band At Lavanderia A Vapore In Collegno

By CARLO MOGAVERO

Jeff Williams: Lifelike

By MIKE JURKOVIC

Sounding as real as real gets, Lifelike's forward thinking drummer/composer Jeff Williams' heady sextet sure sound like they're all sitting in on a late night, cramped back room cutting session, with each player challenging, coaxing the other to new heights and horizons. Williams, an alumni of such name drops as Stan Getz, Dave Liebman, Ted Curson, Lee Konitz and Joe Lovano, knows a thing or twenty about assembling and writing for hot bands and Lifelike, recorded live last ...

Michael Feinberg: Whatever Possessed Me

By DON PHIPPS

Tribute bands are glowingly appreciated by fans of great rock acts; perhaps it's time jazz fans got with it! Michael Feinberg's Whatever Possessed Me is a dedication to the works and sound of John Coltrane and his classic quartet with McCoy Tyner, Jimmy Garrison, and Elvin Jones. The performances on this album are so good, one can imagine Coltrane's ghost hovering overhead and nodding approvingly. Feinberg has chosen some prime selections from the bop lexicon to infuse with ...

The Who: Live At The Fillmore East 1968

By DOUG COLLETTE

For long-time fans of the the Who acquainted with the less-than-stellar audio quality of bootlegs that have circulated over the years, this two-CD (and three-vinyl LP )fiftieth-anniversary set Live at the Fillmore East 1968 will no doubt be a revelation. Those more casual followers who may only know of the iconic British group as of their widespread commercial breakthrough in the form of Tommy (MCA, 1969) will quite possibly be more astonished-and on multiple fronts-hearing the quartet's stage show before ...

Terence Blanchard: Live

By MIKE JURKOVIC

As trumpeter Terence Blanchard is wont to do, he blends spoken word, rock, funk, the electrified, the experimental, the second line, the bop, blues, and hip hop on the swaggering, often staggering, Live, his latest Blue Note release. Bidding us to ..."find our voices..." Marcus Miller's “Hannibal" evolves from a floating piano intro (courtesy of Fabian Almazan) into a Zappa-like wash of horns, synths, and lots of guitar, bass 'n' drums. The music swims, the horn heralds and ...

David Ake: Humanities

By DAVID A. ORTHMANN

The group that pianist/composer David Ake assembles for Humanities thrives on change and doesn't care all that much for boundaries, familiar stylistic references, or decorum. Distinctions between written material and improvisation, soloists and accompaniment, are subject to transformation, collapse, consolidation and mutation. Nothing stays on exactly the same course for very long. Featuring Ake, Ralph Alessi's trumpet, Ben Monder's guitar, Drew Gress' bass, and the drums and cymbals of Mark Ferber, the band offers a steady diet of shifts in ...

Anna Kolchina: Wild Is The Wind

By C. MICHAEL BAILEY

Anna Kolchina's debut Wild is the Wind is a masterclass in ensemble performance. Backed by pianist John Di Martino, bassist Peter Washington, and drummer Willie Jones, Kolchina is more an equal quartet member than a singer backed by a trio. This is experienced immediately on the title piece, where Kolchina's delicately-played voice peeks out from behind Washington's gentle bass playing as it directs the remainder of the arrangement. It is a stunningly organic musical effect that increases the intimacy of ...