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Lina Allemano Four: Pipe Dream
by Troy Dostert
Recorded in the winter of 2021 during the heart of the COVID pandemic, it is understandable that Pipe Dream, the latest offering from the Lina Allemano Four, has an air of ominous foreboding. Indeed, much of the album is devoted to the “Plague Diaries," a suite inspired by some of the darker themes of that period (with song titles like “Hunger and Murder" and “Doom and Doomer" giving an indication of what is in store). But like all of Allemano's ...
read moreCarn Davidson 9: The History of Us
by Jack Bowers
From north of the U.S. border comes The History of Us, a warm-hearted album by the Carn Davidson 9, a Toronto-based nonet co-led by trombonist William Carn and saxophonist Tara Davidson. The album consists of a pair of three-part suites, one by Carn, the other by Davidson, separated by Carn's amiable composition, “Goodbye Old Friend," a fond salute to his late and dearly loved cat, Murphy. Carn's “Finding Home" suite, which leads things off, was inspired by ...
read moreLina Allemano Four: Vegetables
by Troy Dostert
Trumpeter Lina Allemano is one of those artists whose boundless creativity requires numerous outlets for its adequate expression. Her Ohrenschmaus trio is a hard-driving unit that possesses a tenacious energy but somehow leaves room for adventitious excursions. The group's Rats and Mice (Lumo Records) was one of 2020's most intriguing releases. She's also an intrepid innovator on her instrument, particularly renowned for using a range of mutes that expand the options available for her artistry, heard to fine effect on ...
read moreAndrew Downing: Otterville
by Dan McClenaghan
Canada's Downing clan hails from the Ontario tobacco belt town, Otterville. Andrew Downing--bassist/cellist/composer--home-ported in Toronto now, celebrates the familial stomping grounds with a two CD set laid down by a sextet, plus guests, of an unusual instrumentation. It's an immersion into the simplicity and tranquility of the out-of-the-way, small town experience. Each of the tunes takes the baton from one of the great American tune-smith's--Gershwin, Mercer, Dizzy Gillespie, Jerome Kern, and more--by borrowing bits from classic songs and ...
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