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Nicolas Meier/ Dewa Budjana Group: Flying Spirits
by Jim Worsley
As much as 2020 was a lemon, it was quite the fruitful year for jazz and fusion records. The vault had been closed, sealed, and bolted shut for the year, until a spirit swept the room. Under the heading of 'saving the best for last' or a 'hail Mary,' the magical journey of Flying Spirits (Blue ...
Adrabesa Quartet: Phoenix
by Dan Bilawsky
Slovenian saxophonist Vasko Atanasovski has a gift for marrying seemingly disparate sounds, styles and cultures, as demonstrated on this compelling date. Binding virtuoso Italian accordionist Simone Zanchini, French tuba titan Michel Godard and Polish drumming force Bodek Janke, and enhancing the scenery with the presence of his son, guest cellist Ariel Vei Atanasovski, this leader erases ...
The JCA Orchestra: Live At The BPC
by Jerome Wilson
The JCA Orchestra has been an important part of the Boston jazz scene since it formed in 1985. Several of its recordings are dominated by the compositions of its leader, Darrell Katz, but this live concert from the Berklee Performance Center features works by several orchestra members other than Katz and gives a fuller picture of ...
Little Freddie King: The New Orleans Collection: Going Upstairs
by Pierre Giroux
Newvelle Records, which was established in 2015, believes that in this digital age there is an opportunity to build a new model for creating and distributing music. Each year, Newvelle releases a series of six albums, exclusively on vinyl, that pairs musicians with celebrated artists, writers and poets. The New Orleans Collection contains four single sleeve ...
Meridian Odyssey: Second Wave
by Dan McClenaghan
Seattle's Origin Records opened 2021 on a hopeful, turning-of-the-page note with Second Wave, by the group Meridian Odyssey. The band comprised five young (twenty-something) Seattle-ites who took advantage of the time on their collective hands, and the low air fares resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, to journey to Alaska, where guitarist Martin Budde's fathera pilotowns an ...
Rick Stepton: The Placebone Effect
by Nicholas F. Mondello
On an August day and in midst and darkness of a global pandemic, five New England jazz musicians under the leadership of trombonist Rick Stepton entered a Massachusetts studio and let it all fly. The result? The Placebone Effect, a fine collection of workhorse standards along with a Stepton original, performed with verve, style, taste and ...
Dave Rempis: Stringers & Struts
by John Sharpe
Chicago-based reedman Dave Rempis has hit such a peak of consistency that the number of stars awarded to any particular outing is more down to personal preference than any variation in quality. He's in control of his own destiny as most of his output flows from his own Aerophonic imprint. And he's achieved another high point ...
Irma Thomas: The New Orleans Collection: Love Is The Foundation
by Pierre Giroux
Newvelle Records, which was established in 2015, believes that in this digital age there is an opportunity to build a new model for creating and distributing music. Each year, Newvelle releases a series of six albums, exclusively on vinyl, that pairs musicians wth celebrated artists, writers and poets. The New Orleans Collection contains four single sleeve ...
Brian Charette: Like the Sun
by Dan Bilawsky
With time on his hands, neurons firing fast and a serious hankering for tinkering, organist and keyboard whiz Brian Charette created what can best be described as an integrated groove orchestrion with catholic tastes. Using samplers, drum machines and arpeggiators programmed to react to and accompany his playing, Charette birthed a man-meets-machine outfit bent on exploring ...
Laraaji: Through Luminous Eyes
by Mark Sullivan
Ambient/New Age veteran Laraaji is best known for his meditative electrified zither playing, His first broad exposure came with the Brian Eno-produced Ambient 3: Day of Radiance (Editions EG, 1980). Recently he returned to the piano--his first instrument--on Sun Piano and Moon Piano (Self Produced, 2020). Although he considers the EP Through Luminous Eyes to be ...

