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Ricardo Toscano: Quartet
by Ian Patterson
The debut recording as leader of alto saxophonist Ricardo Toscano might not have the most Google-friendly title, but it reflects the importance of the unit with whom this rising star of Portuguese jazz has played since 2014. Indirectly, perhaps, it could also be read as a tribute to John Coltrane's classic quartet, which seems to be ...
Andreas Haddeland Trio: Nyskudd
by Dan McClenaghan
Norwegian guitarist Andreas Haddeland's second trio recording, Nyskudd, is an unpretentious affair. The group improvises inside a melodic landscape, creating something that might be called Nordic country sounds. The group dynamic embraces equality on input and a gorgeous interplay within balladic and atmospheric compositions. Haddeland's guitar wouldn't sound out of place in an American ...
Alex Harding - Lucian Ban: Dark Blue
by Glenn Astarita
Lucian Ban (piano) and Alex Harding (woodwinds) have performed and recorded together for 20-years besides their prominent activities within global progressive jazz and improvisational circles. The universal language of jazz is conveyed here as Detroit-reared Harding and the Romanian born pianist gel to a variety of tempos amid solstice, reflective sentiment, off-centered blues balladry and bouncy ...
Jesse Byrom-Carter: The Next Tomorrow Is Yesterday
by Jakob Baekgaard
Like many great musicians before him, Australian bassist Jesse Byrom-Carter traveled to New York to become a part of one of the toughest and most vibrant jazz scenes in the world. He spent three and half years in the city and formed vital connections. His debut as leader, The Next Tomorrow Is Yesterday, was recorded during ...
Laurence Pike: Holy Spring
by Gareth Thompson
Most artists in any medium have a need of sunlight, or at least the promise of it. Percussionist Laurence Pike is one third of Szun Waves, a jazzy crossover act whose emergence has been widely acclaimed. On his second solo album Pike is in thrall to spring, the harbinger of summer, though it feels as much ...
Martin Archer: Another Fantastic Individual
by Matt Parker
This album is perhaps slightly less immediate than some of Martin Archer's other recent releases, such as the eponymous debut album of the Krautrock-esque trio Das Rad, but no less essential and, perhaps, in a sense, more impressive given that it was performed in its entirety by Archer alone. Another Fantastic Individual is a ...
Joe Policastro Trio: Nothing Here Belongs
by Dan Bilawsky
Everything belongs here on Nothing Here Belongs, the first Joe Policastro Trio album to focus primarily on original material. The three previous outings from this Chicago-based outfit sold themselves with a pliable approach to covers. On West Side Story Suite (Self Produced, 2013) it was an expansive brush with Bernstein; with Pops! (Self Produced, 2016) the ...
The Art Ensemble of Chicago: We Are On The Edge: A 50th Anniversary Celebration
by Karl Ackermann
Bassist Malachi Favors, trumpeter Lester Bowie and saxophonist Joseph Jarman have all passed on, leaving the Art Ensemble of Chicago's remaining original members, saxophonist Roscoe Mitchell and drummer Famoudou Don Moye, to rebuild. We Are on the Edge is a double-CD package; it is a fifty-year celebration of the group, and a dedication to the departed ...
Ryan Whyman: Fantasies & Memories
by Paul Naser
In times like these, when the world seems to be changing so quickly, it feels like happy memories are among the few things we can rely on for comfort. The face of an old friend; the recollection of days spent with loved ones; the excitement of hopes and dreams. Yet, time stops for no-one and, though ...
Benny Lackner Trio: Drake
by Dan McClenaghan
Pianist Benny Lackner was born in Germany, but moved to the United States at thirteen years of age. He spent his formative years in California, and received his BFA from the California Institute of the Arts. Studies with pianist Brad Mehldau followed. Then, at thirty years of age, Lackner returned to Berlin from his adopted New ...
