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Yazz Ahmed: Polyhymnia
by Chris May
The British-Bahraini trumpeter, flugelhornist and composer Yazz Ahmed went clear in 2017 with La Saboteuse (Naim). The album is an otherworldly mix of jazz, electronics and Arabic folk music which carries traces of Miles Davis' In A Silent Way (Columbia, 1969) and Bitches Brew (Columbia, 1970) and Jon Hassell's Dream Theory In Malaya: Fourth World Volume ...
Charu Suri: The Book Of Ragas
by Dan McClenaghan
Charu Suri takes piano jazz and combines it with the sounds of her native India on The Book Of Ragas. The set is a freshening of the format, with vocalist Apoorva Mudgal, a performer of ghazals (lyric poems) and Sufi music, contributing. Suri first recording, 2019's Lollipops For For Breakfast (Amala Records), took its ...
Yuriy Galkin: ...For Its Beauty Alone
by Mark Corroto
There has to be a term for recordings you listen to for the sidemen, but repeat for its leader. Let's call it 'bait and swing.' A perfect example is ...For Its Beauty Alone by Yuriy Galkin. The bassist's second release pares down the nonet heard on Nine Of A Kind (F-IRE, 2012) to just four. But ...
Skyjack: The Hunter
by Friedrich Kunzmann
This South African / Swiss combo might seem like an unlikely pairing on paper, but turns out to be more than fruitful on record. The Hunter represents the sophomore effort by the collaboration between Swiss winds Marc Stucki and Andreas Tschopp and the South African rhythm section made up of Shane Cooper and Kesivan Naidoo on ...
Doug MacDonald & the Tarmac Ensemble: Jazz Marathon 4: Live at Hangar 18
by Jack Bowers
As befits a Jazz Marathon, guitarist Doug MacDonald's Live at Hangar 18 embodies not one but two CDs, complete with shifting personnel and groups that range from quintet to septet. This is the fourth in a recorded series of marathons conceived by producer Don Thomson and led by MacDonald with a supporting cast that boasts a ...
Sloth Racket: Dismantle Yourself
by John Sharpe
Dismantle Yourself is the fifth release by British baritone saxophonist Cath Roberts' outfit Sloth Racket since its inception in 2015. From the hand-printed sleeves and accompanying zine to the shapeshifting compositions, a home-crafted feel pervades the album, which extends to the punkish bristle exuded even in the quieter moments. Roberts has developed a template for small ...
Jim Robitaille Group: A View From Within
by Dan Bilawsky
Jim Robitaille Group's A View From Within is a statement of extension and growth, building on the magic of the unit's debut—To Music (Whaling City Sound, 2004). For that earlier release, the guitarist fronted a flexible quintet elevated by his own harmonic savvy and the presence of saxophonist Dave Liebman. Here, speaking both to continuity and ...
Mats Aleklint/Per-Ake Holmlander/Paal Nilssen-Love: Fish & Steel
by Karl Ackermann
PNL Records was started in 2007 by Norwegian jazz drummer Paal Nilssen-Love to release his recordings as a solo artist, with his big band Large Unit, and in collaborations with other artists. Fish & Steel is the self-titled debut from the trio of trombonist Mats Åleklint, tuba player Per-Äke Holmlander, and Nilssen-Love. All three are part ...
Roger Kellaway: The Many Open Minds Of Roger Kellaway
by Jack Bowers
Criticize pianist Roger Kellaway? You must be kidding. Describe Roger Kellaway? That's a fair bet and far more advisable. Kellaway, who is eighty years old as this is being written, embodies the boundless exuberance, creative power and impeccable technique of any player half his age, all of which he displays unfailingly on The Many Open Minds ...
Tom Tallitsch: Ten
by David A. Orthmann
Ten is a recording that resides and functions well in a stylistic no man's land. Tenor and soprano saxophonist Tom Tallitsch and his clever band display little interest in paying homage to easily recognizable jazz styles; yet, they don't make a point of abandoning traditional practices either. Taking a stab at some basic descriptions of some ...
