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Vince Tampio: Sound Plan
by Geno Thackara
Just about every musician has those moments when they get stuck in overly familiar territory or unsure where to turn next. When in doubt, it helps to consider: WWMDD (What Would Miles Davis Do)? If following the Chief's example (understandably) isn't a universal rule in real life, it's still a mostly good one in the musical ...
Esbjorn Svensson Trio: e.s.t. live in london
by Geno Thackara
Let's get the obligatory background recap out of the way first. The Esbjorn Svensson Trio was a one-of-a-kind outfit, their DNA encompassing an amorphous pop-classical-jazz-tronica mix that made all those things co-exist so naturally it was almost unnatural. For all their bold experimentalism in disregarding genres, sculpting song structures and often integrating processed sounds into the ...
E. J. Decker: Bluer Than Velvet: The Prysock Project
by Geno Thackara
E.J. Decker probably could write a book if they asked him--his shaping influences and history of musical collaborations (not to mention social activism) would make it a fascinating one indeed--but it would be so much nicer to hear him sing it. A voice smooth as, well, velvet (pardon the obvious simile) lets him put a rich ...
Steven Wilson at the Keswick Theater
by Geno Thackara
Steven Wilson The Keswick Theater Glenside, PA April 25, 2018 If rockers are usually supposed to slow down and lose their edge as they get older, Steven Wilson obviously missed the memo. He's a little way behind the departing or retiring rock royalty of the '70s (not that they've all become ...
Nik Bärtsch: Possibility in Paradox
by Geno Thackara
Like the master-less samurai his primary band is named for, Nik Bärtsch forges a path and follows a code all his own. The pianist's music is best described by his own key phrases ritual groove music" and Zen funk," merging Eastern minimalist simplicity and patient trance with the interplay and communal aspect of jazz. It makes ...
Andreas Varady: The Quest
by Geno Thackara
Early-career hype can be a peculiar mix of blessing and curse. Andreas Varady certainly deserves the praise he gets, and one could hardly ask for a more generous mentor and endorser than Quincy Jones ("It's not every day that you see a 15-year-old kid playing like George Benson!"). Pre-teen virtuosity and study of influences, however, inevitably ...
Glenn Zaleski: Solo vol. 1
by Geno Thackara
In a way every piano recording is alike, yet of course no matter how many are made, they're inevitably distinct--each performer (and indeed each piano) has a tone and a voice nothing else can duplicate. With a resume as impressive as Glenn Zaleski's, it's somewhat surprising this is his first trip showcasing that voice unaccompanied. He's ...
Ivo Neame: Moksha
by Geno Thackara
A solo album is generally a defining statement of identity, especially for musicians who juggle multiple outlets, but Ivo Neame has such a hard time sitting still that even he must have a hard time pinning down his sound for very long. His piano makes a key voice (pun unintended) in the Escape Hatch quartet and ...
Goldbug: Naacal
by Geno Thackara
When thinking of ancient civilizations, it's natural to start with, say, Sumerians or Egyptians. The Naacal aren't exactly first to leap to mind--not least because nobody knows if they actually existed. There was a certain amount of creative license in the earliest writings about pre-Mayan people in Central America and the lost continent of Mu. Barry ...
Minimalist Guitar: Clouds and Dreams
by Geno Thackara
Jakob Bro Returnings ECM Records 2018 Jakob Bro sounds quiet (even by his standards) on his third date for ECM, following up the aptly-titled Streams (ECM, 2016) with a recording even more spare and contemplative. His telepathy with favorite collaborator Thomas Morgan stays close as ever, while Palle Mikkelborg provides ...


