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Warriors of the Wonderful Sound: Soundpath
by Mark Corroto
If we alter President John F. Kennedy's 1962 moon spaceflight speech just a bit, it easily fits the big band adaptation of Muhal Richard Abrams' magnum opus Soundpath, “We choose to perform this composition not because it is easy, but because it is hard, because that goal will serve to organize and measure the best of ...
Cortex: Legal Tender
by Mark Corroto
The Norwegian quartet Cortex answers the question, what would have happened if the Wynton Marsalis and Branford Marsalis, had advanced the jazz canon instead of looking backwards for inspiration. Remember when the two young lions burst onto the scene in the 1980s with their self-righteous mission to save jazz? They did so by stuffing it, much ...
Space Quartet: Directions
by Mark Corroto
Listen closely to Directions by Rafael Toral's Space Quartet and try to ignore the voice in your head of June Tyson chanting, “space is the place, space is the place." While this is an instrumental production and Toral was born more than fifty years after Sun Ra, a similar aura permeates these six tracks. It's not ...
Paul Bley Trios: Touching & Blood Revisited
by Mark Corroto
Pianist Paul Bley (1932—2016) wasn't just a witness to jazz history, he was a key contributor. Bley performed with Lester Young, Charlie Parker, Charles Mingus, and Sonny Rollins, yet his true sound was set in motion when he performed with Ornette Coleman in California, evidenced by Live At The Hillcrest Club 1958 (America Records, 1971). While ...
José Lencastre / Jorge Nuno / Felipe Zenícola / João Valinho: Anthropic Neglect
by Mark Corroto
Shall we choose a name for the quartet behind the release Anthropic Neglect? The four Portuguese musicians—saxophonist José Lencastre, guitarist Jorge Nuno, bassist Felipe Zenícola, and drummer João Valinho— might best operate under the moniker Lava Dome. The sounds created here are not unlike the molten and semifluid volcanic rock that simmers and seethes, constantly threatening ...
Marta Warelis / Frank Rosaly / Aaron Lumley / John Dikeman: Sunday At De Ruimte
by Mark Corroto
Is it a pilgrimage or just magnetism that draws improvising artists to Amsterdam? If you've read Kevin Whitehead's book New Dutch Swing (Billboard Books, 1998), you'll understand the open atmosphere and creative jazz scene which began there in the 1960s. It was a scene sown by America's New Thing in free jazz, but also one that ...
The Pandemic Sessions: Duos, Part 1
by Mark Corroto
After the initial shock of the COVID-19 crisis and subsequent lockdown, artists did what artists do. Unable to tour, many musicians created solo projects. Musicians, like other sentient beings though, crave contact, so when some of the most severe restrictions lifted, duos were formed and production returned. These small positive steps (note: some were recorded before ...
William Parker: Mayan Space Station
by Mark Corroto
The immediate impact of the recording Mayan Space Station is that of a sheer out-and-out physicality presented by this music. While it is obvious the musicians—guitarist Ava Mendoza, bassist William Parker and drummer Gerald Cleaver—are engaged in the nonautomatic operation of their respective musical instruments, their Herculean efforts are conspicuous. While rarely recognized, credit must be ...
Silke Everhard Trio: Being The Up And Down
by Mark Corroto
Sometimes one must pass through the flames to get free. That thought has shadowed the career of Silke Eberhard. The saxophonist has been consumed with the firebrands Eric Dolphy, Charles Mingus, and Ornette Coleman for years now. She has recorded Dolphy's complete oeuvre with her band Potsa Lotsa, both in small and large configurations. Covered Mingus ...
The J. & F. Band: Me And The Devil
by Mark Corroto
We are back to the whippin' post with Me And The Devil, the fourth Allman Brothers-inspired release from Long Song Records, and the third by The J&F Band; and while it is far from being a guilty pleasure, the music does beg to be heard at high volume. In 2016, drummer Tiziano Tononi, bassist ...
