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Results for "Two for the Show Media"
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 ...
Jeff Williams: Lifelike
by Mike Jurkovic
Sounding as real as real gets, Lifelike's forward thinking drummer/composer Jeff Williams' heady sextet sure sound like they're all sitting in on a late night, cramped back room cutting session, with each player challenging, coaxing the other to new heights and horizons. Williams, an alumni of such name drops as Stan Getz, Dave Liebman, ...
Carl Michel: Music in Motian
by Mike Jurkovic
Late drummer, texturalist, bandleader, and composer Paul Motian holds a revered space in the post-bop of the last half century. From early stints with Lennie Tristano and Coleman Hawkins to his seared-into-legend work with Bill Evans on Sunday at the Village Vanguard (Riverside Records, 1961), and Waltz for Debby (Riverside Records, 1962)); through his fiery live ...
Hiroaki Honshuku's Racha Fora: Happy Fire - New Kind of Jazz
by Troy Dostert
There's certainly no shortage of self-confidence in a musician who decides to subtitle an album New Kind of Jazz, as does Hiroaki Honshuku on the third release by his jazz fusion band Racha Fora. The group does possess a distinctive sound, to be sure, in large part due to its instrumentation: with Honshuku the dominant presence ...
Kayo Hiraki: Manhattan Sunset
by Mike Jurkovic
Like a fine lemon sorbet, Manhattan Sunset, the sixth album from pianist and veteran NY presence Kayo Hiraki, is that refreshing, necessary pause between courses that enables you to fully enjoy the vast jazz menu. With an airy, elegant touch, tangible zeal and seasoned respect for her art, Hiraki leads her tried-and-true sidemen, bassist ...
Dafnis Prieto Big Band: Back to the Sunset
by Troy Dostert
The astonishingly talented and prolific drummer Dafnis Prieto has done a lot since moving to the States from his native Cuba in 1999. He's made a host of sideman appearances with musicians of widely varying stripes, including Peter Apfelbaum, Michel Camilo, Steve Coleman, Marilyn Lerner, Brian Lynch, Henry Threadgill, Chucho Valdés, and John Zorn. He won ...
Manuel Valera: The Planets
by Mike Jurkovic
Cuban-born pianist Manuel Valera is not unknown to jazz-heads who make it their business to listen and champion. But, since his acclaimed 2004 debut Forma Nueva, a couple of Grammy nods, and last year's quietly brilliant The Seasons, Valera's name and exciting blend of culture, tradition, and progression has spread deservedly like wildfire through the larger ...
Dafnis Prieto: Back to the Sunset
by Patrick Burnette
Back to the Sunset, the new album by the Dafnis Prieto Big Band opens with “Una Vez Mas," a fairly traditional Latin big band workout. Don't let that fool you--this is not your padre's Latin jazz album. Half way through the decidedly more mysterioso second track, “The Sooner the Better," it's amply apparent that Prieto is ...
Winter 2018
by Doug Collette
Blues Deluxe is a regular column comprised of pithy takes on recent blues and roots-music releases of note. It spotlights titles in those genres that might otherwise go unnoticed under the cultural radar. Logan Magness Memphis On My Mind Wolf River Records 2018 The core four musicians ...
Vito Liturri: From Beyond
by Mike Jurkovic
With every note suspended luxuriously in the air so you can savor its resonance, this sonorously produced and beautifully played second recording from the Vito Liturri Trio is, from “Albe's Garden" to “An Empty Room" (all titles English translations) a delicious listen. The trio -Vito Liturri--piano, synth, electronics, Marco Boccia--double bass, and drummer/percussionist Lello ...
