OUT FRIDAY: Sam Pilnick’s Nonet Project's THE ADLER SUITE via Outside in Music

Next Level Announces the Release of Sam Pilnick’s Nonet Project’s

First Full-Length Album, The Adler Suite, Inspired by Chicago’s Iconic Adler Planetarium

Due out July 9, 2021

Next Level, an imprint of Outside in Music, is pleased to announce the first studio release from saxophonist, multi-instrumentalist and music educator Sam Pilnick’s steadfast ensemble ‘Sam Pilnick’s Nonet Project’. On this ardent debut release, The Adler Suite, the Chicago-based bandleader takes his listeners on a trip to outer space with his nine-movement suite inspired by the Windy City’s scenic Adler Planetarium. Alongside Pilnick, this space odyssey features alto saxophonist Max Bessesen, baritone saxophonist Ted Hogarth, trumpeter Emily Kuhn, trombonist Euan Edmonds, guitarist Ben Cruz, pianist Meghan Stagl, bassist Ben Dillinger and drummer Matthew Smalligan.

This stunning display of compositional acuity from Sam Pilnick was sparked by the artist’s 2017 trip to the Adler Planetarium as a chaperone for a school trip. A recent transplant to Chicago, Pilnick was struck by the sight of the Adler’s rounded dome of marble sitting on its perch at the end of the museum campus, overlooking views of the city and of Lake Michigan and the sky above. Pilnick notes, “As we entered The Adler, I was immediately inspired to write music, as I saw the original space craft that brought home the astronauts from the Gemini II mission and various other exhibits. Reading the explanations of our planet, solar system and galaxy filled my mind with musical thoughts. Over the next two years, I would venture back to the Adler to find inspiration for what would now be known as The Adler Suite.”

Following Sam’s small group three EP releases East Coast Transplant (2017), Pure Imagination (2018) and Skylark (2019), the ensemble’s first full-length studio release features a cohesive unit made up of longtime collaborators with a shared passion for small group improvisations and the desire to explore different timbral experiences while utilizing jazz instrumentation. On this spirited release, Pilnick achieves the lush harmonies and rich interplay of a big band in a smaller, tight-knit outfit. 

The Adler Suite derives its titles and inspiration from celestial musings that Pilnick acquired from his trips to the Adler. “Squawk Box”, the album’s opening track, is a term used for the one-way radios that the families of astronauts would listen to at home for updates about the launch. Flirting with the melody of Richard Strauss’s “Also Sprach Zarathustra”, used as the theme to the film 2001: A Space Odyssey, the piece attempts to capture the feeling of being transported outside of our planet’s orbit in a spacecraft, as well as being a worried family member on the other end of the ‘squawk box’, eagerly awaiting news of your loved one’s safety. The track features wonderful solos from pianist Meghan Stagl and baritone saxophonist Ted Hogarth, with thoughtful comping from Stagl and guitarist Ben Cruz.

“Launch” demonstrates this group’s ability to swing deeply. This composition is a contrafact of “Star Eyes”, a nod to the uptempo, angular post-bop jazz era of the 1960’s, contemporary to the beginnings of space travel. The track prominently features Pilnick who demonstrates tremendous melodic invention over the tune’s bright-tempoed changes. “Revolving Twins”, Pilnick notes, “is based on a concept I learned at the Adler. In space, there are stars that revolve around each other. Due to the nature and energy of these stars, they merge together and eventually explode! When developing this song, I wanted the listener to feel like they were spinning around another star. This is achieved with a linear looping bass figure, contrapuntal melodies between groups of two instruments and a drum concept that utilizes the colors of the cymbals. All of these melodic sounds continue to revolve around each other throughout the movement just as the two stars do in space.”

“Silver Light” is a feature for trumpeter Emily Kuehn and is a tribute to Venus. The composer notes, “The ballad style of the composition allowed me to write a melody that would allow Emily to be melodic as well as being open for counter melodies and open chordal backgrounds. I really love Emily’s playing and am thrilled to be able to give her a moment in this project to really shine.” The piece is a tremendous indicator of the outfit’s nuance and dynamic sensibilities. “House of the Massives” is based on a photo of the star system called “Pismis-24”, a profound image of stars 6,500 light-years away. Compositionally, the piece is inspired by the rock music that Pilnick grew up listening to. The track features wonderful solos by Cruz, alto saxophonist Max Bessesen, and Pilnick.

“Expanding Universe” and “Falling Backwards” are the final two tunes in the suite and are performed back-to-back without pause. “Expanding Universe” is based on the exhibit at the Adler of the same name. The exhibit explains the concept of the big bang and the concept that space and matter is always expanding from the center of the universe. “Falling Backwards” was written about the original Gemini 12 Spacecraft, which is housed at the Planetarium. Pilnick remarks “More specifically this piece is about their literal “falling back” to Earth in a spacecraft that is less technically advanced than my iPhone… As the astronauts are free falling back to earth, there are sudden moments in which they come to the realization that they are not in a film, but falling fast to the earth. These moments are characterized by thrashing, dissonant moments in ⅞ time to emphasize the reality of reentering the earth’s atmosphere in a small metal pod.”

1. Squawk Box

2. Space Launch

3. Revolving Twins

4. Silver Light

5. Constant Companion

6. House of the Massives (Pismus-24)

7. A Light Year

8. Expanding Universe

9. Falling Backwards

All songs and compositions by Sam Pilnick (BMI)

Produced by Sam Pilnick

Assisted by Akshat Jain

Recorded at Electrical Audio, Chicago, IL February 2020

Recorded and Mixed by Scott Steinman, Studio Media Recording Co, Evanston, IL

Mastered by: Dave Darlington, Bass Hit Studio, NYC, New York

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The Horizon Quartet (s / Dan Wilkins, James Collins, Gene Perla, Byron Landham) Release Their Self-titled Debut Via PM Records

Producers Dan Wilkins, James Collins, and Jeff Hiatt, along with Gene Perla and PM Records, are proud to announce the self-titled debut release from Horizons Quartet

Co-founded by Wilkins and Collins, the quartet’s youngest members, and anchored by a pair of their jazz heroes, drummer Byron Landham and bassist Gene Perla, Horizons Quartet is the consummate endorsement of multigenerational collaboration. 

Each of the album’s eight original tunes has been composed by Wilkins, a Manhattan School of Music-trained saxophonist and composer from Pennsylvania’s jazz-rich Lehigh Valley. Though not yet 30, Wilkins has toured and recorded extensively with his father, the pianist Skip Wilkins, a longtime professor of music at Easton’s (Pa.) Lafayette College and part of the legendary cast of regulars to count the Deer Head Inn, in nearby Delaware Water Gap, as their home hit.

It was at that iconic venue as an adolescent that the younger Wilkins became inspired not just to become a jazz instrumentalist, but a composer, too, citing a 2007 performance and masterclass given by Dave Liebman and pianist/saxophonist Marc Copland at the Deer Head that “opened [my] mind to the rich world of harmony and composition.”

In the years since, Wilkins has regularly toured central Europe with his father—the latter plays the region so regularly that he maintains a residence in Prague—and the two have recorded three albums together, Father and Son (2012), Someday (2019) and Czech Wishes (2019).

Now, on Horizons Quartet, Wilkins proves exceedingly prepared to lead his own recording date—though it never hurts having a supporting cast like this. Collins, heard here playing acoustic grand piano and—on “The Blade’s Proposition” and “Gaia’s Blessing”— Fender Rhodes, has been gigging with Wilkins in and around Philadelphia since 2015. When he and Wilkins decided to put a quartet together, they knew they wanted to round out the rhythm section with the caliber of musicians that had inspired them to start playing jazz in the first place. Collins had been inspired by celebrated Philly-based drummer Byron Landham even before studying at Temple University, where Landham’s on faculty. The young Collins used to sit at Ortlieb’s, the old Philadelphia jazz club that was part breeding ground, part crucible for generations of Philly musicians, and “soak up the music from the masters, taking particular cues from Landham’s musicianship.”

Landham’s exported that musicianship throughout the jazz world, touring and recording with, among so many others, celebrated chanteuse Betty Carter, the stately tenorman Houston Person, and, perhaps most prominently, and frequently, with Hammond organist and fellow Philly native Joey DeFrancesco, even producing DeFrancesco’s Grammy-nominated tribute to Michael Jackson, Never Can Say Goodbye (2010).

But the biggest coup might’ve been adding venerable bassist Gene Perla, another Deer Head alum, who, in addition to playing with Sarah Vaughan, Jimmy Cobb and Miles Davis, played alongside Dave Liebman on Elvin Jones’ immortal Live at the Lighthouse (1973). On that gig, Liebman told him he was looking for the right label to release his then-new live album, Open Sky (1973). So Perla started a record label, PM Records, and Open Sky was its inaugural release. Today, it’s the very same label, Perla’s PM Records, that’s released this debut. It’s a veritable miracle—even at 81, Perla continues to bring worthy new jazz releases to life. 

But it’s not just his business acumen that remains formidable. Perla’s chops are as strong as ever— propulsive yet steadying on “Spiraling,” the heraldic opening statement embodying shades of Trane’s takes on “Afro Blue,” and classically elegant and sensitive—like Paul Chambers on “Blue in Green” or “Naima”— on two beautiful, haunting ballads: the gut-wrenchingly forlorn “Billows” and the coolly noirish “Marionettes.” Undergirding the entire operation is the unmistakable chemistry between Perla and Landham, who play as though they’ve been battery mates for years even though this is their first recording together.

Not to be discounted here is Wilkins’ multi-sensory approach to composition, the product of a life-long interest in the intersection and interaction of music and visual artistry.

“Creating music, at its best, has always been a visually inspired, viscerally cinematic experience for me,” says Wilkins, who’s been doubly inspired by a recent foray into oil painting. “The interplay of harmony and melody paint a picture together, which, when animated and balanced by a stable core of rhythm, set the stage for a story to unfold.” 

Accordingly, whether on tenor saxophone, as on “Marionettes,” “Gaia’s Blessing,” and “Kindling of the Phoenix,” or soprano, as on the album’s balance, Wilkins plays with narrative in mind. A tune like “The Blade’s Proposition” is a perfect example. Wilkins’ soprano carries a soaring, aerial quality that’s almost balletic. It blends perfectly with the ethereal colors issuing from Collins’ Rhodes electric that provides some insight into what the music of the stars might sound like.

Interest in the celestial similarly provides the launch point for the contemplative “Gaia’s Blessing,” the lone pairing of Wilkins’ tenor and Collins Rhodes, and the pulsing “Benediction of the Moon,” a cinematic piece with one of the album’s most memorable musical themes.

And for those who prefer not to deal with inference or implication, there’s “Get the Point,” where Wilkins’ explosion on soprano, following a solo intro from Landham, is an affirmative and explicit expression of raw saxophonic power. Don’t sleep, either, on Collins and Landham; each solo with purposeful aggression here. Only one thing remains to be said after this one: point taken.

Over eight tracks, this multigenerational quartet delivers an ideal straight-head jazz album in this sense: it draws from the past but it doesn’t overstay its welcome there. After all, this quartet has another destination in mind: that place off in the distance where the earth seems to meet the sky.

1. Spiraling (10:08)

2. The Blade's Proposition (6:41)

3. Marionettes (7:42)

4. Benediction of the Moon (7:18)

5. Billows (7:14)

6. Get the Point (5:00)

7. Gaia's Blessing (6:42)

8. Kindling of the Phoenix (6:01)

All music by Dan Wilkins, arrangements by Dan Wilkins and James Collins

Dan Wilkins - Tenor & Soprano Saxophones

James Collins - Grand Piano & Fender-Rhodes Piano

Gene Perla - Double-bass

Byron Landham - Drums

Recorded on Jan 3rd and 4th 2020, in Philadelphia, PA

Compositions by Dan Wilkins

Arrangements by Dan Wilkins and James Collins

Produced and mixed by Jeff Hiatt

Recorded by Jeff Hiatt and Doug Raus

Mastered by Sean Svadlenak

Recorded and mixed at Turtle Studios

Album Art by Kathy Ridl

Photography by Jonathan Broady

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Sara Battaglini - "VERNAL LOVE" (AUAND AU6013) OUT NOW

Vernal Love is Italian singer and songwriter Sara Battaglini’s new project

A cross-cutting album, Vernal Love features six italian musicians (all from Tuscany) in a delicate electronic and acoustic sound fabric. Each composition, in an intimate yet dense mood, is suspended between lightness and bitterness, between what can be seen as dreamy and illogical in human vulnerability. 

Focused on the idea of absence – not only as distance or lack of something, but also as a status, like “home” – it’s a vision of life inside and outside the bubble that keeps us both safe and in chains. It’s where we reach the farthest point from what surrounds us, and the deepest sensibility towards ourselves.

It’s a place where we all know and identify the bizarre and conflicting aspects of ourselves, where we taste the uncanny silence of perfection that makes every shade bright. It’s a hymn to balance, to love and hate, to bitterness and sweetness.

We spend our entire life hiding from a reality that we constantly try to reach. Again and again, we get out and then back in this haven that embraces us and wears us out, with no logic or distinction. We’re scared when we feel vulnerable, we’re scared when we feel free. It’s two levels, one in and one out, one above and one below. A border area where you can’t go either up or down – there’s only silence, made up of the screams that we forget.

Tracks and lyrics simply narrate points of view, different yet indivisible. With variable shapes, these seven dialogues describe total and pure love that knows how to give, but also how to take.

After releasing her debut album (Dalia) with her trio, and collaborating in such projects as Auanders’ Text(us), Sara Battaglini writes and arranges her new album for an extended lineup: the rhythm section includes Simone Graziano, Francesco Ponticelli, and Bernardo Guerra, while Beppe Scardino is on baritone sax and bass clarinet, and Jacopo Fagioli is on trumpet and flugelhorn.

With an eye on a captivating, layered sound that reveals electronic and acoustic elements, the entire album soundscape has been developed and carefully crafted in collaboration with Francesco Ponticelli.

1 Siren

2 Love Affair On The Moon

3 Birdcage

4 White

5 Am I Hysterical?

6 Dialogue

7 Eerie Day, For You

Sara Battaglini - vocals

Simone Graziano - piano, synth

Francesco Ponticelli - bass

Bernardo Guerra - drums

Beppe Scardino - baritone sax, bass clarinet

Jacopo Fagioli - trumpet, flugelhorn

Federico Pierantoni - trombone

recorded in October 2020 at Cicaleto (Arezzo) by Stefano Bechini

mixed by Francesco Ponticelli at Cicaleto (Arezzo)

mastered by Tommy Bianchi

produced by Francesco Ponticelli and Sara Battaglini

executive producer: Marco Valente

cover photo by Niccolò Chimenti

artwork and design by Vieri Cervelli Montel

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Yusuke Shima - Silent Jazz Case 4 (July 2021 Playwright)

1. Adhesion 06:01

2. Stick to Just Cooporation 04:55

3. Japan Beauty 04:13

4. Grand Central NY 05:40

5. Never Die Miles 04:58

6. Sunrise on the Bell 03:09

7. Walk in a back alley 04:24

8. Alter Three 05:00

9. 出雲聖水 05:17

10. Chillin' Kawasaki 04:49

11. Montara 03:51

12. Silentloop 2.7 07:31

Written by Yusuke Shima

Yusuke Shima (tp, flh, fl, tb)

Yusuke Kono (pf) track.1~6,8~10,12

Riku Sugiura (ba) track.1~5,8~10,12

Makoto Otsu (ds) track.1~5,8~10,12

re:plus (track) track. 7

Recorded on 19 November 2020 at Studio Hapiness

Recording Engineer: Ryota Murahama

Mixing Engineer: Yusuke Shima 

Masterering Engineer: Akihito Yoshikawa (Studio Dede)

Directer: Keisuke Taniguchi, Akiyo Ito (Playwright)

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Announcing the Debut Album from Samara Joy (July 9, 2021 Whirlwind Recordings)

Samara Joy is a singing star in the ascendancy. The young vocalist attracted attention in 2019 after winning the Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition. Now, the 21-year-old announces her self-titled debut release, which puts her spin on jazz standards from the Great American Songbook. Produced by Grammy-nominated veteran Matt Pierson, she’s joined by jazz guitar virtuoso Pasquale Grasso and his trio (Ari Roland and Kenny Washington) for a release that furthers Joy’s reputation as one of America’s most promising young jazz vocalists.

Joy grew up in the Bronx around a supportive musical family. Music was a pervasive presence, due to the inspiration of her paternal grandparents, Elder Goldwire and Ruth McLendon, who led the Philadelphia-based gospel group, The Savettes. “My mother and father gave me the opportunity to hear music on an interesting spectrum, from Luther Vandross and Chaka Khan through to George Duke and Stevie Wonder. Actually, I hadn't heard of Sarah Vaughan until college. My friends were all into jazz and started sharing their favourite recordings with me. The turning point was when I heard Sarah's version of “Lover Man” – I was hooked.”

It’s with singers like Vaughan and Ella Fitzgerald that early comparisons have been made, and close study of such vocalists formed the basis of the album. “The inspiration comes from absorbing as much of their style as possible. It's a glimpse of what I've learned so far, and a way for me to pay homage to those who have come before, while lending my own perspective to these songs.”

Samara Joy presents the vocalist backed by the trio of Pasquale Grasso, a budding star from the world of solo guitar. “It's great working with him because I know he brings his best, which pushes me to bring my A-game – nothing less.” Completing the line-up are prolific bassist Ari Roland and legendary drummer Kenny Washington, offering a subtly swinging backdrop to proceedings.

Joy’s interpretations balance the breezy-fresh feel of a relative newcomer with a reverence for a tradition she is now undoubtably part of. “But Beautiful”, “Let's Dream in the Moonlight” and “Jim” pay homage to Billie Holiday's original versions, and she acknowledges the great Nat King Cole with versions of “It Only Happens Once” and “The Trouble with Me is You”. “Stardust” is another nod to Cole, showcasing a talent for storytelling well beyond her years. As she says, “There's nothing like hearing someone who understands sing it to you.” Moods range from the happy-go-lucky simplicity of “Everything Happens to Me” to the longing of “Lover Man”.

Winning the Vaughan award was transformational for Joy. “I was suddenly on the jazz radar. It’s still bizarre to think of how fast things have progressed.” Since then, Joy has dug deep to discover her jazz roots, without losing sight of the innate simplicity that makes her sound shine. Her first album announces the arrival of a young artist destined for greatness.

1. Stardust

2. Everything Happens To Me

3. If You Never Fall In Love With Me

4. Let's Dream In The Moonlight

5. It Only Happens Once

6. Jim

7. The Trouble With Me Is You

8. If You'd Stay The Way I Dream About You

9. Lover Man (Oh Where Can You Be)

10. Only A Moment Ago

11. Moonglow

12. But Beautiful

Samara Joy - vocals

Pasquale Grasso - guitar

Ari Roland - double bass

Kenny Washington - drums

Recorded at Oktaven Audio, Mt. Vernon, NY

(October 20-21, 2020)

Recording Engineer - Ryan Streber

Assistant engineer - Charles Mueller

Mixed and Mastered by Christopher Allen

Produced by Matt Pierson

Photography - Shervin Lainez

Graphic Design - Monika Jakubowska

Liner Notes - Will Friedwald

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Sam Post - Post Bach (July 9, 2021 Sunnyside Records)

Pianist Sam Post has been a Bach acolyte since his earliest years behind the keys. His study and development have led Post down many musical avenues, but Bach’s lessons remain ever present in his work, as can be heard on Post’s new release, Post Bach, a collection of the pianist’s unique interpretations of a number of the maestro’s preludes and fugues, as well as original pieces that blend Bach’s harmonic ideas with syncopated styles that have become Post’s focus of late.

The Washington, DC based Post has been lauded for his brilliant piano playing and his unique composing style, including that of his string quartet and chamber symphony commissioned by the San Francisco Symphony. Post was steeped in classical piano from early in childhood, and his teacher Irena Orlov encouraged the young pianist to take on one of the most difficult of Bach’s Prelude and Fugues, the C Sharp Minor from the Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1. From there, Post was hooked and set out to master all of Bach’s piano works.

Post graduated from Yale with a summa cum laude physics degree, but pursued music professionally, teaching at Levine Music in DC. This position allowed him to cross paths with a number of inspirational pianists, including jazz musician Paul Bratcher and master improviser Carlos Cesar Rodriguez. Post’s studies with these two led him to a wider range of musical inspiration, including ragtime, pop, and Latin music. Exploring different aspects of the piano led to new ways of thinking about rhythm and articulation. These influences began to figure prominently in Post’s compositional work.

Post became more and more engaged in music with strong rhythmic drive and with strong syncopation. His transcription of a Gabriela Montero rag improvisation led him to writing his first ragtime piece. Post also experimented with the music of William Bolcom, using two of the composer’s pieces as basis for improvisations on his last solo album. The infectious rhythms of other syncopated styles, including tango, swing jazz, and pop, have also engrained themselves into his work.

Post Bach is a tremendous collection of solo piano pieces that illustrates this musical shift. On the recording, Post performs four of Bach’s Prelude and Fugues but with an approach that emphasize his new-found approach to the piano. There are also a number of original pieces that display Post’s range in these styles, all with hints of his devotion to Bach’s harmonic concepts.

The program begins with Post’s “Tango Toccata,” which starts with the popular Argentinean milonga rhythm and weaves increasingly complex counterpoint and syncopations, driving to an intense climax. Bach’s Prelude and Fugue in C Major is taken at an unconventionally fast pace to show a hidden, rhythmically dynamic side of the piece that is lost in its typically slow performances. The Prelude and Fugue in C Minor is one of Post’s favorites despite being considered a student-level piece by many. Post plays it vigorously, highlighting a style of articulation in the Fugue that emphasizes the subject’s rhythmic elements. Post’s effervescent “Efficiency Remix” takes James Scott’s 1917 rag as a base and develops it in a way reminiscent of a Bach toccata, with an extended sequential section in perpetual motion with conflicting rhythmic cycles.

Post’s “Lighthouse Rag” is a contemplative, swinging rag that shows harmonic complexity and a sense of introspection Post likens to the work of Shostakovich. The walking bassline in the opening accompanies two voices in dialogue in the right hand. The piece further unfolds with a 3/2 meter unusual to the genre but nevertheless maintains the ragtime feel. Bach’s Prelude and Fugue in C Sharp Minor was one of the first that Post tackled early in his studies, the five voiced fugue being one of the composer’s most difficult. Post flies through the Prelude in D Major and plays the stately Fugue gorgeously. The recording concludes with Post’s own Prelude and Fugue in C Sharp Minor, which he wrote on the passing of, and dedicates to, his teacher, Orlov. His piece is an homage to Bach’s and is suffused with melancholy in reaction to Orlov’s passing in 2018.

Sam Post has been able to take his influences and adapt them in the most effective ways. The pianist’s love of Bach is clear but doesn’t stiffen his interpretation of the great composer’s work. Post Bach showcases the dynamic shift that he has been able to take as he approaches these time-honored pieces, as well as the individuality of the music Post composes himself. 

1. Tango Toccata

2. Prelude and Fugue in C Major from the Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1: Prelude

3. Prelude and Fugue in C Major from the Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1: Fugue

4. Prelude and Fugue in C Minor from the Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1: Prelude

5. Prelude and Fugue in C Minor from the Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1: Fugue

6. Efficiency Remix

7. Lighthouse Rag

8. Prelude and Fugue in C Sharp Minor from the Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1: Prelude

9. Prelude and Fugue in C Sharp Minor from the Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1: Fugue

10. Prelude and Fugue in D Major from the Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1: Prelude

11. Prelude and Fugue in D Major from the Well-Tempered Clavier, Book 1: Fugue

12. Prelude and Fugue in C Sharp Minor, Irena Orlov in Memorium: Prelude

13. Prelude and Fugue in C Sharp Minor, Irena Orlov in Memorium: Fugue

Sam Post - piano

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Art Hirahara - Open Sky (July 9, 2021 Posi-Tone Records)

Pianist Art Hirahara turns his musical aspirations toward an “Open Sky,” unveiling a subtly evocative set of melodic insights and intimate emotional expressions for this 2021 album, his sixth release on Posi-Tone. Spreading his sensitivities and talents across the piano keyboard, Hirahara presents listeners with a seamless aggregate of brilliant next level compositions and graceful interpretations amalgamated by accompaniment from some the finest musicians on the scene today.

This captivating collection of hard hitting performances features Hirahara playing alongside bassist Boris Kozlov and drummer Rudy Royston, as well as guest appearances from saxophonist Nicole Glover and vibraphonist Behn Gillece, all of whom come together to employ a wide palette of harmony and color to elucidate the structures while steadily holding down the backline groove with a cavalcade of contrapuntal rhythms.

Featuring a tour de force combination of talents, brilliant musicianship, and an evocative program of new compositions, Hirahara’s “Open Sky” is guaranteed to bring a wide range of bright moments and intense joy to jazz fans everywhere.

Art Hirahara - piano

Boris Kozlov - bass

Rudy Royston - drums & percussion

Behn Gillece - vibraphone 4

Nicole Glover - tenor saxophone 5, 8; soprano saxophone 10

Marc Free - producer

Nick O’Toole - mixing & mastering engineer

Michael Brorby - recording engineer

recorded August 9-12, 2020 at Acoustic Recording, Brooklyn, NY

mixed & mastered at Woodland Studio, Lake Oswego, OR

sky photography by Art Hirahara

package design and photography by Sara Pettinella

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guyfromthehamburgertrain - JEB [demo] July 9, 2021

1. joe 01:03

2. hendershot 03:23

Joe , Eugene and Bocephus

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Noah Becker's Underthought - The Hollow Count (July 2021)

I find myself doodling lines in a notebook otherwise devoted to to-do lists and itineraries during the first track of "The Hollow Count," Underthought’s debut album. Noah Becker—Underthought’s leader, straddling alto saxophone and clarinet—has assembled a varied band: Alex Levine on guitar, Tyrone Allen on bass, and Stephen Boegehold on drums. Each speaks curiously, forcefully. From the outset of “Strange Fish,” we are in a meticulously designed universe of melodies and voices. A syncopated clarinet-guitar line gives way to a phased contrapuntal space. Tyrone delivers his entrance with graceful authority, emblematic of his contributions throughout the record. Stephen seems to breathe this music, further animating the composition, as when an isolated snare accent in one of the final choruses propels the band back towards the closing head.

Alex shines on the title track. The seam of “The Hollow Count” is a trio of harmonically agnostic melodic thirds in the guitar through which the rest of the band threads. The cycle recurs with regularity for most of the piece, like the ticking of a slow clock. In his solo, Noah vaults through these thirds—having traded clarinet for alto, he exploits the latter’s power without sacrificing any of his tone’s precision. Alex tags in after, stepping away from his line for a subdued, articulate solo that functions as a foil to Noah’s.

The two play exceptionally well together over the course of the album. Their relationship, when not in unison, is that of a sound and its subsequent reflections, sustaining some tones while letting others decay. And those roles change from piece to piece. At times, Levine’s distinct approach to linear playing can give one the impression of listening to a chordless quartet, making his dyads and triads resonate with intense significance when they do appear.

These compositions are the work of a creator for whom form is a plaything, not a burden. The album’s first five tracks sketch a big arch: from up-tempo and in time to the unmeasured “We Knew Perfectly Well (Of Course)” and back, the last being the metrically modulating “The Silence of a Convent (From Which the Nuns Have Departed).” On the way back up, the band interpolates “Untitled” (co-written by Noah and Alex), a ballad founded on a pivoting arpeggio that Tyrone and Alex endow with great feeling, and that Noah uses as a launch pad for the melody and his slurred clarinet ascents. Stephen’s brushwork here is supple, his timbral choices intuitive and apt for each register of the clarinet.

Noah’s music erects elastic structures that give when stressed, then snap back into shape. It also knows its performers, and features remarkable dovetailing of improvised and through-composed material. “The Silence of a Convent” is not silent, but I can hear an emptiness in it: the melody darts through the air, from apse to nave, testing for echoes. Alex carries that spirit into his solo, zigzagging like a tailback. When Tyrone suddenly joins him on an octave melody halfway through the guitar solo, I sit up straight in my chair. It is as though Noah’s notated figure were springing directly from Alex’s mind, or Alex’s improvisation were of Noah’s devising. I laugh the laugh of one musician digging another, marveling at Noah’s grip on things, even as he lays out—and when he reenters soon after, he storms after my attention, breezing through the changes on a blistering solo while Tyrone, Stephen, and Alex comp at full tilt.

I am leaning forward now. Outside the room where I’m listening, car stereos have started to compete with “Silence.” And now, suddenly, there’s shouting. It repeats, relents, repeats. Has it been going on this whole time, below the music? Is everything OK? Who—what is it? I get up and turn around, move towards a window.

Meanwhile, the needle slides into “Détente.” I do not notice the transition until something in the music hits the back of my head like a geyser.

For an instant I forget the yells outside. I almost forget the rest of the album, and only now realize that my shoulders have been tensing higher and higher since the end of “We Knew Perfectly Well,” microcosmic in retrospect. I turn halfway back around, not so much relaxing as giving in to all the sound around me. Something has been here, counting down, that I could never have forecasted.

–Griffin Brown

1. Strange Fish 03:51

2. The Hollow Count 05:20

3. We Knew Perfectly Well (Of Course) 06:12

4. Untitled 05:16

5. The Silence of a Convent (From Which the Nuns Have Departed) 05:32

6. Détente 04:39

Underthought:

Noah Becker – alto saxophone, clarinet

Alex Levine – guitar

Tyrone Allen – upright bass

Stephen Boegehold – drums

All compositions by Noah Becker,

except "Untitled" co-composed by Noah Becker + Alex Levine

©2021 Noah Becker | Pelican's Arc Publishing (ASCAP)

Recorded, mixed + mastered by Edward Gavitt

Album art by Zekkereya El-magharbel

Liner notes by Griffin Brown

Filming by Arielle Toub

Video editing by Alex Hunter

Recorded at The Jazz Gallery

New York, NY ● February 6, 2020

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Akihiro Yoshimoto / Nanami Haruta / Makoto Togashi / Raiga Hayashi - Live At Batica (July 8, 2021)

"Live At Batica" (Ebisu,Tokyo, Japan)

1. Funny Book 08:52

2. Crazy Rabbit 06:33

Akihiro Yoshimoto - tenor saxophone

Nanami Hatuta - Trombone

Makoto Togashi - Bass

Raiga Hayashi - Drums

Engineer : Shun Yamaguchi

Mastering by Aaron Choulai

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Octante-et-Onze / Sous​-​Jacent (July 2021)

1. Prologue 01:49

2. Prisme 04:36

3. Kungsleden 03:47

4. Aconitum 03:02

5. Orbite 04:09

6. Mortimer 05:17

7. Blanc Foncé 04:51

8. Gris Clair 05:26

9. Soupir 03:58

10. Aube 01:31

Elori Baume (tenor saxophone)

Julien Ehrensperger (guitar)

Loïc Baillod (double-bass)

Corentin Barro (drums)

Tracks 1, 2, 3, 7, 8, 9 composed by Elori Baume, tracks 5, 6 composed by Loïc Baillod, track 4 composed by Julien Ehrensperger and track 10 composed by Baume/Ehrensperger/Baillod

Recorded and mixed by Chris Diggelmann,

Mastering by Serge Christen

at Mazzive Sound Productions, Bellmund, Switzerland

Cover by Yves Hänggi

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Carlos Niño & Friends ||| Jeff Parker solo guitar from International Anthem / Live Stream Ticket + Digital Album

Date

July 11, 2021

Start time

5:00 AM GMT+2

Producer/percussionist Carlos Niño celebrates the release of his new International Anthem LP 'More Energy Fields, Current' with a quartet performance featuring friends Surya Botofasina, Efa Etoroma Jr, and Pablo Calogero.

The night opens with a special solo guitar set by Jeff Parker.

DJ sets before & between by heavyweight selectors - in from Chicago - Ayana Contreras and King Hippo.

Presented by International Anthem & Gold Diggers

Includes unlimited streaming of More Energy Fields, Current via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

Buy Now  $9 USD or more 

This live stream is hosted on Bandcamp, and requires a free Bandcamp fan account to view.

A replay of this stream will be available for 24 hours

In Republic of Jazz

Chika Tanaka + Tatsuya Sakurai - Waltz of May (July 2021)

1. Where or When 02:26

2. It Might as Well Be Spring 03:35

3. After You've Gone 03:04

4. Comes Love 03:37

5. My Romance 02:58

6. How About You 01:57

7. La Vie en Rose 02:07

8. Que Sera sera 03:23

9. Solamente Una Vez 02:23

10. Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most 04:15

11. Waltz of May 03:35

Vocal: Chika Tanaka

Guitar: Tatsuya Sakurai

Recording studio: Big Orange sheep, Brooklyn, NY on May 31th, June 6th 2019

Engineered by Kevin Thomas

Mixed and mastered by Chris Benham

Art Direction & Design by Dan Ichimoto

Photography by Yoko Haraoka

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Nicola Guida - Speleology (2021)

Firmly steeped in tradition yet audibly contemporary, 'Speleology' is harmonically and melodically rich, rhythmically virile, and focused on in-the-moment improv. The combination of abandon and control is exceptional throughout, and a convincing demonstration of Nicola's inventive writing and prodigious technique.

London-based pianist, composer and producer, Nicola Guida is considered as one of the most inspired Italian Jazz musicians of the new generation. A disciplined virtuoso and a genre-bending musician, Guida's style is both cerebral and underground.

1. Anamnesys 06:03

2. Event Horizon

3. Sycophant

4. Come Inside

5. Maximum Depth Is Its Surface

6. L'Espace Du Dedans

7. The Blade Sensei. Suite For A Suicide Shokunin (Feat. Greg Osby)

8. L'Espace Du Dedans (Koralle Redeux) [ONLY ON VINYL]

Nicola Guida - piano, synth, vox, compositions, arrangements, prod.

Eddy Cicchetti - double bass

Dario Panza - drums

Karnival Kid - rap

Francesco Fratini - trumpet

Greg Osby - alto sax

Davide Abbruzzese - recording

Davide Palmiotto - mixing

Emanuele Bossi - mastering

Jesse Draxler - artwork design

Luis Quiroz - layout project

Karolina Wielocha - photo shooting

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Emma Johnson's Gravy Boat - Worry Not (July 2021)

Worry Not is the debut from Leeds based cinematic quintet, Emma Johnson's Gravy Boat.

Emma's writing is inspired by cinematic scores as well as a wide range of jazz from hard bop to modern tenor/guitar led quintets, and this combines to create compositions that evoke imagery and emotions for the listener. The album combines strong melodies with improvised sections that give each member of the group space to shine.

As an album, Worry Not tackles themes of stress and worry and the process of overcoming those things to find a sense of calm. The imagery uses a lake setting and various weathers as a parallel to the coming and going of these emotions and the whole album is a cathartic listening experience, inspired by a place where Emma is at her most worry-free.

Written after a house flood and on the brink of the pandemic, the album (and the year awaiting it's creation) encapsulate a process of having worries, acknowledging and dealing with them, and allowing them to wash away.

Worry Not is produced with thanks to Help Musicians, the Peter Whittingham Award and a whole host of brilliant Kickstarter backers.

1. Setting Sail

2. Vertical Planes

3. Fully Fledged

4. Interlude

5. Waterlogged

6. Hold Me Tight

7. Worry Not

8. Sun Stones

Saxophone & Compositions - Emma Johnson

Electric Guitar - Fergus Vickers

Piano - Richard Jones

Double Bass - Angus Milne

Drums - Steve Hanley

Tracks 1-7 Recorded by George Atkins at 80 Hertz Studios

Track 8 Recorded by Barkley McKay at Valley Wood Studios

Mixing Engineer - Tom Orrell

Mastering Engineer - Tim Thomas

Printing - Pure Music

Artwork - Or8 Design

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Wings Of An Angel - Crystalline Coldness Of Bygone Days (2021)

1. Be Careful Not To Trigger Civilizational Collapse With Your Phenomenal Indifference 15:23

2. All Art Is A Pure Deception Of The Unexplainable Propaganda Of Living 13:20

3. Questioning Your Entire Way Of Livelihood Is Like Being A Shepherd Who Cannot Survive On Fish Alone 16:00

4. Mediocre Beauty Is Everything That Normalizes And Stabilizes Regular People 14:40

5. Your Intermediate Existence Must Be An Opaque Illusion, Just Like Guessing Mathematically Improbable Tangential Allocations 12:54

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Fabien Mary & Vintage Orchestra: "Too Short" (2021 jazz&people music)

Following "Left Arm Blues", an octet-recording acclaimed by the public and the critics, Fabien Mary continues to deploy his talents by extending them for the first time on the scale of a large orchestra. Drawing on the seasoned Vintage Orchestra, the most Parisian of all big bands, the trumpeter embarked on an impressive writing work from which emerged an entire original repertoire, in the great tradition of large-scale jazz. In "Too Short", the swing never gets the short end of the stick!

1. Too Short 06:01

2. The Fall 05:11

3. Sakura 07:14

4. One For Slide 08:22

5. D.P. (Song for Duke Pearson) 06:03

6. Like Thousands of Butterflies 02:22

7. Don't Look Back 05:57

8. Hell's Kitchen Blues 04:31

9. 402 04:00

10. To The Lighthouse 06:08

Music for Big Band Composed and Arranged by Fabien Mary

Trumpets: Erick Poirier, Julien Ecrepont, Fabien Mary, Malo Mazurié

Saxophones: Dominique Mandin (lead, as, flute), Olivier Zanot (as, cl), Thomas Savy (ts, bcl), Jean-François Devèze (bs,fl, cl)

Trombones: Michaël Ballue/Martin Berlugue, Michaël Joussein, Jerry Edwards, Didier Havet

Piano: Florent Gac

Double bass: Yoni Zelnik

Drums: Andrea Michelutti

Recorded by Bruno Minisimi

Mixed by Christophe Dal Sasso

Mastered by Jérémy Fach

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Ein Gschlößl Pöschl mit Cavenati - Un altro, bitte ! (July 2021 Trouble In The East Records)

1. A Harvest of Friends 04:06

2. Otopis 06:58

3. Intuitive Regelung 05:19

4. Grammar III 04:54

5. Mi pequeño ciclón 07:14

6. More Open Form For Society 05:57

7. Eins Versus Zwei 02:21

8. Solo-Selbständiger! 04:35

9. Bull City 04:23

Recorded October, 23rd 2018 by Sebastian Maschat at Butterama Studios, Berlin.

Mixed/Mastered by Christian Betz (berlinaudio.de)

Graphic/Layout Design by Viola Binacchi

Coverartwork by Cristian Boffelli

Produced by Gschlößl, Pöschl, Cavenati

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Antonis Anissegos - Free Radicals (July 2021 Trouble In The East Records)

1. Free Radicals 10 02:10

2. Free Radicals 19 04:54

3. Free Radicals 11 03:22

4. Free Radicals 18 01:47

5. Free Radicals 3 03:44

6. Free Radicals 4 01:06

7. Free Radicals 17 02:49

8. Free Radicals 6 01:11

9. Free Radicals 14 05:22

10. Free Radicals 1 01:39

11. Free Radicals 9 01:15

12. Free Radicals 13 03:49

13. Free Radicals 16 03:32

14. Free Radicals 2 09:09

15. Free Radicals 12 01:33

16. Free Radicals 5 01:48

17. Free Radicals 7 04:39

18. Free Radicals 15 01:22

19. Free Radicals 8 02:46

all music by Antonis Anissegos (www.enstase.com)

recorded in KM28, Berlin on june 12th 2020

mixed/mastered by Richard König

artwork/layout by Andreas Karaoulanis

produced by Antonis Anissegos

© 2021 Trouble In The East Records

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Soul Supreme - SSR45/003​​004 (July 2021)

The swing hits different. No wonder, when one reinterprets productions by a man whose name also defines a complete “post-Dilla” era. Soul Supreme heads deep into his music. Technically pre-Dilla, even, as five out of six tracks on this double-donut are originally produced as Jay Dee. But let’s not waste this space on nerding over names.

After reworking songs by the likes of A Tribe Called Quest & Madvillain and passing those tests with flying colours, this double-45 feels like Soul Supreme’s ultimate thesis. Dilla revisioned the idea of ‘groove’ like no other. That—naturally—shines through in Soul Supreme’s playing on these records.

It’s the type of heartfelt tribute that puts a smile on your face. A keyboardist’s loose take on how Dilla approached sampling: pushing songs into new frontiers and reimagined compositions, with an exceptional ear for harmony. True to the original yet different.

“Out with the old, in with the new.” —Danny Veekens

1. Let's Ride 04:01

2. Runnin' 04:25

3. Feelin' Good 04:46

4. Officially in Love 02:10

5. Still Shining 01:41

US/CANADA/AUSTRALIA/NOT EUROPE: I can now do tracked shipping for an additional 3-4 euros (depending on location) - contact me if you are interested.

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