Wednesday, July 14, 2021

Irwin Hall - We In It! (July 2021)

"We In It!" is my take on the classic organ sound I grew up with in my home state of NJ. I was fortunate enough to come up on the tail end of the famed Newark Organ Jazz scene where, in its heyday, greats like Larry Young, Jimmy Smith, Jack McDuff, Charles Earland, Shirley Scott and more would regularly pass through, and I fell in love with the sound of the organ trio. With this project, we put our own spin on the stripped down trio format and surely hope you do enjoy!

1. We In It! 03:08
2. Ask Me Now 03:52
3. Don't Change Horses (In the Middle of a Stream) 04:15
4. For Regular's Only 04:35
5. Naima's Love Song 04:33

Irwin Hall - Alto Saxophone
William Gorman - Organ
Jerome Jennings - Drums

Recorded at Tedesco Studios on Nov 26 2019

Audio Engineer: Tom Tedesco, Tedesco Studios, Paramous, NJ
Mixing Engineer: Brad Williams, Bunker Studios, Brooklyn, NY
Mastering Engineer: Michael Fossenkemper, Turtletone Studios, New York, NY

Jerome Bryerton / Damon Smith - .​.​.​There Must be a Reason for Generating Sounds​.​.​. (July 2021 Balance Point Acoustics)

11 duos for Wolfgang Fuchs

From the late 1990s to the early 2000s, Jerome & I toured & recorded with the great Wolfgang Fuchs. It was a formative experience for both of us. All titles are quotes by Fuchs. He was a constant source of wisdom and humor.

1. Three (-1) Italian Dogs 02:05
2. This is Clear 07:07
3. I Don't Want to go to Porky's 06:30
4. One Minute, One Espresso, One Cigarette 05:42
5. I am Sorry, You Cannot be Both 06:08
6. I Played Very Loud and I did not Listen 09:22
7. This is not About Friendship 08:54
8. The Blue Letter 04:03
9. From the East 03:10
10. I like Music - and Musicians (Gary Peacock in memorium) 03:36
11. Your Lights Made me Public 03:40

Recorded by Ryan Wasoba
Mixed and Mastered by Weasel Walter
Design by Alan Anzalone
Cover artwork by Max Neumann
© Max Neumann
Photgraph of Fuchs & Bryerton by Damon Smith

Da giovedì 15 a domenica 18 luglio - Torna il Talos Festival a Ruvo di Puglia (Ba)

La notte della Banda

DAL 15 AL 18 LUGLIO A RUVO DI PUGLIA SI CONCLUDE L'EDIZIONE STRAORDINARIA 2020/2021 DEL TALOS FESTIVAL

TRA GLI OSPITI LUCILLA GALEAZZI, MICHEL GODARD, GIANNI IORIO, PASQUALE STAFANO, EUGENIA CHERKAZOVA, FARAUALLA, ROBERTO OTTAVIANO, NABIL BEY E MIRKO SIGNORILE, LA DANZATRICE ERIKA GUASTAMACCHIA. GRAN FINALE CON PINO MINAFRA & LA BANDA.

Da giovedì 15 a domenica 18 luglio a Ruvo di Puglia si conclude tra musica e danza l'edizione "straordinaria" del Talos Festival 2020/2021. Dopo la prima sessione "in presenza" di ottobre e le due serate online di conversazioni e dialoghi artistici a febbraio, il Festival torna in Piazzetta Le Monache e nel Museo del libro, nel cuore del centro storico del comune, per quattro serate (inizialmente previste ad aprile e rinviate a causa delle restrizioni da Covid19) ispirate ai "Suoni meridiani" e dedicate a Franco Cassano. 

«Lavorare, scrivere, fare musica a sud è più difficile, ma chi ci riesce batte la forza di gravità e per questo talvolta riesce a dire cose che hanno valore per tutti», scriveva nel 2003 il sociologo barese, scomparso a febbraio, nelle note del cd "Meridiana" della Multijazz Orchestra. «Ritrovare i nostri suoni non è adorazione reliquiaria del passato, ma ritrovarli nel presente senza arrendersi alla volgarità del mercato è una ricerca difficile per rappresentare al mondo una voce forte e antica, rinnovata dall’ansia e dalle domande del nostro tempo». Parole che sono state di ispirazione per questa sessione del festival che ospiterà, tra gli altri, la cantante Lucilla Galeazzi, il tubista e serpentonista Michel Godard, la fisarmonicista Eugenia Cherkazova, il bandoneonista Gianni Iorio e il pianista Pasquale Stafano, il quartetto vocale Faraualla, il progetto "Bakhur" con Nabil Bey e Mirko Signorile, il sassofonista Roberto Ottaviano, la danzatrice Erika Guastamacchia. Gran finale domenica 18 luglio con La Notte della Banda con Pino Minafra & La Banda e tanti solisti.
Talos festival - con la direzione artistica dell'ideatore Pino Minafra e del musicista e compositore Livio Minafra e il progetto coreografico di Giulio De Leo - è promosso dal Comune di Ruvo di Puglia, con il cofinanziamento di Regione Puglia tramite Teatro Pubblico Pugliese nell’ambito del Fondo di Sviluppo e Coesione 2014-2020 – Valorizzazione della Cultura e della Creatività territoriale, in collaborazione con Associazione Terra Gialla e Compagnia Menhir Danza e altre realtà pubbliche e private.

PROGRAMMA CON SCHEDE

Il programma dei concerti in Piazzetta Le Monache prenderà il via giovedì 15 luglio (ore 20) con Mediterranean Tales. Il duo formato da Gianni Iorio (bandoneon) e Pasquale Stafano (pianoforte) racconta storie di persone, incontri, passione, pensieri e amore tradotti in composizioni originali ed interessanti che hanno come protagonista il viaggio nel tempo e nello spazio nell'oceano musicale, dal jazz alla world music, dal classico al pop e alla melodia mediterranea che è sempre sullo sfondo quasi come un marchio di fabbrica. Subito dopo le Faraualla, quartetto vocale di Gabriella Schiavone, Teresa Vallarella, Loredana Savino, Maristella Schiavone, accompagnate dalle percussioni di Pippo D’Ambrosio e Michele Marrulli proporranno Ogni male fore, un ideale percorso nell’affascinante territorio della medicina popolare pugliese. 

Le formule di guarigione univano gli aspetti più pagani della cultura popolare ad una fervida religiosità, la pratica magica o taumaturgica ad una medicina legata alla reale conoscenza delle erbe curative in una unione che non risultava mai essere forzata. Il materiale relativo a questa ricerca è difficile da recuperare, in quanto nascosto in una parte della memoria popolare misteriosa e accessibile solo a pochi prescelti. In ogni brano le formule rivivono nel canto e nel suono delle Faraualla, in un ideale percorso verso la guarigione fisica e spirituale.

Venerdì 16 luglio (ore 20) si parte con Bakhur, nuovo progetto che coinvolge il cantante Nabil Bey, voce dei Radiodervish, e il pianista Mirko Signorile, una rivisitazione essenziale con voce e pianoforte dei più grandi interpreti della musica araba del ‘900 e non solo. Bakhur è un viaggio attraverso il repertorio musicale dei maggiori protagonisti della canzone mediorientale che hanno fatto epoca nella storia della musica araba. A seguire, il sassofonista Roberto Ottaviano con il progetto Pinturas con Nando Di Modugno (chitarra), Giorgio Vendola (contrabbasso) e Pippo D’Ambrosio (batteria). «Dopo 25 anni circa di progetti realizzati insieme ad artisti provenienti da varie parti del nostro pianeta, non è un caso se questo nuovo quartetto nasce nella mia terra. Nasce infatti dalla convinzione che in questo angolo del mondo esistano ormai delle capacità e sensibilità mature, connotate da una forte personalità», sottolinea Roberto Ottaviano. «Il jazz diventa qui il “pennello” veloce con cui rappresentare paesaggi e storie immaginarie, i colori sono una infinita tavolozza costituita da tutte le musiche che amiamo profondamente e che rappresentano ancora oggi, e nonostante tutto, l’idea di un messaggio nella bottiglia. Ecco come si compone Pinturas, un affresco dinamico e proiettato verso il futuro ma tuttavia profondamente radicato nell’archetipo del Sud».

Sabato 17 luglio la serata si aprirà alle 18 nella Sala conferenze del Museo del libro con Lazzaro, una performance site specific nata da un’idea di Giulio De Leo, ispirata al progetto "Lazzaro_art doesn’t sleep" di Laura Mega e Claudia Pecoraro e sviluppata in stretta collaborazione con la danzatrice Erika Guastamacchia in scena con il sassofonista Roberto Ottaviano. La performance, una produzione Compagnia Menhir nell’ambito de "Le danzatrici - archeologia del contemporaneo" (finanziato da “Custodiamo la cultura in Puglia”, Regione Puglia – Teatro Pubblico Pugliese e realizzato in collaborazione con Comune di Ruvo di Puglia), è stata presentata in anteprima a Iperfestival 2021 – Festival del Museo delle Periferie di Roma e nel Bipod 2021 - Beirut International Platform of Dance. Lazzaro riflette sulla capacità del corpo di rigenerare il movimento a partire dagli atti vitali fondamentali, secondo una logica organica di ascolto. Un corpo adagiato su un tavolo e rianimato dalla danza, diventa fulcro di identità per la nuova comunità che si raccoglie a vegliarlo.

Dalle 20 si torna in Piazzetta Le Monache per un triplo concerto. In apertura la voce di Lucilla Galeazzi che, nel secondo set, dialogherà con il tubista e serpentonista francese Michel Godard. Vera “passionaria” del canto popolare italiano, Lucilla Galeazzi si divide, nella sua carriera, tra progetti da solista e partecipazioni al fianco di altri grandi artisti. Fa inoltre parte del Quartetto Vocale di Giovanna Marini e de l’Arpeggiata di Christina Pluhar, e continua a cantare e a portare in giro i propri progetti musicali, facendo conoscere al mondo intero le tradizioni orali della musica popolare italiana. Musicista e compositore francese, Michel Godard è uno dei pochissimi solisti di tuba e probabilmente l'unico solista di serpentone. Sviluppando su questo strumento dimenticato il suo enorme talento tecnico, Godard propone un repertorio che va dalla musica del XVI secolo al jazz ed alla musica improvvisata. Chiusura di serata affidata al duo Round Trip Apulia-Balkans con la fisarmonicista greco-ucraina Eugenia Cherkazova e il pianista Livio Minafra. Una musica agile, intensa, profonda e festosa. Una sorta di musica da camera improvvisata dove le composizioni e gli arrangiamenti di Minafra raccontano di questo viaggio fatto di tarantella, musica popolare, balcanica, jazz, improvvisazione. Storia e geografia insieme in un volto moderno.

Gran finale domenica 18 luglio dalle 20 sempre in Piazzetta le Monache con La Notte della Banda il Talos Festival rende omaggio alla grande tradizione musicale tipica del Sud Italia che ha prodotto un suono originale e unico al mondo. Sul palco il progetto Pino Minafra & La Banda, che dal 1993 a oggi si è esibito a Parigi, Londra, Monaco di Baviera, Graz, Les Mans, Lille, Huddersfield, Brighton, Basingstoke, Munster, Berlino, Roma, Firenze, Ravenna e altre città, ospite dei più importanti festival europei di jazz, musica classica e contemporanea, proporrà prima un repertorio “classico” diretto da Michele Di Puppo e poi si confronterà con i numerosi ospiti coinvolti per questo concerto inedito e originale. Alla direzione si alterneranno, infatti, Pino e Livio Minafra e Nicola Cotugno mentre i solisti saranno Michel Godard (tuba/serpentone), Eugenia Cherkazova (fisarmonica), Faraualla, Lucilla Galeazzi e Loredana Savino (voci). Un  percorso trasversale fra tradizione e innovazione che dimostra l’attualità e la freschezza di questo suono caldo, vivo e generoso, ancora tutto da esplorare oltre che proteggere.

Programma

Giovedì 15 luglio - ore 20
Piazzetta le Monache
Mediterranean Tales • Gianni Iorio (bandoneon), Pasquale Stafano (pianoforte)
Ogni male fore • Faraualla - Gabriella Schiavone, Teresa Vallarella, Loredana Savino, Maristella Schiavone (voce), Pippo D’Ambrosio e Michele Marrulli (percussioni)

Venerdì 16 luglio - ore 20
Piazzetta le Monache
Bakhur • Nabil Bey (voce) – Mirko Signorile (piano)
Pinturas  • Roberto Ottaviano (sax), Nando Di Modugno (chitarra), Giorgio Vendola (contrabbasso), Pippo D’Ambrosio (batteria)

Sabato 17 luglio - ore 18
Sala conferenze - Museo del Libro
Lazzaro
progetto di Giulio De Leo, coreografie Erika Guastamacchia
con Erika Guastamacchia (danza) e Roberto Ottaviano (sax)

Sabato 17 luglio - ore 20
Piazzetta le Monache
Lucilla Galeazzi (voce)
Lucilla Galeazzi (voce) - Michel Godard (tuba/serpentone)
Round Trip Apulia-Balkans • Eugenia Cherkazova (fisarmonica) - Livio Minafra (piano)

Domenica 18 luglio - ore 20
Piazzetta le Monache
La Notte della Banda
Pino Minafra & La Banda con Michel Godard (tuba/serpentone), Eugenia Cherkazova (fisarmonica), Faraualla (voci), Lucilla Galeazzi e Loredana Savino (voce). Direttori Michele Di Puppo, Pino Minafra, Livio Minafra, Nicola Cotugno.

I concerti e la performance di danza saranno a ingresso gratuito con prenotazione obbligatoria e organizzati nel rispetto delle normative anticovid. 

Info e prenotazioni talosfestival@gmail.com

Tuesday, July 13, 2021

Movin' Along - Maciej Grzywacz plays music of Wes Montgomery (July 2021)

Maciej Grzywacz has 6 albums as a leader and 26 as a side man to his credit. Maciej Grzywacz is a faculty member at Academy of Music in Gdansk, Poland

1. Far Wes 03:45
2. Full House 05:01
3. Leila 05:17
4. Montgomeryland Funk 02:52
5. Wes' Tune 04:50
6. Movin' Along 04:06
7. Road Song 04:41
8. S.O.S 05:33
9. West Coast Blues 03:43
10. D-Natural Blues 04:50

Maciej Grzywacz - Guitar
Tomasz Grzegorski - Saxophone, Flute
Kuba Stankiewicz - Piano
Piotr Kułakowski - Bass
Kuba Grzywacz - Drums

Möbius Strip - Time Lag (July 2021)

Möbius Strip is the name of a young Italian progressive jazz-rock band, made of Lorenzo Cellupica (keyboards), Nico Fabrizi (saxophone & flute), Eros Capoccitti (bass) and Davide Rufo (drums).

1. Chand Baori 08:57
2. Iblis's Hybris 07:52
3. Mateka's Speech 08:29
4. Old Tapestry 10:06
5. Möbius Cube 07:32
6. A Theme for the end 06:34

Möbius Strip are:
- Lorenzo Cellupica: piano, organ, keyboards, vocals
- Nico Fabrizi: tenor sax, alto sax, soprano sax, percussions
- Eros Capoccitti: electric bass, percussions
- Davide Rufo drums, percussions

Special Guests:
- Fabio Gelli: trumpet (tracks 2 and 3)
- Romeo Venditti: trombone (tracks 3 and 3)
- Simone Marcelli: electric guitar (track 5)
- Caterina Sebastiano: vocals (track 6)
- Debora Camilli: vocals (track 6)
- Andrea Martini: vocals (track 6)
- Giacomo Serino: trumpet (track 6)
- Massimo Izzizzari: electric guitar (track 6)

Junichiro Mataga - Sketches (2021)

Junichiro Mataga is a jazz pianist, composer, arranger, and educator based in New York City. Mataga grew up in Niigata, Japan where he began playing piano at the age of six and guitar in junior high school. After graduating high school, he moved to Tokyo and began studying jazz piano in the University Jazz Club. Following his graduation from the University of Electro-Communications with a Master’s Degree in Engineering, Mataga worked as a Sound and Vibration Researcher in the Central Research Lab of NEC Corporation. 

Throughout his studies and his work at NEC,  Mataga was active in the jazz scene in Tokyo, Japan. He performed with his own band, the big band, Shiny Stockings; the gospel band, 7 Seasons; the jazz quartet, Beyond the Cinema. 

Mataga’s career took  a major turn in 2019 when he moved to New York City and began taking courses in the jazz program at Aaron Copland School of Music at Queens College.  There he studied with world-renowned musicians such as David Berkman, Jeb Patton, Antonio Hart, Michael Mossman, Dennis Mackrel, Tim Armacost, and many others. Mataga graduated from ACSM in May 2020 and is now working as a freelance musician in NYC.

1. Midnight Shore 06:16
2. C.C.T 05:52
3. Cave 04:43
4. I Mean You 04:59
5. Little Cheers 05:24
6. Scramble Crossing 02:29
7. Light and the Darkness 06:38
8. Time to Work 04:34
9. Loop 07:16
10. Total Praise 05:00

Jussi Fredriksson Trio - Archipelago Sea Tales (July 2021 Flame Jazz Records)

On their latest album the internationally acclaimed Jussi Fredriksson Trio shares musical anecdotes on the beautiful yet vulnerable Archipelago Sea. The trio’s rooted new sound is ecologic and warm in nature.

1. Dead Sea
2. Splatter
3. Käkkärämänty
4. Red Ochre
5. Chase
6. Swan Love
7. Korpo Waltz
8. Rock
9. Improvisatio

Jussi Fredriksson - piano
Jori Huhtala - bass
Mika Kallio - drums

Recorded and mixed by Matti Fredriksson
Mastered by Svante Forsbäck

Joel Untinen Trio - Facing Paradise (July 2021)

After living in New York City and studying jazz guitar with Peter Bernstein, Canadian guitarist Joel Untinen recently moved to Montreal. His most recent project, "Facing Paradise," was recorded with his trio in New York in December 2019. Joel is a composer, a collaborator, and a band leader, who has performed on numerous live and recorded music projects in Calgary, Edmonton, Banff, and New York.

1. 12/10/16 05:34
2. Figure of Man 08:36
3. The Old Man and the Sea 07:27
4. Winter Hymn 11:04
5. Shorter Story 07:52
6. Facing Paradise 06:34

Joel Untinen - Guitar
Dan Montgomery - Bass
Timothy Angulo - Drums

Li Hai - Recording Engineer
Jacob Aviner - Mixing
Liberty Ellman - Mastering and Additional Mixing
Cover Art - Richard Charter
Guitar Made by Sota Mori Guitars

Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey - Lil Tae Rides Again (Expanded Edition) July 2021 Royal Potato Family

'Lil Tae Rides Again (Expanded Edition)’—JFJO’s ethereal masterwork—returns after being out of print for years. The expanded edition includes 11 live performances from the subsequent tour supporting the album.

In 2008, Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey re-awoke with their most idiosyncratic album to date, 'Lil Tae Rides Again.' Featuring pianist Brian Haas, bassist Reed Mathis and drummer Josh Raymer, the band had appeared for only a handful of tour dates and summer festivals the previous year. Rumors swirled among fans regarding the reasons for such scarcity. JFJO s intent, however, was never in question. They simply went underground to create music on their own terms, in their own universe, on their own timetable.

The trio enlisted eccentric electronic music futurist Tae Meyulks to produce. He shared in the trio s vision to record an album awash in sprawling soundscapes, minimalist melodies and subliminal themes.

Lil Tae Rides Again achieved its intent through an Eno-esque vision that offers a sustaining aura of ethereal splendor. As on previous efforts, JFJO defined themselves as a mercurial musical force in a constant state of re-imagining their creative horizons. The beauty in JFJO s self-definition is that they are utterly un-definable.

Unavailable for years on streaming platforms, this experimental jazz/electronic classic now returns in an expanded edition featuring a live version of each of the 11 songs from the subsequent tour in support of the album. 'Lil Tae Rides Again,' but better still, Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey rides again. 

1. Autumnal 04:14
2. Winter Clothes 02:57
3. Tetherball Triumph 04:46
4. Carpool 02:48
5. Tae Parade 05:18
6. Santiago Lends A Hand 05:13
7. Waking The Reluctant Genius 02:24
8. Scuffle In The Hallway 02:41
9. The Votes Are Counted 02:20
10. Recovering The Time Capsule 03:15
11. Goodnight Ollie 07:31
12. Autumnal (live) 05:08
13. Winter Clothes (live) 03:35
14. Tetherball Triumph (live) 06:50
15. Carpool (live) 04:54
16. Tae Parade (live) 04:36
17. Santiago Lends A Hand (live) 03:50
18. Waking The Reluctant Genius (live) 03:43
19. Scuffle In The Hall (live) 05:07
20. The Votes Are Counted (live) 02:18
21. Recovering The Time Capsule (live) 04:05
22. Goodnight Ollie (live) 04:44

Brian Haas: Piano, Rhodes
Reed Mathis: Bass, Guitar
Josh Raymer: Drums

Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey - Winterwood Revealed (Live Vipers & Studio Doves) July 2021 Royal Potato Family

Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey ‘Winterwood Revealed (Live Vipers & Studio Doves)' is a companion piece to ‘Winterwood,’ JFJO's final studio album with bassist Reed Mathis. It contains live performances from the tour prior to recording the album, as well as, studio outtakes and alternate mixes from the 'Winterwood' sessions.

1. Song Of The Vipers (live) 07:13
2. Hover (live) 07:34
3. Goodnight Ollie (live) 04:39
4. Skeeball Over The Ocean (live) 07:39
5. Oklahoma Stomp (live) 09:34
6. Twinstar (live) 07:42
7. Bumper Crop Of Strange (live) 07:22
8. Sean's Song (live) 10:25
9. Julia (rehearsal) 04:07
10. Happiness Is A Warm Gun (live) 07:53
11. Santiago (live) 11:11
12. Vernal Equinox (live) 13:12
13. Dove's Army Of Love (live) 06:24
14. Oklahamo Stomp (dirty mix) 06:43
15. Twinstar (dreamy mix) 05:43
16. Song Of The Vipers (raw mix) 05:42
17. A-Bird (piano) 06:22
18. Crazy Fingers (piano) 04:48
19. Earl Hines (piano) 03:14
20. Goodnight Ollie (piano) 04:26
21. The Slip (piano) 07:18
22. Twinstar (piano) 05:41
23. Vernal Equinox (piano) 07:34

Brian Haas: Piano, Rhodes
Reed Mathis: Bass, Guitar
Josh Raymer: Drums

Produced by Reed Mathis

Out Now on Royal Potato Family

Eric Zinman / Mario Rechtern / Weasel Walter - Mermaids and Sirens Know (July 2021 ugEXPLODE Records)

A newly released studio session of piano/reeds/drums based volcanic free jazz, the trio of Eric Zinman, Mario Rechtern and Weasel Walter meets the high standards of the classic Cecil Taylor/Jimmy Lyons/Andrew Cyrille trio in terms of blistering momentum, density and clarity, but pushes forward in their own distinctive and idiosyncratic personal voices.

1. Mermaids in the water; Sirens on the sands. 34:30
2. When seas go high, 09:47
3. Where do we go? 09:16
4. Mermaids and Sirens know. 19:27

Eric Zinman - piano
Mario Rechtern - alto, baritone and sopranino saxophones
Weasel Walter - drums

Recorded May 2011
Mixed and remastered by Weasel Walter and Mario Rechtern
Artwork by Mario Rechtern

The Flying Luttenbachers - Negative Infinity (July 2021 ugEXPLODE Records)

Roaring out of the gates is the 15th full-length album by no wave/punk jazz/brutal prog iconoclasts The Flying Luttenbachers, led by founding member and main composer Weasel Walter. There's a few special twists this time, friends. The last two albums, "Shattered Dimension" and "Imminent Death", both epic double-length affairs released in 2019, focused on open ended, improvisational approaches more so than heavily structured ones. "Negative Infinity" is a sort of return-to-form in a regard, featuring 6 tightly scripted doses of what they call "Brutal Prog" - the tag Weasel coined in the early 2000s to describe an elite breed of intense, complex bands who emphasised harshness and intensity over the typical prog-rock flutes and fairies positivity. This is prog for THE APOCALYPSE, not your uncle.

The merciless opening track sets the tone for the album - "Fury of the Delusion" is a through-composed, neck-snapping whirlwind of a number where an unrelenting, hair-raisingly harmonized line spat forth in unison by saxophone and duel guitars is investigated, turned upside down and transformed into a deadly musical cyborg. Oh yes - the other big surprise is that Weasel doesn't provide his usual hyperactive drumming on this release. The chap has switched to guitar. He feels that it will be easier to drip sweat on the punters that way.That's right. Close your eyes. That's Sam Ospovat on the drums. Doesn't he sound great? We bet you won't even miss the Weez! Dark overlords Tim Dahl (bass) and Matt Nelson (saxophone) return once again and newest member Katie Battistoni plays the other guitar parts.

The closing number, "On The Verge Of Destruction" is a monolithic side-long extrapolation off of Albert Ayler's bizarre '66/'67 "marching band on acid" musical suites. The group is shuttled through an exacting sequence of berserk rollercoaster melodies and the whole front line takes turns spewing outrageous solos. The structure coils up the band to release a climactic orgy of noise before the piece goes back to the beginning and winds down. 

The rest of the tunes may invoke fragant whiffs of old Mayhem sturm und drang, Teenage Jesus and the Jerks sonic terrorism, the jigsaw puzzle logic of the Rock In Opposition bands and, ahem, even '90s Flying Luttenbachers style varsity team punk-jazz ("Demonic Velocities II" appears here as a meta-sequel to the old chestnut first performed by the group as early as 1993). The core tenets of The Flying Luttenbachers remain: Dissonance, Speed, Aggression, Weirdness, Singularity. This is perhaps the finest chapter of the three-decade saga so far . . . 

1. Fury Of The Delusion 04:47
2. Demonic Velocities II 06:57
3. A Depraved Heart 04:37
4. Omnicide 05:19
5. Mass Manslaugher, Ma'am 03:44
6. On The Verge Of Destruction 19:11

Weasel Walter (left guitar)
Matt Nelson (tenor saxophone)
Katie Battistoni (right guitar)
Tim Dahl (bass guitar)
Sam Ospovat (drums)

recorded at Mighty Toad Studios, Brooklyn, NY on November 30, 2020
recording engineers: Craig Dreyer, Lucas Haas
mixed by Weasel Walter
mastered by Colin Marston
band photo by Dominika Michalowska
all compositions by Weasel Walter / Sedition Dog Music (BMI)

copyright 2021 ugEXPLODE Records

Monday, July 12, 2021

Jochro-Trio / Good Things Take Time (July 2021)

Our first EP recorded on a March weekend in 2021 consisting of several originals and a few standards.

1. Good Things Take Time - Do Not Use Tinder 04:28
2. Love For Sale 06:46
3. Again and Again 05:41
4. Sweet Corn with Eggs 03:21
5. I'll Close My Eyes 06:32
6. Why Try to Change Me Now 07:38
7. Seven in Heaven 06:02
8. Good Things Take Time - Do Not Use Tinder (alt. version) 04:51

Fabian Jochro - piano, rhodes, composition
Thomas Brühwiler - bass
Corsin Hobi - drums

Recorded on 27th and 28th March in Bern
Recorded and mixed by Fabian M. Müller
Mastered by Steffen Peters, Soundfarm
Cover Foto taken by Melissa Dehédin, edited by Fabian Jochro

Typical Sisters - Love Beam (July 2021)

Following the release of their second record, Hungry Ghost (praised by NY Times for having “something increasingly rare today: group exploration with little flexing or hurry”, and Pop Matters calling their compositions “memorable to the point where they can often sound like long-lost standards”), Typical Sisters return with their ambitious new album, Love Beam. Their third release presents a kaleidoscope of glitchy acoustic timbres, warbly guitar melodies, and crunchy drum loops merging the worlds of improvised jazz and lo-fi bedroom production.

Guitarist Gregory Uhlmann (Perfume Genius, Fell Runner, Josh Johnson), bassist Clark Sommers (Kurt Elling, Ba(SH), Lens), and drummer Matt Carroll (Ohmme, V.V. Lightbody, Rooms) have spent over the last decade nurturing their initial affinity towards one another. Conceptually and emotionally, Love Beam is a celebration of the nourishment they receive from each other in both collaboration and friendship. The title evokes an atmospheric, metaphorical space they inhabit whenever they’re able to play music together, which is rare enough considering the distance between them: Uhlmann in Los Angeles, Sommers living in Chicago, and Carroll in Copenhagen.
The songs on Love Beam were composed individually and later developed with an openness to collaboration. Once in the studio with co-producer Tim Carr, the songs began to take shape as Carr and the band bounced ideas off each other. While the initial tracking only took a week, the post-production process went on for several months with the band and Carr collaborating over long distance. Furthermore, the album wouldn’t be complete without the expert ears of the Grammy-Award-winning producer Paul Bryan (Aimee Mann / Jeff Parker), who mixed the album, or Dave Cooley (J Dilla / Madvillain), who added the finishing touches with mastering. 

The band started at Sommer’s house in 2009, where the trio gelled over Joni Mitchell tunes and jazz standards. In those few hours of effortless improvisation, the three immediately knew that the chemistry of the group was worth fostering and developing. Love Beam is the result of a group of lifelong friends taking a leap of faith into unfamiliar territory, and coming out on the other side not only unscathed, but feeling even more fulfilled.

1. Water Plants 01:28
2. Well Done 03:38
3. OEO 02:10
4. Owl 03:05
5. Recurring Memory 02:45
6. King Flipper 03:15
7. Clairvoyant 00:32
8. No Evil 02:18
9. Oregano 01:13
10. Uni Lunch 00:23
11. Clamata 02:13
12. Grains 03:09
13. Ephemeral 04:02

Clark Sommers - bass
Matt Carroll - drums
Gregory Uhlmann - guitar

Produced by Tim Carr and Typical Sisters
Mixed by Paul Bryan
Mastered by Dave Cooley

Cover Art by Sam Kaufman
Released on Joyful Noise

Sunday, July 11, 2021

JD Allen - Queen City (July 9, 2021 HighNote/Savant)

"A really powerful solo album from JD Allen – maybe the first we've ever heard from the tenor saxophonist, and a set that's got a very different vibe than some of his recent outings with groups! Allen recorded the music during the height of lockdown in 2020, at a time when he'd had to step back from performing live and collaborating with others – a moment he used to get back to basics on his instrument, and begin to re-explore all the things that first made being a saxophonist so important to him. There's definitely a sense of isolation and melancholy here – as you might expect – but there's also a feeling of hope and new inspiration, a quiet message from a dark time that's great to have on record."
DUSTY GROOVE

"... he kept things spare, treating the process as an extension of the soul-searching he’d done in the early days of lockdown. “Mother,” an Allen original, starts with a three-note pattern that spins almost into a drone before he leaps off into free improvisation, zagging and curling and, later, painfully scraping his notes, as if to pry them open."
GIOVANNI RUSSONELLO, NEW YORK TIMES PLAYLIST (7.9.21)

JD ALLEN'S RESPONSE TO A PERIOD OF DEEP INTROSPECTION

LONG AWAITED SOLO TENOR SAXOPHONE ALBUM

“QUEEN CITY" WILL BE RELEASED JULY 9, 2021

ON THE HIGH NOTE/SAVANT LABEL

Tenor Saxophonist and Composer JD Allen’s 15th release as a leader, Queen City (July 9, 2021 on High Note/Savant SCD 2194), is a continuation of the tenor titans uncompromisingly bold signature sound cultivated in his prolific and consistent body of work. 

The New York Times praised Allen's “fearless approach to a formidable tradition,”  as he has become known for his, “ragged, searching tone is redolent of jazz’s blues heritage, and his playing reflects his pedigree as a grandson of the Delta, a son of Detroit, and a leader of modern jazz.”

Making it clear that he spent a great deal of time during the Covid-19 pandemic thinking about “what to do with the time that is given us,"  Allen confides in the liner notes. 

“Performing music for and with people is what I do and I've come to the realization that an audience of listeners of any size is a part of the music; it's also a shared experience. Covid-19 changed that and forced me to try to remember why I started playing in the first place, the years before I started performing and recording.”

The tenor saxophonist's response to his period of introspection is this current recording of solo tenor saxophone, is a recording full of stark, uncompromising power, affording some rare insight into the psyche of the performer.
“Mr. Allen is an essential voice on jazz’s landscape for both his force and his restraint, as well as for the beauty of his tenor saxophone’s sound….”
– Larry Blumenfeld, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
 
NY TIMES portrait of JD Allen in Giovanni Russonello’s “New Vanguard” Series

“…never one to ease up on the throttle…”
– Nate Chinen, WBGO/NPR
 
“Channeling an eruption of emotions,”
– DOWNBEAT

“The spirit of serious jazz tenor saxophone endures in JD Allen.”
– JAZZTIMES

JD ALLEN has been featured on NPR’s Fresh Air, in The Atlantic, in The New York Times and hailed by one of JDs first champions, jazz critic Ben Ratliff as, “a tenor saxophonist with an enigmatic, elegant and hard-driving style,” JD Allen is one of the most thoughtful jazz saxophonists on the scene today. Winner of the 2020 Composer of the Year in Downbeat, JazzTimes & NPR polls in categories including NPR’s Best Jazz of the Year, Tenor Saxophonist of the Year, Composer of the Year and Rising Star of the Year and JJA Winner for Short Form Jazz News Documentary, Mario Lathan, for VICTORY! – The Making of JD Allen’s Victory! in 2012. The Detroit natives apprenticeship has largely been in New York, where he has performed, recorded, and toured with legends running the gamut from Betty Carter and Lawrence D. “Butch” Morris to contemporaries Meshell Ndegeocello. Since making a strong impression in his early years in New York and serving an invaluable tenure with Carter, JD has come a long way - now fully possessed of his own sound. JD has appeared on WNYC, NPR, WBGO, WKCR and festivals and venues worldwide including headlining at New York’s Village Vanguard, Newport, North Sea, Saratoga and Summerstage/Charlie Parker Jazz Festivals, among others. At the request of saxophone colossus, Sonny Rollins and filmmaker Dick Fontaine, JD was invited to open up ceremonies for the screening of the lauded, “Sonny Rollins – Beyond The Notes” at The 2013 Woodstock Film Festival to great acclaim. JD also appeared in Fontaine’s documentary on Betty Carter some 20 years ago, New All The Time.

Off the bandstand, Allen is a compelling educator and activist. He is a founder of We Insist!, a nonprofit jazz and Black arts action community and their sister organization, We Up - Re Up, a collective of jazz musicians whose primary goal is to foster jazz performance curating opportunities within non-traditional inner city and rural performance settings. 2021 saw a collaboration with Maya Cunningham and the Du Bois Black Music Project, presenting the inaugural season of “Fire Fridays: The Cats Talk Back,” from the W.E.B. Du Bois Department of Afro-American Studies at the University of Massachusetts.
Dear Listener,
 
Writing the liner notes for Queen City has proven to be just as challenging as finding and playing the right material for this recording. I felt that it was important that I write directly To Whom It May Concern about our most recent (outside of music) shared experience and new reality that concerns us all. Can’t imagine that the lay person saw Covid-19 coming but it came and changed all of our lives in many different variations and degrees, so in all honesty the thought of writing just about the music seemed small. Once the news broke about the Global pandemic and the world shut down as we have come to know it, I spent the first couple of months after justifying my thinking by attaching “what's the point of?” to my every thought and action. I was down, I'm pretty certain that I wasn't alone in thinking like that. Maybe I should say you and I were down. Whenever I got to thinking “what's the point of practicing my saxophone,” or “what’s the point of thinking about music,” a feeling of guilt or “how dare you think of that!” feeling came over me.  Performing music for and with people is what I do and I've come to the realization that an audience of listeners of any size is a part of the music; it’s also a shared experience. Covid-19 changed that and forced me to try to remember why I started playing in the first place, the years before I started performing and recording. 
 
Every musician starts out playing alone at the beginning, with hopes of one day being able to perform with others. An important aspect of playing Jazz, at least in my opinion, is being able to adapt to situations presented by your bandmates or being part of a collective story that's being told through music in real time.
 
It becomes another situation when you’re alone, when the story has to come only from you.  In 2020 live performances had been cancelled due to Covid-19 and it was unknown in the beginning if musicians would even be able to record together in a studio situation.  So once again I was faced with the “what's the point of?” question. Getting in touch with the reason of why I started playing the saxophone in the first place was the only way out of this what's-the-point cycle I was caught in. I needed to find my why again, the why before everything. Playing the saxophone started out for me as a way to release feelings that I couldn't express verbally, even in the beginning when all I could make were sounds.
 
At that point I realized that it’s just the saxophone and me and I needed to keep dreaming if I'm going to mentally make it through this. It's not about dreaming to escape reality, it's about making hope my center. Dreaming is the projector and movie screen for hope. Practicing the saxophone became my dream in motion. It became evident very quickly that I needed to learn how to tell a story on my saxophone alone, with no bass and drums, but completely alone.  The early part of our shared experience forced me to try to adapt to this new reality. Like any new musical endeavor, studying other artists (Jazz and Classical) who have made solo saxophone recordings was very important.
It was important for me to hear how other saxophonists approached this endeavor. Having a relationship with space (musical and actual performance space) seemed to be the one common thread.  But that is easier said than done.  I've learned a lot from this whole experience and will continue to work on new things, both musical and personal, that I've learned from this.
 
I tried to structure the recording as if it was a mural, each composition whether it was an original or a standard was performed as vignettes. The goal being that each song can stand on its own and inhabit a certain amount of space but also belonging to a bigger picture and a complete story when the recording is listened to in its entirety.   
 
I do hope you enjoy this recording and I really appreciate you taking the time to listen.
 
With love and solidarity in all things that are true.
 
JD Allen

Jaleel Shaw - Echoes (July 2021)

This recording was made in my home. It documents my thoughts and ideas while being isolated for a whole year during pandemic of 2020/21. I’d recently begun recording myself practice songs and ideas with my phone, which eventually led to me plugging a mic into my computer, hitting record, and seeing where my ideas took me.

I’ve meditated on so many things during this pandemic. From losing my friend/mentors Lee Konitz, Jimmy Heath, and teacher Rayburn Wright recently, to the deaths of Breonna Taylor and one of my favorite artists - MF doom, learning about the Tulsa Massacre and Black Wall St., constantly worrying and thinking about my mother, remembering all of the amazing places I’d traveled to to perform before this pandemic (specifically an opportunity I got to travel to Morocco and play at the Gnawa Festival), and most importantly - focusing on the light at the end of this isolated tunnel and trying to stay as positive as I can be.

Here’s to the future… and life….

1. Lee 03:10
2. Breonna 03:05
3. Tulsa 02:57
4. Improvisation for Mom 02:58
5. Temesgen 04:40
6. On Being Invisible 02:28
7. DOOM 01:57
8. Silence 02:58
9. Isolation 07:36

Jaleel Shaw: Alto Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone (tracks 3 & 8), & Pedals
Recorded at: Jaleel's home.
Mixed and Mastered by Mike Perez Cisneros
Photo: Yusuke Yamanouchi
Artwork: Jaleel Shaw

Arif Mirbaghi - Zohal Milarzad (July 2021)

Side A:
1. Dar Medar Khorshid
2. Zohal Milarzad

Side B:
3. Tark-e Zamin
4. Mah Va Mahtab

Ali Daneshkhah - trumpet
Hamidreza Keshvarpajuh - tenor sax
Sepehr Abbasi - trombone
Kaveh Ghaffari - keys
Shoaib Kaminpour - guitar
Arif Mirbaghi - bass, keys, misc.
Farhad Asadi - drums

s/g

Omid Saidi - nayanbun
Mehdi Saki - vocals

Popp - Devi (July 2021 Squama Recordings)

After several collaborative releases, German drummer Simon Popp is back on Squama with his second solo album ‘Devi’.

While his phenomenal debut ‘Laya’ was a percussive take on ambient and third stream minimalism, ‘Devi’ features eight tracks of bold organic grooves, uplifting and hopeful in one moment, sinister and dark in the next. This dualism is reflective of the ups and downs in Simon’s own life, making the album a brutally honest and deeply personal record.

Over the past two years Popp has steadily refined his skills both as a player and an engineer: There are virtuoso drumming parts, revealing his passion for polyrhythm and complex structures and recording techniques such as heavy limiting, using gated reverb and pitch-shifting give the record a modern 90s vibe. ‘Devi’ is a forceful statement of what contemporary drum music can sound like today.

1. Pingo 04:38
2. Gundel 05:15
3. Myna 05:08
4. Holort 04:58
5. Jilu 05:09
6. Xolotl 04:09
7. Dama 03:30
8. Higlehasn 05:25

Enji - Ursgal (2021 Squama Recordings)

On her second album Ursgal Mongolian singer Enji creates a unique blend of Jazz and Folk with the traditions of Mongolian song. Currently based in Munich, her lyrics tell personal stories about unbearable distances, the oddness of being on earth and the simple truths in life. She’s accompanied by Paul Brändle on guitar and Munguntovch Tsolmonbayar on double bass.

Born in Ulaanbaatar, Enji grew up in a yurt to a working-class family. Having always been drawn to music, dance and literature, she initially wanted to become a music teacher with little ambitions to compose or be on stage. A program by the local Goethe Institute sparked her passion for Jazz and eventually led her to become a performing artist. Inspired by the music of Carmen McRae, Ella Fitzgerald and Nancy Wilson, Enji started writing songs of her own, cherishing this newfound means of expression. Ursgal is the first record featuring her original compositions.

Enkhjargal Erkhembayar (vocals)
Paul Brändle (guitar)
Munguntovch Tsolmonbayar (double bass)
Moritz Stahl (tenor sax on A1 + B4)
Alistair Duncan (trombone on B1)

Written by Enkjargal Erkhembayar
A5 + B3 written by Enkhjargal Erkhembayar and Paul Brändle
A4 written by Jimmy Dorsey and Paul Madeira

Produced and Mixed by Martin Brugger.
Recorded by Jan Krause at Mastermix, Munich.
Mastered by Christoph Stickel at CS Mastering.
Photography and Design by Maximilian Schachtner at Daily Dialogue.

Wings Of An Angel - Nurturing Happiness By Generating A Sustainable Sensation Of Mindfulness With The Tender Sounds Of The Ambient Grand Piano Vol​​.​​2 (July 2021)

1. Tell Your Own Fair Story Instead Of Studying The Same Unfair Stories From The Holy Texts Time After Time; Remember That With Shared Mindfulness Comes Shared Victory Over The Past 06:20
2. You Are Stronger Than It First Seems To The Naked Eye 06:15
3. Heal Yourself Before You Aim To Heal Everybody Else Around 04:45
4. Purposeful Peace Is All About Tedious Negotiations Ending In Stark Confrontations 07:16
5. Without Iconic Self-Flagellation There Can Be No Subsequent Hospitalization 04:29
6. Life Is A Triathlon Of Awe-Inspiring Happy-Go-Lucky Mistakes 04:29
7. Inventing New Forms Of Armour For Couples Who Wish Explore The Cutting-Edge Ways Of Amour 05:28
8. Reinventing The Importance Of Home-Loving Vibrancy 04:35