Wednesday, September 1, 2021

Rebecca Novak / Danny Kamins / Sandy Ewen / Damon Smith / Jerome Bryerton - Groundwater Recharge (September 1, 2021 Balance Point Acoustics)

1. Groundwater Recharge 07:17
2. Trio A 04:45
3. 2-way speakerphone system with caller ID 06:59
4. Trio Anemone 05:04
5. Hierarchy of Furniture* 07:41
6. Trio A/B 04:08
7. Back Channeling 08:48

Improvised music for Quintet (+Trios)

Rebecca Novak - piano, cornet, radio, glassware
Danny Kamins - baritone sax
Sandy Ewen - guitar
Damon Smith - double bass
Jerome Bryerton - percussion

Track 2 - Ewen, Bryerton, Smith
Track 4 - Novak, Bryerton, Smith
Track 6 - Kamins, Bryerton, Smith
*Alauna Rubin - clarinet (Track 5)

Recorded in May 2016 by Jonathan Chan and Alauna Rubin at SugarHill Recording Studios, Houston, Texas
Mixed & Mastered by Ryan Edwards

DRUMBASSJAZZ - LIGHT AND DARKNESS

1. LIGHT AND DARKNESS 06:56
2. JUST RELAXING 05:08
3. NIGHT SKY COLOR 07:13
4. END OF NIGHTMARE 04:43
5. LIVE HAPPY DAYS 07:37
6. NEIGHBOURHOOD 05:35

KENNETH HOLSEN
DRUMS
BASS
GUITARS

"Practice jazz with a live jazz drummer" - CD Metronome Vol​.​3 5​/​4 and 7​/​4 Straight Ahead Swing (September 1, 2021)

Practice jazz with a real live drummer...not a software algorithm.

Each track is 3min long...65-380bpm.

Set the track to repeat to stay at one tempo...or let the tracks play to slowly increase tempo.

THIS IS NOT A CD! THIS IS ONLY DOWNLOADABLE!

1. 75 bpm 5/4 Swing 02:12
2. 82 bpm 5/4 Swing 02:34
3. 89 bpm 5/4 Swing 02:49
4. 96 bpm 5/4 Swing 02:50
5. 103 bpm 5/4 Swing 03:05
6. 110 bpm 5/4 Swing 03:03
7. 117 bpm 5/4 Swing 02:54
8. 124 bpm 5/4 Swing 03:03
9. 131 bpm 5/4 Swing 03:03
10. 138 bpm 5/4 Swing 02:54
11. 145 bpm 5/4 Swing 02:59
12. 155 bpm 5/4 Swing 02:59
13. 165 bpm 5/4 Swing 03:03
14. 175 bpm 5/4 Swing 03:06
15. 185 bpm 5/4 Swing 02:57
16. 195 bpm 5/4 Swing 03:00
17. 210 bpm 5/4 Swing 02:59
18. 225 bpm 5/4 Swing 03:02
19. 240 bpm 5/4 Swing 02:56
20. 255 bpm 5/4 Swing 03:00
21. 270 bpm 5/4 Swing 03:04
22. 285 bpm 5/4 Swing 03:12
23. 300 bpm 5/4 Swing 02:52
24. 320 bpm 5/4 Swing 03:05
25. 340 bpm 5/4 Swing 03:09
26. 360 bpm 5/4 Swing 02:33
27. 380 bpm 5/4 Swing 02:26
28. 75 bpm 7/4 Swing 02:13
29. 82 bpm 7/4 Swing 02:22
30. 89 bpm 7/4 Swing 02:59
31. 96 bpm 7/4 Swing 03:02
32. 103 bpm 7/4 Swing 03:03
33. 110 bpm 7/4 Swing 02:44
34. 117 bpm 7/4 Swing 03:03
35. 124 bpm 7/4 Swing 03:00
36. 131 bpm 7/4 Swing 03:10
37. 138 bpm 7/4 Swing 03:02
38. 145 bpm 7/4 Swing 03:03
39. 155 bpm 7/4 Swing 03:03
40. 165 bpm 7/4 Swing 03:02
41. 175 bpm 7/4 Swing 02:52
42. 185 bpm 7/4 Swing 02:52
43. 195 bpm 7/4 Swing 02:58
44. 210 bpm 7/4 Swing 03:04
45. 225 bpm 7/4 Swing 03:00
46. 240 bpm 7/4 Swing 02:56
47. 255 bpm 7/4 Swing 03:05
48. 270 bpm 7/4 Swing 02:54
49. 285 bpm 7/4 Swing 03:03
50. 300 bpm 7/4 Swing 03:00
51. 320 bpm 7/4 Swing 03:05
52. 340 bpm 7/4 Swing 03:04
53. 360 bpm 7/4 Swing 02:35
54. 380 bpm 7/4 Swing 02:37

Kendall Kay - drums

David Grubbs & Mats Gustafsson / Off​-​Road (September 1, 2021 Improved Sequence)

David Grubbs and Mats Gustafsson currently make up 2/3s of The Underflow, the trio with Rob Mazurek, but their history stretches back into the last century, when they crossed paths during a serious Chicago heyday and Mats appeared on Gastr del Sol’s Upgrade & Afterlife.

Off-Road, originally released on CD by Blue Chopsticks in 2002, is Grubbs and Gustafsson’s second of two duo albums, the follow-up to Apertura (1999). Apertura consists of two long improvised duos for harmonium and reeds, making it the slowest, steadiest boil in either participant’s discography. Off-Road finds the two of them forsaking their earlier, near-static m.o. for a shower of digitally re-composed slivers, the metal-on-metal timbre of a saxophone equipped with contact mics, Grubbs’s chiming electric guitar, backstage field recording (a glass-topped table full of bottles dragged along a concrete floor), and Gustafsson’s Pro Rhythm analog synthesizer clipped to the bell of his horn. (The combination of reeds, guitar, and analog electronics seems an eerie precursor to The Underflow.) Turntablist Henry Moore Selder makes a couple of guest appearances marked by sharp rhythmic counterpoint and low-frequency warbles and moans.

Off-Road was recorded in Stockholm immediately following Grubbs and Gustafsson’s Scandinavian tour in February 2002. Those shows were chaotic events that flowed from song to free-jazz freakout to drone tunnel to digital collage to mouthless saxophone and brainless, bruising guitar. Off-Road has a similar range in an even more compact time frame, from the improvised pop tune “Pumpkin Creek” to the fractured, groove-cursed “Three If by Train,” and from the meditative, still surfaces of “Rendezvous up North” to the fire-alarm plunderphonics of “Back Off.” In 2021 Grubbs and Gustafsson put their heads together and decided to revise the track order on Off-Road—hence the present improved sequence. 

Side One:
Pumpkin Creek (3:26)
Three If by Train (1:56)
Rendezvous up North (12:11)

Side Two:
Dystopian Turboprop (5:53)
Skiing + Shooting (4:58)
Back Off (4:54)


Mats Gustafsson: fluteophone, tenor saxophone, flageolet, synthesizer, contact mics
David Grubbs: computer, harmonium, electric guitar
Henry Moore Selder: maracas (1), turntables (2,5)

Recorded by Johan Gustafsson 2/20/02 at Grondahl, Stockholm. Mixed by DG and Nicolas Vernhes at the Rare Book Room and Studio 423, Brooklyn. Mastered for reissue by Brian Pyle. Cover photograph by John Flavell. The Land of Cockaigne is an engraving by van der Heyden after a painting by Peter Brueghel.

Christoph Grab - Root Area (September 2021)

Today it is often forgotten that jazz is not only a unique art form, but also a social music. This social aspect comes to the fore especially where it is not about epochmaking innovations or daring experiments, but about providing a "neighbourhood audience" with musical soul food. That's why people like to talk about soul jazz in this context.

The Hammond organ is a very special instrument: with its wonder bag sounds and cheerfully bubbling bass runs, it is impossible to imagine soul jazz without it. With ROOT AREA, saxophonist Christoph Grab presents his equally contemporary and timeless version of soul jazz including Hammond power.

The core of ROOT AREA is formed by Grab, Hammond specialist Marcel Thomi and drummer Elmar Frey - they have been successfully touring as a trio for several years. Now the next stage is being ignited: With a repertoire consisting of original compositions (8 x Grab, 1 x Frey) and with exquisite saxophone support by Nicole Johänntgen and Victoria Mozalevskaya. Thanks to the trio's long-term experience and Johänntgen's and Mozalevskaya's quick grasp and impressive improvisational spontaneity, it only took one day to record ROOT AREA's debut album.

The repertoire is extremely varied, focusing mainly on feel-good moods and concise grooves. With these new compositions Grab traces his musical roots back to the Swiss folk music ("Meiteli wänn du witt go tanze") and thus to his childhood, "Abyss" has a jamesbondy melody, "Harlequin" evokes great emotions with its combination of emphasis and melancholy. The piece "In Communion" is dedicated to Krishnamurti and has a spiritual touch, which is reinforced by the "churchy" sound of the organ. The title track has a second-line groove that immediately makes you wanna dance and that hardly is done better in New Orleans. And in his track "We're Coming to Town", drummer Frey develops a wonderful swing drive, which is followed up in the closing big-band-like composition "Love in the Mist".

In the future, ROOT AREA's energy and joy of playing will certainly ensure a good atmosphere and glowing ears in many different neighbourhoods.
01 - Root Area
02 - Harlekin
03 - We're Coming To Town
04 - Abyss
05 - In Communion
06 - Musical Diary
07 - Meiteli Wann Du Wit Go Tanze
08 - Gridlock
09 - Love In The Mist

Christoph Grab tenor/soprano saxophone
Nicole Johaentgen alto saxophone
Victoria Mozalevskaya tenor saxophone
Marcel Thomi hammond organ
Elmar Frey drums

Splinters - Inclusivity (September 1, 2021 Jazz In Britain)

Newly mastered from Trevor Watt's original tapes. The complete recordings of the original Splinters lineup, including for the first time, the entire legendary 100 Club show and the previously unheard Grass Roots concert. The latter is believed to be the final recording of drummer Phil Seamen who died two weeks after this performance. Fully authorised.

If you are looking for a story which captures the mood of Great Britain in the early 1970s then what follows cannot be bettered. Indeed, all the folk memory leitmotifs of this period are contained within its sprawling narrative; polarised politics and protest; economic instability and wage concerns; unemployment; a very public tussle between old and new values; the forging of promising new alliances that, come the dawn, never quite delivered what they aimed to, their collective ideals crashing against the flinty realism of personal ambition, circumstantial change and individual discontent.

Then there is the cast list; a mix of moderates, mediators and extremists, all struggling to make sense of an arena in which uncertainty, novelty and hubris rub shoulder to shoulder. They even look the part, their riot of sideburns, outrageous hair, chocolate brown shirts, tank tops and leather jackets a reminder that, as far as sartorial fashion went, the 1970s was an all-time low for men of all ages. And if that were not enough, into this heady mix you can add the BBC, a rich source of anecdote and allegation that has become synonymous with the double-standards of the age, yielding both comedy gold dust and questionable personal mores in equal measure. Simon Spillett - May 2021 

1. The 100 Club: Phase 1
2. The 100 Club: Phase 2
3. The 100 Club: Phase 3
4. The 100 Club: Phase 4
5. The 100 Club: Phase 5
6. The 100 Club: Phase 6
7. The 100 Club: Phase 7
8. The 100 Club: Phase 8
9. The 100 Club: Encore
10. Grass Roots: Phase 1
11. Grass Roots: Phase 2
12. Grass Roots: Phase 3
13. Grass Roots: Phase 4
14. Grass Roots: Phase 5
15. Grass Roots: Phase 6

Tracks 1-9 recorded live at The 100 Club, London, on 22nd May 1972
Tracks 10-16 recorded at the Grass Roots club, London, on 12th September 1972

Phil Seamen - drums (left channel)
John Stevens - drums (right channel)
Tubby Hayes - tenor sax, flute
Trevor Watts - alto sax
Kenny Wheeler - trumpet, flugelhorn
Stan Tracey - piano (tracks 1-5, 10-16)
Jeff Clyne - bass

Recorded by Trevor Watts
Photography by Jak Kilby
Tape transfer by Matt Parker
Liner notes by Simon Spillett
Executive Producer John Thurlow

Produced and mastered by Matt Parker for Jazz In Britain Ltd.
© Jazz In Britain Ltd. 2021

Samo Salamon & Hasse Poulsen - String Dancers (September 1, 2021)

When the first lockdown in March occurred, I was faced with the fact that my creative side wanted to work despite the cancellation of all concerts. I thought of the options and suddenly the idea of long-distance improvisation popped up.

Hasse has been one of my favorite improvisers for years, having played with so many incredible musicians and creating so much great music. I e-mailed him to ask if he would do an improvised album and he said yeah! and let’s also compose, as well as freely improvise... I have been combining complex composition and free improvisation for years, so I loved the idea.

Basically we co-wrote the music... everything was so natural, it seemed as if we had played together for years... it was so easy to improvise with Hasse, such a great player! I’m very happy and privileged that we were able to do this record. Hope to do it live on stage soon!!!!

Samo

And then in the middle of the confinement a mail suddenly turned up from a Slovenian guitarist: ”how about making a few improvisations together?” I looked up who he was, and saw that he played with many great musicians and since I also want to be a great musician, I had to play with him as well. ”How about using compositions?»

He wrote ”great” or something to that extent and five minutes later I sent him a few recent compositions to see how he would respond. Another seven minutes later he sent me some revised versions back along with some of his own compositions and by sunset we had started the recordings.

I am really amazed at the result and at how easy it is to work with Samo. He takes the music one step further, and then another. He makes everything possible.

Hasse

1. Ultra Serieux 02:52
2. Austrian Lake 05:14
3. Coverless 04:18
4. Two Sides of a Mountain 04:32
5. Sometimes a Bird 03:30
6. Free Noses 04:02
7. Soft Grass 05:48
8. String Dancers 05:44
9. Mind Fuel 03:18
10. Cornering 02:52
11. The Scent of Rain 05:30
12. A Word We Heard 04:14

Samo Salamon - 6 and 12 string acoustic guitars
Hasse Poulsen - 6 string acoustic guitar

Recorded in June and July 2020
Mixing and mastering by Samo Salamon
Produced by Hasse Poulsen & Samo Salamon

Paul Carman / Joey Sellers / Chris Symer / Kendall Kay - Forbits Live At The Blue Whale 2021

1. Goat Soap (J. Sellers) 08:08
2. Umbat (P. Carman) 05:16
3. Unknown Bass Solo (C. Symer) 01:35
4. Suenos (J. Sellers) 07:57
5. Cunningly Received Issue (J. Sellers) 08:24
6. Pologies (J. Sellers) 09:23
7. Free Improvisation (Band) 04:55
8. We Doodle (P. Carman) 10:00
9. Potato Variations (Carman, Sellers, Symer, Kay) 03:54
10. Gravy Crisis (J. Sellers) 10:08
11. Encore-Conjointreality 10:06

Recorded August 22, 2017 at
The Blue Whale, Los Angeles, CA
Engineered by Wayne Peet
Mixed and Mastered by Paul Carman