New Jazz Adds – 10/2/2018
New Jazz Adds – 10/2/2018
Aguanko – Pattern Recognition (Self-produced): Alberto Nacif (composer, conga player) leads his group Aguanko through ten songs written or arranged to reflect the wide range of styles and rhythms from across the globe. The base is distinctly Latin, but the blend of instruments and lead instruments create a true “world beat” style. Nacif composed all but one song. Additional players include Jose “Pepe” Espinosa (timbales, giro, bongo); Patrick Prouty (bass, co-arranger on one song); Rick Roe (piano); Russell Miller (saxophones, flute); Anthony Stanco (trumpet, flugelhorn); and Christopher Smith (trombone). The music is truly captivating. Click here to listen to samples of the songs on this disc.
Aimee Allen – Wings Uncaged (Self-produced): Aimee Allen has established herself as a noteworthy singer and songwriter who crosses musical genres with aplomb and style. Her previous recordings include punk, rap, and rock and with this disc she covers standards such as “Skylark”, R&B star Buddy Johnson’s “Save Your Love For Me”, and Lionel Hampton and Sonny Blake’s “Midnight Sun”, as well as offering several originals. Her style creates some very fresh takes on the oldies and her original “Democracy How (Harmony and Dissonance)” is a striking and thought-provoking statement. She is accompanied by Francois Moulin (bass), Billy Test (piano) and Kush Abadey (drums). Click here to listen to samples of the songs on this disc.
Rev. Nat Dixon – Harmonic Soul (Sax Rack): Minister and tenor sax player Nat Dixon offers a program of religious and jazz numbers that honors both genres. Dixon is recently retired from the ministry and as a teacher in New York. This is his is his sixth release. The blend of music and styles is really quite striking as Dixon is a fine player and the blends are somewhat unique. Supporting musicians include “J Skee” (organ) and Yujiro Nakamura (drums) with some orchestral arrangements by Izumikawa Takehiro. Click here to listen to “In A Sentimental Mood”.
Stefon Harris – Blackout (Motema): Stefon Harris (vibes, marimba) offers his eighth disc as a leader. He began his career in classical music, but changed course toward jazz after hearing Charlie Parker. He was nominated for a Grammy in 1999 and won the Martin E. Segal Award from Jazz at Lincoln Center in 2003. On this disc, Harris performs compositions ranging from Oscar Brown and Bobby Timmons’ “Dat Dere” and Horace Silver’s “Cape Verdean Blues” to Wayne Shorter’s “Go” and Abbey Lincoln’s “Throw It Away” and he offers two originals. Backing musicians include James Francies (piano, keys), Joshua Crumbly (bass), Terreon Gully (drums), Casey Benjamin (alto and soprano sax, vocoder), and Felix Peikli (clarinet, bass clarinet) with Mike Moreno on guitar on five songs. Special guests include Jean Baylor (vocals on 2 songs), Regina Carter (violin), Joseph Doubleday (marimba), Daniel Franhuizen (cello), Pedrito Martinez (percussion) and Elena Pinderhughes (flute). The frequent shifts in players create a wide array of musical textures. Click here and scroll down to listen to samples of the songs on this disc.
Gilad Hekselman – Ask For Chaos (Motema): Composer/guitarist Gilad Hekselman offers his sixth disc, composed of ten original songs. Hekselman opens the disc with a brief solo and then begins the main program with Aaron Parks (synths, rhodes, piano) and Kush Abadey (drums, pads) with the leader doubling on bass. This is a terrific performance. Hekselman has a truly unique style which shows some influences harking back to John Abercrombie and Pat Metheney, but his is an excitingly new voice which darts or flows across each composition. Click here to listen to samples of the songs on this disc.
Art Hirahara – Sunward Bound (Posi-Tone): Composer/pianist Art Hirahara offers his fourth release for Posi-Tone since moving from the West Coast to NYC. His flowing and often dazzling style creates the beauty of a sonic waterfall with its ebbs and flows. His rhythm section features the magnificent Linda May Han Oh (bass) and Rudy Royston (drums) with the added voice of Donny McCaslin on saxophone on four of the eleven cuts. Click here for an introduction by Hirahara and some samples of the songs on this disc. Click here to listen to each of the songs on this disc.
Myriad 3 – Vera (Alma): Myriad 3 is a Canadian band that loves the offbeat and invites all listeners to give it a try. This is the group’s fourth release and the three originals are still intact: Chris Donnelly (piano, Fender Rhodes, synths, spoons); Dan Fortin (bass) and Ernesto Cervini (drums, clarinet, bass clarinet, flute, alto sax, glock, percussion). Nine of the ten songs are originals and just for fun they throw in Stravinsky’s “Piano-Rag-Music”. The group is offbeat but is clearly in reach of most listeners. One warning: keep you sense of fun right next to your serious ear. Click here and scroll down to listen to samples of all of the songs on this disc.
Adam Nussbaum – The Leadbelly Project (Sunnyside Communications): Drummer Adam Nussbaum has been an admirer of Leadbelly’s music since he was five and looking through his father’s record collection. He was first struck by Leadbelly’s physical presence of the jacket covers and soon became enthralled by the musical performance. Nussbaum studied classical music initially, but, after about five years, shifted to jazz. He has performed with Dave Leibman, John Scofield, John Abercrombie, Gil Evans, James Moody, and Stan Getz among others. More recently, he has performed with Ohad Talmor (saxophone), whose suggestion that Nussbaum try something new brought this project to mind. Nussbaum decided to add two guitars, Steve Cardenas and Nate Radley to complete the combo. While they celebrate Leadbelly’s music, the interpretation is fresh. There is a taste of older New Orleans mixed with a more modern sound. Talmor plays wonderful sax and the drums keep us focused on the classic New Orleans approach. It’s a surprisingly infectious performance. Click here to listen to two songs from this disc.
Christian Sands – Facing Dragons (Mack Avenue): Composer/pianist Christian Sands offers his fourth disc, having released sets from the studio and live. He has returned to the studio for this release and it is a dazzling work. All but one of the songs are originals and his rendering of “Yesterday” is quite an ear and mind opener! First of all, Sands is a monster pianist and composer. In addition to piano, he plays Fender Rhodes, B3 and other electronic keys. The rhythm section includes Jerome Jennings (drums) and Yasushi Nakamura (bass) with guests sprinkled across the disc: Caio Afiune (guitar, 4 songs); Keyon Harrold (trumpet, 2 songs); Roberto Quintero (various percussion instruments); Cristian Rivera (percussion, 1 song) and Marcus Strickland (sax, 2 songs). While there is a lot of diversity throughout the set, Sands is clearly the centerpiece. We will surely hear much more from him over the years, but even now, he is a fantastic force. Click here to listen to samples of the songs on this disc.
Kandace Springs – Indigo (Blue Note): Kandace Springs offers her second release and, on this one, she includes seven songs that she co-composed. The songs were recorded in a variety of studios, suggesting that she was moving about performing as well. Once again, her voice is magnificent and her piano and Rhodes playing are quite wonderful as well. The instrumental backing is rather variable, featuring a shifting set of musicians including Nicholas Peyton (bass, Rhodes); Roy Hargrove (trumpet); Carl Sturgeon (bass, guitar); Burniss “Boom Bishop” Travis II and Robert Hurst (bass); Karriem Riggins and Chris Dave (drums, percussion); Jamie Hartman (bass, drum programming, keys, piano); Peter Jacobsen (cello); Miguel Atwood-Ferguson (viola, string arrangements); Carl Sturken, Anthony Wilson and Jess Harris (guitar); Elena (flute); Evan Rogers (backing vocals); Jimmy Hogarth (bass, guitar, percussion, programing); Martin Slattery (drums, woodwinds); the Langley Susters (string quartet). She closes out the disc duetting with her father who shares composing with her. She also includes two half minute segments that sound lovely, but are somewhat distracting clearly asking for completion. There are several wonderful songs on this release. Click here to listen to a song from this disc.
Yellowjackets – Raising Our Voice (Mack Avenue): The Yellowjackets take a new direction with this new release: they have joined forces with vocalist Luciana Souza, allowing her the lead on seven of the thirteen songs, but without lyrics. She meshes quite well with the band, a tribute to all. The music on this set is delightfully upbeat. The Yellowjackets are Russell Ferrante (piano, keys), Bob Mintzer (saxes, EWI), William Kennedy (drums), and Dane Alderson (bass). The music flows both with and without Souza which is a tribute to all. Click here to listen to samples of the songs on this disc.
Kopasetically,
Professor Bebop
