Announcement – Music

This is the not the first time I’ve written about the music of Tom Csatari, and there is exactly a zero percent chance it will be the last.  My adoration of his music began when I first heard (and wrote a little something about) the album that kind of started off his current ensemble project, aptly titled Uncivilized.  His combination of intense melodicism and casual delivery is something I happily mainline every time I need music that taps into an emotional nerve while simultaneously providing an intellectual kickstart.  That he switches effortlessly between originals and covers of Lee Morgan and Elliott Smith is seriously nifty, but that he’s able to refocus that music through his singular concoction of modern jazz, alt-folk, pop music, avant-garde, pure rock bombast and all kinds of other genre ingredients is what amps up the level of intrigue three or five notches.

The upcoming release Uncivilized Plays Peaks came about from a 2017 show at Brooklyn’s Barbès when the Uncivilized ensemble scooped up the music of TV show Twin Peaks into its embrace.  It comes out July 1st, 2018.  Here’s a preview of what’s to come.

Your album personnel:  Tom Csatari (electric guitar, compositions, arrangements), Julian Cubillos (electric guitar), Nick Jozwiak (double bass), Rachel Housle (drum set, percussion), Dominic Mekky (organ, sound design), Levon Henry (alto sax), Kyle Wilson (tenor sax), Casey Berman (bass clarinet), Tristan Cooley (flute) and guest vocalist Ivy Meissner.

Learn more about the album, and pre-order it, on the artist’s Bandcamp page.

There’s a new album from the Dinosaur ensemble on the horizon.  The London-based quartet is releasing Wonder Trail on May 4th, 2018 on Edition Records.  Dinosaur has undergone a transformation since their first recording, 2013’s Landing Ground (officially trumpeter Laura Jurd‘s release), which augmented modern jazz with a string section.  Their follow-up, officially as Dinosaur, saw a change to an electro-acoustic form of expression.  It appears with their latest, the music swings far heavier toward the ‘electro’ part of that equation.  It’s an interesting development, and the kind of experimenting you always want to see from musicians.

You can check out their previous release Together, As One via my write-up for The Bandcamp Daily.

Here’s a preview of what’s to come…

Your album personnel:  Laura Jurd (trumpet, synth), Elliot Galvin (synths), Conor Chaplin (electric bass) and Corrie Dick (drums).

Learn more about the album, and pre-order it, on their Bandcamp page.

Also available for pre-order on Amazon.

At some point, the Wing Walker Orchestra will be releasing a new album.  Maybe it’ll happen later this year, maybe it won’t go down until early 2019, but if the advance track “Forest Boats” is any kind of barometer of what’s to come, well, then the wait will be worth it.  In the meantime, I am impatient for more.  There are only so many times I can play this track on repeat (no there’s not; I show no sign of stopping even now).

There is something massively appealing about the casual feel to the delivery of this eleven piece ensemble.  The loose flow provides all kinds of breathing room for an array of textures to emerge and shine strong.  And when you add a lovely, embraceable melody to that quality, now you’ve got something bordering on addiction.

Your song personnel:  Drew Williams (bass clarinet), Brad Mulholland (alto sax), Eric Trudel (tenor sax), John Blevins (trumpet), Danny Gouker (trumpet), Karl Lyden (trombone), Nick Grinder (trombone), Jeff McLaughlin (guitar), Marta Sánchez (piano), Adam Hopkins (acoustic bass) and Nathan Ellman-Bell (drums).

Download the track at the ensemble’s Bandcamp page.

It’s also available at Amazon.

And if you buy it from Bandcamp, you should check out the two mix tapes they’ve got posted, which feature music from members of the Wing Walker Music collective.  There’s some live tracks, but then also tracks that come from proper albums… including several that I’ve featured previously, and some which have earned a slot on my various Best Of lists.  Both of those samplers are set to Free Download, so you might consider adding a little extra to your payment for the “Forest Boats” track by way of saying thanks.

And if you want to say thanks to me for previewing this track, then you can repay that debt by emailing the artists and let them know that we are ready for more.