Jazz Recommendations – 2016 releases

Dec 11 2016

Recommended: Patrick Shiroishi’s Black Sun Sutra – “Anfinsen’s Landmark”

 

“Athialowi” is the first moment where a sense of melodic intent is able to get through on Anfinsen’s Landmark.  Before that, it’s nothing but the unrelenting ferocity of Patrick Shiroishi’s Black Sun Sutra.  The transition should probably be jarring.  Strangely, however, it possesses a certain flow, and a lot of that has to do with how the saxophonist molds all of that fury into something not unlike a drone… where the chaos is slowly transformed into a focused intensity, so that when it does finally let up, the next step forward into an edgy melodicism comes off as quite natural.  And when Shiroishi follows it up with a piece that balances its volatility with a persistent groove, the context of all of that opening ferocity shifts even further away from the initial impression of chaos, and now looks more like an extended preamble to what lies at the heart of the music all along.

Nothing about this album will ever get described as tuneful or songlike, and it’s not a wild assumption to think that’s probably not something that was ever on the table for discussion when this recording was first being conceived.  But the idea that the forces of intensity can be molded and shaped to conform to specific and cohesive imagery seems pretty on point to how this music shakes out.

And just to further strip things down and show what lies beneath the album’s immense opening presence, Shiroishi ends the album, recorded at Oak Park, California’s Church of the Epiphany, with a solo piece that takes the solemn locale to heart before building it up to a place where the next, natural step would be “Human Suffering,” the album’s opening track.

Your album personnel:  Patrick Shiroishi (alto & baritone saxophones), Noah Guevara (guitar), Robert Magill (tenor saxophone), Ken Moore (double bass) and Sergio Sanchez (drums).

Released on Creative Sources Recordings.

Listen to more of the album at the artist’s Bandcamp page.

Available at:  Bandcamp | Amazon | eMusic

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Dec 10 2016

This Is Jazz Today: John Chin, New Focus, Kalle Kalima, Billy Hart and Ashley Kurkjian

 

 

John Chin – Fifth (Self-Produced)

It’s particularly enjoyable how pianist John Chin rolls out different facets of the album’s personality one at a time, and how over its duration, it slowly rounds out the composite whole.  There’s the jaunty “Edda” and its autumn-in-the-park crispness of color and the post-bop heat of “The Chase” and the moonlight serenade of “Still Water” and the space travel tune “Trajectory” and a handful of solo improvisations to boot, and none of it seems out of sorts with its counterparts.  This is straight-ahead jazz, even when it isn’t.  Chin gets his point of view out there, and when the vagaries of its personality tosses up a curveball, the abiding vision eclipses the temporary changes and the whole thing just snaps into place.  Footnote:  The song “I Won’t Argue With You” is sublime… a simple, but heartfelt tune that’s worth the price of admission alone.

Your album personnel:  John Chin (piano, Fender Rhodes), Stacy Dillard (soprano sax), Lawrence Leathers (drums), Spencer Murphy (bass) and Tivon Pennicott (tenor sax).

Artist site | Buy:  Bandcamp

 

New Focus – New Focus on Song (Whirlwind Recordings)

The duo of Konrad Wiszniewski and Euan Stevenson and their New Focus project return with a follow-up to their excellent 2012 self-titled release with something that embraces the melodies as tightly as possible.  And where their previous recording was just as reliant on the presence of thick melodies, it was utilized more often as a launching point into classical and jazz expressions.  But their newest takes a more direct route and expresses the melodies with a songbird delivery and shades them far closer to pop territory than before.  The result is a set of delightful tunes, and when combined with the return of the Glasgow String Quartet, it reveals a sweet personality, so very easy to warm up to.

Your album personnel:  Euan Stevenson (piano), Konrad Wiszniewski (tenor & soprano saxophones, clarinet, low D whistle), Andrew Robb (double bass), Alyn Cosker (drums, percussion) and The Glasgow String Quartet of William Chandler (violin), Jacqueline Speirs (violin), Ian Budd (viola) and Betsy Taylor (cello).

Artist site | Listen | Buy:  Bandcamp – Amazon – eMusic

 

Kalle Kalima – High Noon (ACT Music)

This country-jazz session from guitarist Kalle Kalima is very much in the spirit of Bill Frisell’s Nashville.  Kalima knows how to take a well-known tune and put a nifty spin on it, making it both personal and personable.  Speaking of Frisell, this session’s bassist, Greg Cohen, is a Frisell collaborator, so that couldn’t have hurt getting the right feel.  On the other hand, drummer Max Andrzejewski is involved in a bunch of oddball projects throughout the various European scenes, so it’s interesting to hear a different facet of his sound.  Plenty of warmth on this one, and several renditions that got a smile out of me.

Your album personnel:  Kalle Kalima (guitar), Greg Cohen (double bass) and Max Andrzejewski (drums).

Artist site | Listen | Buy:  Amazon

 

Billy Hart & the WDR Big Band – The Broader Picture (Enja Yellowbird)

When a big band is able to express the melody with such a delicate touch… as if a huge statement were made in a thought bubble… that contrast of huge sound and contemplative tone is the kind of thing that hits both head and heart.  It’s an emotional voltage that inspires all kinds of introspective musings.  There’s a welcome undercurrent of moodiness in tracks like “Song For Balkis” and “Lullaby for Imke.”  But this is an expressive album that hides not a bit of its personality, like with the shout-to-the-skies euphoria of “Naaj” and “Imke’s March,” where a classic big band presence doesn’t hold back, doesn’t even try to… just lets it all out and is as immediate and charming as a warm, wide smile.  The influence of both Billy Hart and Christophe Schweizer is evident throughout, as both artists have a proven history of excelling in projects that call for the generous use of silence or its total annihilation.

Your album personnel:  Billy Hart (drums, compositions), Christophe Schweizer (conductor & arranger) and the WDR Big Band.

Artist site | Listen | Buy:  Amazon

 

Ashley Kurkjian’s Different Era – Different Era (Self-Produced)

The debut EP from saxophonist Ashley Kurkjian is about what you’d expect from someone with the college experience (in this instance, Humber College) still part of their orbit… a number of different influences inform the recording, and there is an attempt to somehow get them all to fit into the same limited space.  So it’s not surprising that Different Era skips around and sounds like it’s trying to do too much.  It’s also pretty forgivable, especially in the context of there being several strong moments in the brief duration of this EP’s three tracks.  When the ensemble sticks to the peaceful end of the spectrum, they are at their strongest, and those that weave together elements of chamber and modern jazz shine particularly bright.  It’s a promising glimpse of what else may come from Kurkjian, and I wanted to a give it a brief mention as something to have on your radar.

Your album personnel:  Ashley Kurkjian (woodwinds), Daniel Stefan (tenor sax), Jordan Tunney (trumpet, flugelhorn), Nat Lazzarotto (trombone), Corey Clark (guitar), Milan Kozovski (bass) and Jose Hernandez Garcia (drums).

Artist site | Listen | Buy:  Bandcamp

*****

By • Jazz Recommendations - 2016 releases • 0

Dec 9 2016

Recommended: Christian Wallumrod Ensemble – “Kurzsam and Fulger”

 

On ECM, the music of Christian Wallumrød was a modern classical built to scoop jazz up into its embrace.  It was rich with textures, alternating expressions of wry subtlety and diffuse imagery, and it always carried with it the promise of unconventional presentation.  So it’s been extremely gratifying to hear a stripped down version of his creativity since joining the Hubro Music label.

Wallumrød’s debut on Hubro was the lovely Pianokammer, a solo set of tunes that kept to the quiet side of things, and where every note was sublime.  There was an intimacy to the recording, a simple route to connecting with it, whereas on ECM, the beauty seemed to prefer being observed from a distance.

His newest, Kurzsam and Fulger, has Wallumrød expanding to a quintet formation, and yet, the music is still stripped down and full of intrigue.  With small doses of wind instruments, cello and percussion added to the mix, the result allows Wallumrød to reveal more of the connections between the complexities of his music and the simple melodies that lie at their heart.

The best example of this is “Langsam,” a composition where Wallumrød utilizes his technique of interspersing bursts of harmony with sparse passages where he throws out hints of melodic inspirations and the curious chatter of percussion.  But here and now, the music has an immediacy that wasn’t necessarily present before, and always feels within reach.  Just as intriguing is the supremely tuneful “Haksong,” a jaunty piece with a carefree demeanor that’s almost jarring in the context of the nuance and modulated intensity that marks so much of Wallumrød’s recorded history.  Of equal interest is that the composition also made an appearance on his solo album Pianokammer, and hearing how he originally expressed it with a heart full of melancholy and introspection makes the compare and contrast to his newest rendition that much more astonishing.

Some of the album tracks could almost be relegated to the status of “interlude” were it not for the fact that these kinds of passages are not uncommon in a Wallumrød work.  But to hear them stripped down and offering an economy of expressionism is more than a little fascinating in the grand scheme of things.  Wallumrød has previously displayed a talent for using silence to bolster his pieces with contemplation and intensity, and quite a bit of his past was creating music that was the perfect fit for quiet moments spent in quiet rooms.  But his new direction is one where he is having simpler conversations with a rich vocabulary, and the immediacy of the dialog is like that of shooting the breeze with an old friend.

Just a wonderful recording.

Your album personnel:  Christian Wallumrød (piano, harmonium), Eivind Lønning (trumpet), Espen Reinertsen (saxophone), Tove Törngren (cello) and Per Oddvar Johansen (drums, vibraphone).

Released on Hubro Music.

Listen to another album at the label’s Soundcloud page.

Available at:  Amazon | eMusic

And be sure to check out Wallumrød’s Pianokammer, too, as it’s an album that I continue to enjoy and continue to enthusiastically recommend.

Read more (LINK).

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Dec 8 2016

Allison Miller pretty much owned 2016 in new jazz

 

Lean – Lean

On Lean, the trio of Allison Miller, saxophonist Jerome Sabbagh and bassist Simon Jermyn move through influences like a chameleon across an ever-changing landscape.  The alluring drone of “Spotswood Drive” leads into the jaunty groove of “Electric Sun,” which, in turn, becomes the late night ballad “Lean.”  The furtive motions of “Olney” and “Bunker” are alike in their presence but on opposite ends as far as delivery, as are “Otis” and “Comptine,” but in terms of intensity.  And then there’s final track “Fast Fish,” a resting place of a straight-ahead post-bop.  And in each instance, with each different form of expression and influence, it sounds like trio is right at home in its environment, as if that were their sound all the time and the previous and subsequent album tracks hadn’t or won’t reflect any changes of any kind… just blending in, one tune at a time.

A supremely enjoyable recording.

Your album personnel:  Allison Miller (drums, “bike” and pedals), Jerome Sabbagh (tenor & soprano saxophones) and Simon Jermyn (electric bass and pedals).

The album is Self-Produced.

Listen to more of the album at the artist’s Bandcamp page.

Available at:  Bandcamp

 

Honey Ear Trio – Swivel

Every bit of this album leads to the impression that they’re having the most ever fun on Swivel.  Miller’s Honey Ear Trio of herself, saxophonist Jeff Lederer and bassist Rene Hart (plus cornetist Kirk Knuffke sitting in for a handful of tracks) keeps stepping up with the wildest expressions, and it’s the kind of thing that elicits both wonderment and smiles.  Whether it’s a seriously different take on Monk’s “Evidence” or an original like “Changeling,” the trio just blasts away before suddenly hitting the brakes for some rhythmic playfulness.  Some tracks open up seams of electronic effects, and how they pair with boisterous organic instruments makes for some intriguing compare and contrast.  Even on a track like “Lullaby,” when it seems like the trio is throwing a curveball with a peaceful, ambient tone, they still punctuate the silence with pointed saxophone bursts and rhythmic eddies… a sort of sunlight-on-the-water’s-surface effect, except that the light can burn and the water could pull you under if not careful.  And then there’s the rubber ducky squeak on “Squeaky Toy,” which is immediately eclipsed by a motorcycle roar, with the trio running on a full tank of gasoline for the entirety of the track.  But even at the other end of the spectrum, “Speak Eddie” has them taking a straight-ahead route and tempering their enthusiasm without lessening the excitement.

There’s nothing about this album that isn’t to like.

Your album personnel:  Allison Miller (drums, percussion), Jeff Lederer (saxophones), Rene Hart (acoustic bass, electronics) and guest:  Kirk Knuffke (cornet).

Released on Little (i) Music.

Listen to more of the album at the artist’s Bandcamp page.

Available at:  Bandcamp | Amazon

 

Allison Miller’s Boom Tic Boom – Otis Was A Polar Bear

What a seriously rich sound Miller and company conjure up on Otis Was a Polar Bear.  Her Boom Tic Boom sextet could masquerade as an ensemble twice that size, and probably still eclipse the larger group with its presence.  Some of this has to do with the pairings that create ideal situations where the sound of consequence is greater than the sum of the individual parts.  It’s why the contra-alto clarinet of Ben Goldberg, the violin of Jenny Scheinman and the piano of Myra Melford are able to jack up the intensity on “Shimmer” while maintaining the harmonic strength at something to fall softly into.  And it’s why Goldberg and cornetist Kirk Knuffke can surf the torrents of Melford’s piano and still muster up a wry blues on “Hoarding the Pod.”  But the success of this album also has a lot to do with the compositions and where the musicians take them.  How else to explain the subtle shift from cheery tunefulness to a thick introspection on “The Listener” or how the raindrops of melody on “Lullaby for Cookie” resonate as massively as any thunderstorm.  And then there’s the shadowboxing that goes on between bassist Todd Sickafoose and Miller, both in the foreground and behind the scene, and insinuating their will upon the tune in both instances.

This is one of the very best things to come out in all of 2016.

Your album personnel:  Allison Miller (drums, percussion), Ben Goldberg (clarinet, contra-alto clarinet), Kirk Knuffke (cornet), Jenny Scheinman (violin), and Todd Sickafoose (upright bass) and Myra Melford (piano).

Released on the Royal Potato Family label.

Available at:  Amazon | eMusic

By • I Listen To All Of This, Jazz Recommendations - 2016 releases • 0

Dec 7 2016

Recommended: Donder – “Still”

 

donder-stillStill is one of those albums that clearly seeks to mark serenity as its territory, and yet often expresses itself in a way that would be considered something other than peaceful.  Much of this has to do with the way that the Donder trio of pianist Harrison Steingueldoir, bassist Stan Callewaert, and drummer Casper Van De Velde employ infusions of silence to instill tension and bursts of activity meant to carry far and wide.  The end result is an unsteady serenity that feels barely able to maintain, and where the disturbances are not so much evidence of an album’s depth and personality as they are signs of impending dissonance and shattered tranquility.

There’s “Aurora” and how the patient build of intensity marries the slow melodic steps of piano with the rapid sprint of drums to the finish line.  It’s not that far removed from the approach on “Spin/Zeppelin,” but this time excelling in a far more sparse environment.  “Welle” has divergent melodic lines, and the way it’s expressed as an insistent pulse by bass and an intermittent fluttering by piano and a soft crash and peel by drums shows how ominous tones can be generated in a minimalist atmosphere.  And all of this goes down in the context of a lullabies like “Andrej” and “Adem” and the tuneful, but melancholic “Snjór.”

But in addition to the deft silence-disturbance patterns the trio utilizes, the other component of this album’s success is how they manipulate the scale of their expressions.  The passages of silence are punctuated at either end with a sharp clarity of melodic intent, as if the pauses were nothing more than the brief turning of pages in a story.  And when the trio does stir things up and strain the definition of what exactly entails a peaceful tune, they deliver those moments with a tight focus, and its why the sense of volatility hangs in the air even long after the initial sonic impact has faded and the silence begins again to take hold.

A seriously captivating album.

Your album personnel:  Harrison Steingueldoir (piano), Stan Callewaert (bass) and Casper Van De Velde (drums, glockenspiel).

The album is Self-Produced.

Listen to more of the album at the artist’s Bandcamp page.

Music from the Brussels, Belgium scene.

Available at:  Bandcamp

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