Nov 29 2018
Christian Balvig has shattered my skepticism
I kept expecting this album to make me feel silly. At some point, the thinking went, I would achieve a certain perspective, and everything I believed about this recording would be revealed as a bit premature. But over and over and over again I listen to this gorgeous new album by the Christian Balvig 6tet, and I’m starting to think that my swooning first impressions was an accurate one.
Look, sometimes I really connect with a recording. I hear something beautiful, something that strikes me dead center of my heart, and I go up to the rooftops and shout its name to the world. And, sometimes, after some acclimation to the music’s beauty, I modulate my opinion down a bit, and regard the music as something more of an ordinary beauty deserving of an even-handed assessment.
This is not an apology, nor am I even a little bit embarrassed about some of my more effusive posts that my preamble refers to. I cherish those initial connections to beautiful music as much, if not more, than those states of connection where a calm pragmatism instructs my emotional response. It’s just, well, sometimes I hold off before running up to the rooftops preparing to shout. It’s a learned skepticism.
Christian Balvig’s exquisite chamber jazz recording Music for Humans had me wary. It’s true. It just seemed too beautiful. The way he gets a string trio to swoop right in and take his piano trio’s melodic phrasings airborne had me hooked right from the start. The rhythmic chatter that makes the comforting effect of raindrops seem pale by comparison got those hooks in deeper. That way he brings an ominous tone to a track like “How Many Eyes Are Mirrored In The Moon,” a reminder that as beautiful as the storm may be, it has the power to damage, provides some necessary weightiness as a counterbalance to all of the uplifting moments. These are a few of the album’s qualities that have left me moonstruck. To itemize them feels, to me, as if I’m diminishing their effect, as if skewing the perspective that this album’s majesty is revealed in its fullness and not its bullet points.
I know I should hesitate before saying things like this is one of the most beautiful things I’ve heard all year. I know better. Except it’s true. This is one of the most beautiful things I’ve heard all year. And if that sounds familiar, it’s probably ’cause you heard me shouting it from the rooftops.
Your album personnel: Christian Balvig (piano), Louise Gorm (violin), MIkkel Schreiber (viola), Maria Isabel Edlund (cello), Jens Mikkel Madsen (bass) and Siv Øyunn Kjenstad (drums).
Released on AMP Music & Records.
Music from Oslo, Norway.
Available at: Amazon
There is something immensely charming about the disjointed melodicism of 
Dec 3 2018
The Round-up: The process had lost its magic long ago
Here is some very good new music
Felipe Salles Interconnections Ensemble – The Lullaby Project (Tapestry Records)
Felipe Salles doesn’t have to come at you with a hard sell on his latest. The comforting sighs of melody and soothing waves of harmony are plenty evidence of his intent to compose for jazz orchestra the Brazilian lullabies of his childhood. Even when his ensemble lets loose a surge of intensity, there’s always a sense of goal=sweet dreams. The whole album is gorgeous, but good god, that fourth movement is stunning. Music from NYC.
Artist site | Listen | Buy: Amazon
Andrew Hadro – For Us, The Living II: Marcescence (Tone Rogue Records)
This is the second release in Andrew Hadro‘s For Us, The Living series, and, really, the important point to let sink in is that this is seriously engaging music. Sometimes the engagement is how a ballad gets the listener to sink into its embrace, and sometimes that engagement comes via a riveting dialog, full of lyricism and vivid imagery. The same could be said about the initial recording, which I still enjoy playing from time to time. The theme of the two recordings is a focus on living composers, and that’s always thrown me a bit, since the first in the series was mostly Hadro originals. The current installment swings the ratio in the other direction (including comps by Wayne Shorter, Sean Pentland, Chris Cheek, and Julian Shore… who also performs on the newest), and seems more in line with the intent. Included among the renditions is a cover of Radiohead’s “Faust Arp,” and I don’t care how many of you groan god, do we really need another Radiohead cover? my answer is always yes, we do. The frequency of occurrence in no way negates how much loveliness available to jazz musicians to suss out from a Radiohead tune. There’s also a cover Bill Frisell’s “Throughout,” which as any casual reader of this site knows, that’s the fastest way to get my attention. The act of recognizing a new jazz songbook of modern standards is an intriguing concept, and seems like the kind of thing that could bring a sense of cohesion to a modern scene that is (wonderfully) unconstrained and fragmented in its forms of expression. The idea of one original included among those composed in the modern era appeals to me; it’ll be interesting to see if Hadro continues in that direction. Music from NYC.
Artist site | Listen | Buy: Bandcamp – Amazon
Sons of Kemet – Your Queen is a Reptile (Impulse Records)
Though justifiably attributed as a focal point of the resurgent London music scene, the thing of it is, Shabaka Hutchings creative trajectory covers more geography than just one locale. The latest from Sons of Kemet is a testament to that, and this is something measured by its sonic perspective as well as one political. The rhythmic dialogues are like points on a map, marking a journey between cities, countries and continents. The album and song titles are a shout across the bow, simultaneously undercutting the idea of royal lineage and lofting up an alternate suggestion of who is the true royalty of these times. But transcending the intriguing underpinnings of this album is how supremely joyful the music is. The tuba of Theon Cross is just as responsible for the delightful rhythmic bounce as the cast of drummers who contribute, and the guest vocalists add some heat to the affair along with additional saxophonists Nubya Garcia and Pete Wareham. Music from London.
Artist site | Buy: Amazon
Rafael Thomaz Septeto – Ainda dá tempo? (Tratore)
This is just a gorgeous session from guitarist Rafael Thomaz. A unity of Brazilian, classical and jazz, his septet brings out the beauty of each melody, and lets the harmonies shine like the heavens opening up for all to see. There are some interludes spread throughout, and their introspective nature is a nice contrasting element. Flutist Cesar Pereira, oboist Tiago Marques, clarinetist Alexandre Ribeiro, saxophonist Bruno Cabral, bassist Henrique Tarrason and drummer Fabio Augustinis join Thomaz on this lovely recording.
Artist site | Listen | Buy: Bandcamp – Amazon
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By davesumner • Jazz Recommendations - 2018 • 0 • Tags: Andrew Hadro, Felipe Salles, Impulse Records, London, New York City, Rafael Thomaz, Sons of Kemet, Tapestry Records, The Round-Up, Tone Rogue Records, Tratore