Emanuele Maniscalco

Jan 26 2020

Best of 2019 #38: Massimiliano Milesi – “Oofth”

 

“There’s a lot going on in Massimiliano Milesi’s debut album,” is how I began my write-up of this album for The Bandcamp Daily.  It’s true.  And considering it was released on the Auand Music label, it’s no surprise that the music swims in the cross-currents of modern post-bop, indie rock, electronic music, avant-folk, and a few unidentifiable influences that may or may not originate on this planet.  My conclusion was that while the “influences inspire a cryptic dance with a curious synchronicity, the complexities are a simple course to navigate when you lead with melodies as embraceable as these.”

The theme of the 2019 release by Massimiliano Milesi is the sci-fi story by Walter Tevis “The Ifth of Oofth.”  The elasticity of tempos, the boozy motions, the electronics and organic instruments folding back upon themselves, they are all qualities of the music that pay homage to the story.  But this music is more than a tally of its inspiration’s characteristics.  The grooves springing from the electro-acoustic back and and forth, the melodies that chart the fastest course to the listener’s heart, the harmonies that separate and return to a state of unison like rapids curling around rocks in a lively river, it all adds up to one of the more straight-forwardly strange recordings of the year, a rare accomplishment of the unusual as something easily accessible.

Your album personnel:  Massimiliano Milesi (tenor sax), Emanuele Maniscalco (wurlitzer piano, synthesizers), Giacomo Papetti (bass VI, electric bass) and Filippo Sala (drums).

Released on Auand Records.

Music from Bergamo, Italy.

I wrote about the album for The Bandcamp Daily.

Listen | Read more | Available at:  Bandcamp – Amazon

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Feb 4 2019

The Round-up: It seemed like ages ago. Maybe it was.

 

Here is some very good new music

 

Restroy – Restroy (1980 Records/Milk Factory Productions)

Pretty sure I’ve never used the phrase hauntingly tuneful before to describe an album, but that’s what you got with the self-titled debut from Restroy.  The ominous tones and ethereal presence combined with striking melodic inspirations gives the sensation of a band that is channeling the spirits of forgotten pop songs.  A solid line-up of bassist Christopher Dammann, trumpeter James Davis, cellist Kevin Davis, keyboardist Paul Giallorenzo, pianist Mabel Kwan and drummer Avreeayl Ra bring about a communion of organic and electronic sounds that comes off as an uneasy alliance… a quality that kicks up the undercurrent of tension a few notches.  Music from Chicago.

Artist site | Listen | Buy:  Bandcamp

 

Soon – Something Out Of Nothing (Caligola Records)

This is one of those recordings you just sink into like the most comfortable sofa at the end of a long week.  The melodies on this trio session are an open door, but the depth of the recording is felt in the waves of harmonics that wash over everything.  With this lovely piano trio recording in hand, pianist Roberto Soggetti, bassist Giulio Corini and drummer Emanuele Maniscalco are here to make everything right in your world.  Music from Brescia, Italy.

No artist site | Listen | Buy:  Bandcamp – Amazon

 

Mauro Gargano Mo’Avast Band – Born in the Sky (iOSA)

The casual lyricism on Born in the Sky can lull you into a place where it’s easy to forget just how powerfully these melodies are gonna get delivered.  And Mauro Gargano‘s quartet does lean into these melodies, returning to them frequently between some wonderful soloing.  And while those solos will keep the attention locked in place, the album is at its strongest when the entire quartet gets involved, meshing into and criss-crossing the trajectories of their counterparts.  Music from Paris, France.

Artist site | Listen | Buy:  Bandcamp – Amazon

 

Alvaro Severino – Ngen-Kürüf (Discos Pendiente)

That Alvaro Severino takes a sonic road trip across South America’s folk musics is plenty absorbing all on its own, but it’s his airy, free-flowing delivery on acoustic guitar that represents this recording at its most captivating.  The Chilean guitarist’s quartet (with trumpet, double bass and drums) keep up an amicable chatter throughout the session, and a tone that could give a beam of sunlight a run for its money.  Music from Essen, Germany.

Artist site | Listen | Buy:  Bandcamp – Amazon

 

Evil Genius – Experiments on Human Subjects (Orenda Records)

The enthusiasm of Evil Genius is pretty damn infectious.  The music is too volatile to contain, too fast to keep pace with, and so damn fun.  The trio of guitarist Max Kutner, tubist Stefan Kac and drummer Mike Lockwood get a whiff of a melody and take off after it, never looking back.  Those brief, rare moments when they enter a fugue state of harmony are captivating as hell.  Punchy attitude, party atmosphere.  Music from Los Angeles, CA.

Artist site | Listen | Buy:  Bandcamp – Amazon

 

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Dec 15 2018

Album of the Day: “Divertimento” by Phelan Burgoyne and Emanuele Maniscalco

 

Artist:  Phelan Burgoyne & Emanuele Maniscalco

Album: Divertimento

Label:  Hout Records

Style:  Rainy day jazz

Favorite Track:  “Arcadia”

Music from:  London, UK and Brescia, Italy

What I like about it:  I like how the opening track’s melody is a plant slowly sprouting from the seed, burrowing its way from underground while occasionally flashing the beauty that one day will reach its fullness, and I like how the second and third tracks are the payoff of the blossoming flowers.  I like how the first track, over twenty-one minutes in length, goes through passages of development, where it gives the sense of approaching a conclusion, but then resets and starts back over… but a little bit different each time, and starting not over from scratch, but from a new plateau.

Other notes:  The pianist on this session, Emauele Maniscalco, has been involved in a remarkable number of excellent recordings over the last year, and you should definitely check him out.  So, too, the trio session from drummer Phelan Burgoyne, covered on this site not that long ago.

Your album personnel:  Phelan Burgoyne (drums) and Emanuele Maniscalco (piano).

Available at:  Bandcamp

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

Be sure to check out the artist’s site.  Both of them.

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