Tiny Reviews: Carter/Lenoci/Elgart, Ken Thomson & Slow/Fast and Walsh Set Trio

Tiny Reviews edition!

Featuring:  Kent Carter, Gianni Lenoci, Bill Elgart Plaything, Ken Thomson & Slow/Fast Settle, and Walsh Set Trio Three.

*****

Kent Carter, Gianni Lenoci, Bill Elgart – Plaything

Strong release from the trio of bassist Kent Carter, pianist Gianni Lenoci and drummer Bill Elgart, all three long-time veterans of the avant-garde/improv scenes. There’s a real sense of professionalism about this set of energetic tunes, as if the trio were revealing the mysterious purpose to all the chaos and suddenness and unpredictability to their music. It’s a big reason why it’s very easy to connect with this very challenging music… an ability to sense the heart of a song in the midst of everything.

Released on NoBusiness Records.

Available at:  eMusic | Amazon MP3

*****

Ken Thomson & Slow/Fast – Settle

Really engaging modern set from saxophonist Ken Thomson, who also doubles on bass clarinet.  The music falls into that general category that’s often described as having angular melodies and rhythms that rock far more than they bop.  The thing of it is, the shapes created by Thomson’s quintet and the way those rhythms get manipulated are presented in a way that makes something familiar sound distinctly personal, with an emphasis on craftsmanship.  Most of the time, it’s hard driving music, but when the quintet slows down, things get all kinds of alluring.  Rounding out the quintet are guitarist Nir Felder, drummer Fred Kennedy, trumpeter Russ Johnson and bassist Adam Armstrong.

The album is Self-Produced.

Available at:  eMusic | Bandcamp | CDBaby | Amazon CD/MP3

*****

Walsh Set Trio – Three

Fascinating session from the trio of clarinetist Brian Walsh, bassist Colin Burgess and drummer Trevor Anderies.  Experimental at heart and jazz in behavior.  Modern jazz, a bit post-bop and a bit avant-garde, floats right along nicely until interrupted by theatrical vocalizations and dissonant clashes of instruments.  An album with a sense of humor, where the jokes are just as likely to inspire contemplation as they are smiles.  Definitely nothing ordinary here.

Released on Orenda Records.

Available at:  eMusic | Bandcamp | CDBaby | Amazon: CD–MP3

*****

Some of this material was used originally in the weekly new jazz releases column I write for eMusic’s Wondering Sound, so here’s some language protecting their rights to the reprinted material as the one to hire me to write about new jazz arrivals to their site…

“New Arrivals Jazz Picks,” “New Arrivals Jazz Picks,” & “New Arrivals Jazz Picks,“ reprints courtesy of eMusic.com, Inc.
© 2014  eMusic.com, Inc.

As always, my sincere thanks to eMusic for the gig.