Modern jazz supergroup R+R=NOW formed out of what was supposed to be a one-off, freely improvised show at South By Southwest in 2017.
Led by the inimitable vocalist Theresa Jeane and featuring Steven Tobi, *Javier Garza Jr. and Josh Perrone, The Nearly Deads are one of the hottest rock bands to come out of Nashville. Their amalgam of powerful pop vocals and aggressive alternative rock music combined with their love of all things geek mixed in with messages of positivity and empowerment creates a truly unique style. I sat down with TJ and Steven to find out more.
It is still early in the year, but Sea Area Forecast, out February 10th, has all the makings to be one of 2021’s strongest indie rock efforts.
L.A. based singer, musician and actress, London Thor’s latest single is both timely and timeless. It captures so much about current mental health and attitudes in the pandemic afflicted world but it also speaks for those who have always found social situations stressful.
An album like And the Triumph of Justice is, to put it simply, sheer fun, a breath of fresh air, and a reminder of this country’s potential just when it is needed the most.
Aeronautics is a great showcase for some strong jazz talent that’s relatively unknown – for now.
It’s not easy listening if you pay attention to the lyrics, but it rewards that attention with catharsis.
Part of the New York scene starting in the seventies and into the eighties, the axeman vacillated between mainstream soul/pop (including LPs for Island and RCA/Novus, the former produced by Nile Rodgers) and avant-garde jazz (work with Oliver Lake and Wadada Leo Smith, recording the landmark Clarity LP in 1977).
Between the absence of a rhythm section and a disinclination to go for the obvious raising of the roof, the pair relies on interplay and feel, showing a near-telepathic sense of how to move around each other, as well as a profound connection to the pieces they choose to include.
An underrated album from a Big Apple provocateur gets refurbished.
Magic Beans might very well be a perfect title for the album, because it is full of songs that start off unassuming before growing to unimaginable heights; making a record full of delightful surprises.
The Israeli native wields expansive playing and lyrical melodics for a session that fits in well with ECM’s “chamber jazz” aesthetic.
All New Information is a big step forward for the artist, finding Lord Sonny with a leaner, heavier sound, a clear sense of direction, and a newfound edge in his delivery and songwriting.
Although some of the Louvins’ material has aged better, what is still evident is the intensity and conviction in their voices, creating an irresistible energy that persists despite the changing times.
This Land brings together iconoclastic musical minds that intersect in the jazz world: vocalist Theo Bleckmann and brass quartet the Westerlies
Twenty Twenty perfectly captures the zeitgeist of our times; combining fear with tempered hope, grief with apocalyptic camaraderie.
Working with pianist Marilyn Crispell and drummer Carmen Castaldi, the horn man explored new, more atmospheric territory, with an emphasis on making interiority exterior.
At a time when the dominant African pop sounds were Fela Kuti’s Afrobeat, Ebenezer Obey’s miliki and King Sunny Adé’s jùjú, Ngozi’s roiling rock was less jazz and James Brown and more Jimi Hendrix.
Recorded in both New York and Norway, these nine songs deftly mix warm synthesizer textures with a lightly soulful rhythm section to showcase Darrah’s reserved romantic anguish.
James Osterberg through the years, profound and profane.
Together, “Mother” and “Tryin’ To Get To Heaven” complete each other and stand as new reminders of the incredible artist we lost five years ago. But more importantly, the songs renew our gratitude that he was here with us.
“There are eight tracks drenched in dream gaze and a post punk sensibility that will rock your corner of the world for a short time. While it may rain colder on your senses, there is always a warmth to be found at the core of these soundscapes.”
“I’d be hard pressed to give a hard and fast description of this release, as it’s a constantly shifting musical cape, colors swirling about as crystalline notes settle around you. The instrumental passages are exotic swatches of tropicalia meshed with dreamy psych folk.”
Gospel titans rock the house with spirit and soul, and everyone’s invited.
Earlier generations had journalists such as Hunter S. Thompson and Norman Mailer and poets like Charles Bukowski to help them voice their anger at the frustrations of life. At the end of a year like 2020, Iggy Pop’s cathartic wail of “Covid-19!” is the poetry we all needed to hear.
At the 20th anniversary of Elbow’s debut album, this vinyl reissue campaign treats the band’s early material with the loving touch its legacy warrants.
The Junk Ranchers were one of the many guitar-based rock bands on the American college scene in the mid-80s. On the basis of 86 , the quartet was also one of the better examples.
The Vince Guaraldi Trio’s score for the animated TV special A Charlie Brown Christmas continues to serve as a point of entry for new generations of fans to discover jazz music at any age.
In His Latest Mystery is a reminder that there’s way more to Haynes than jokes and sarcasm.
Jimi’s errant tangents yield fruit more than a half-century later.
Lia Ices returns in late January with an album that resonates with a divine splendor
Poetic wordsmith Lukasz Polowczyk and his top-notch ensemble unveil a mesmerizing, meditative, and metaphysical album.
Charlie Parker, Miles Davis and friends make beautiful, exotic noise.
Girl Band announce a new album, tour dates and release the single “Shoulderblades”
A great cry was heard throughout the land…well, the land populated by a certain kind of rock fan, anyway. And that cry was: Thelonious Monster is back.
With two excellent singles already being well-received both critically and commercially, Midnight Canyon unleash their debut eponymous e.p.
Interestingly, Pirog, who studied jazz guitar at Berklee and NYU, doesn’t play much actual jazz here. Instead, he explores folk and psychedelia, drawing on the sounds of the sixties, but reinterpreting them firmly for the twenty-first century.
Joan of Arc may have reached a career end, but they continue to be unstoppable.
The King meets the Nashville Cats in Music City. Fine country-pop ensues.
From humble beginnings, Nothing has grown into a truly excellent band, with a sure grasp on how it wants to sound and how to write for itself.
The Jigsaw Seen go full tilt seasonal on the sublime Ep Sleigh Bells Ring
Back in 1969, a Cleveland improvisational conglomerate called Black Unity Trio put out what may well be the first avant-garde jazz album released independently: Al-Fatihah, named after the first chapter of the Quran and self-released in an edition of 500 copies.
Landing December 11, Sheep Farming In Barnet is the sublime debut by Toyah, a fully realised release, 41 years after it’s initial incarnation
The new atmospheric single from Irish songstress Kathy Crinion features the added charm of vocalist Adam James Deiboldt.
The Glitz; The Glamour is an overview of Perry Farrell’s pre and post Jane’s Addiction work.
Recorded two weeks before last year’s splendid Munich 2016 on his 2016 European tour in, of course, Budapest, the concert contains ninety minutes and two disks of spontaneous piano composition, plus a couple of standards to round off the encore.
Those with a taste for this kind of emotionally forthright chamber pop will wonder where the Bathers have been all their lives.
Richard Penniman goes to church, ‘80s style.
