Drummer Keith Hall has a diverse resumé: Betty Carter, Sir Roland Hanna, Kenny Wheeler, Janis Siegel, New York Voices, TRI-FI and several years with singer/saxophonist Curtis Stigers.
The second in a planned seven-volume series dedicated to Eastman’s compositions, particularly those not performed in his lifetime, Julius Eastman, Vol. 2: Boy Joy showcases the earmarks of the composer’s style.
Though music eventually overtook his interest in superheroics, his childhood infatuation remains a creative inspiration.
Void Patrol combines the talents of saxophonist Colin Stetson, guitarist/electronicist Elliott Sharp and Medeski Martin & Wood drummer Billy Martin, at the behest of Alarm Will Sound percussionist Payton MacDonald.
The Berklee-trained musician blends his two disciplines – jazz and classical – into a series of musical poems paying tribute to Odesa’s landmarks and historical occurrences alike.
Grasso continues his journey through pre-hard bop jazz with Be-Bop!, concentrating on the work of Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker.
Four albums in, Roxy Music was about to enter its most commercially successful phase – but with a twist.
Though more for completists than casual Baker fans, Live in Paris is a worthy addition to the Baker catalog.
Not long after releasing his chill and immersive debut single “Night”, Sweden*-based *Australian artist Kaapstaad has released “Aula”, the latest offering in his quest to bring distinct lo-fi chamber beats from the Baltic and beyond.
Singer/songwriter Tom Baker knows how to make loud, roots-informed, bar band rock & roll tunes that catch your ear, nod your head and, when you’re not looking, tear up your eye.
An electrifying performer tackles rock’n’soul classics from Iggy Pop to Irma Thomas.
Anyone even slightly familiar with jazz knows that Charles Mingus was a genius.
New Zealand*-based *American folktronic artist Parabola West has released Stars Will Light the Way, a 13-track LP with cinematic sound offerings ranging from atmospheric pop to Northern European folk-influenced compositions, all recorded at the healing frequency of 432Hz.
When Watertown first came out in 1970, Frank Sinatra fans didn’t know what to make of it – which, in retrospect, seems odd.
NYC-based post-punk / alternative rock collective London Plane present their new single “Come Out of the Dark”, a glimpse of brightness amidst the invasion of darkness, both internal and external, imminent and eventual. This new taster of their long-awaited Bright Black album, an 11-track offering is set to release on June 17 via Declared Goods.
Though German composer, musician and sound designer J. Peter Schwalm and Swiss guitarist, composer and Sonar bandleader Stephan Thelen are well known for their consistent journeys into the outer limits, somehow the pair have not collaborated until now.
Revolution Above Disorder is the solo moniker of Vancouver*-based *Dubliner Stephen Nicholas White (The Orange Kyte, House of Dolls, Magic Shoppe), whose music is a melting pot of shoegaze, psychedelic rock and electronic-tinged post-punk. Droned-out while also melodic and sincere, White’s songs are augmented by synths, drum machines and heavily treated instrumentation with hypnotic reverb-soaked vocals.
Considering the embarrassment of riches that was the Minneapolis alternative rock scene in the eighties and nineties, it was inevitable that some cool acts would get lost in the shuffle. Enter the Clams.
Back for more fun, frolics and fantastic music, Bad Mary return to fashion a bonafide rock and roll anthem out of a harmless kids game, like only they could.
As Pond Life, his seventh album as a leader, proves, when given his head he’s very much a notable creative force.
A master carpenter with a master’s in poetry, singer/songwriter Thomas Dollbaum does indeed keep one foot in the real world and the other in the ephemeral on his debut Wellwood.
With a string of well received singles already doing the rounds, a UK tour to support the new album and anything up to a six-piece band bringing it to life, Reuben’s Daughter’s Mami Wata is finally out and getting a cool vinyl run to. Time to tune in to the new sound of pop.
A beloved icon at home, South African jazz pianist Nduduzo Makhathini made a big splash outside of his country last year with Modes of Communication: Letters From the Underworlds. He follows it up with the even stronger In the Spirit of Ntu, a record that’s one of the best blends of jazz and African music this side of Randy Weston.
Rumbling out of Albuquerque, New Mexico, stoner rockers Blue Heron makes a strong impression on their debut LP Ephemeral.
Following the release of their debut album in 2019 and a series of singles and videos that started in the summer of 2020 with “Kids of Summer” and “Buy Yourself A Dream, Monotronic have secured a place in the “one to watch” category and every release has further solidified Ramsey Elkholy’s reputation as a writer and artist with some serious creative chops.
The songs on Nuna encompass a State of the Piano recital.
For his fourth album #CubanAmerican, Miami pianist Martin Bejerano continues his quest to infuse his father’s Cuban heritage with North American jazz.
Cinematic rock duo The Caughtery (a duo of long-time Austin music veterans Lisa Tingle and David Gayler) has released their debut single ‘Fragile’, a stunning preview of their debut eponymous EP.
Dublin electronic artist Circuit3 has signed with Manchester’s AnalogueTrash label for the new album Technology For The Youth ahead of which comes the upbeat lead single ‘Future Radio’, along with two B-side tracks, including a remix by Ricardo Autobahn (AKA John Matthews), best known as one half of Spray.
For his latest album Bluesthetic, trombonist/composer Steve Davis recruits a gang of old friends, many of whom he’s been playing with for decades.
Ahead of his new album Bigger ThanIn Between, Sam Robbins releases a stylishly simple take on early rock and roll meets modern indie-folk in the guise of “Reverence”. A sonic treatise to recognising the simple pleasures of life.
Afton Wolfe is Mississippi. Born in McComb, and growing up in Meridian, Hattiesburg, and Greenville, Mississippi, the roots of American music are in his DNA. Mississippi is the birthplace of at least three American art forms: country music, blues music, and rock and roll, all of which run through his songs. He is back with a new single “Late Nite Radio,” and is sounding better than ever.
The fiery METZ frontman edges out of his comfort zone.
In the jazz world, it’s not unusual for players of a certain caliber and renown to assemble for supersessions. Minus the hype it would bring in the rock and pop worlds, these kinds of sessions can often be relaxed affairs featuring old and new friends, united by love of the music and mutual respect.
Roxy Music’s groundbreaking first two albums would be hard to follow up by anyone, let alone the band that created them.
Outside of some fusion groups, there aren’t that many jazz artists that use the studio and its gear as an instrument. On Assembly, his seventh album, trombonist Jacob Garchik and his band of trusty sidekicks aim to change that.
The lesser-known back pages of a Phil Spector star.
A veteran of ensembles led by trombonist Steve Davis, trumpeter Jeremy Pelt and saxophonists Julieta Eugenio and JD Allen, drummer Jonathan Barber also leads his own band, Vision Ahead.
Born in Tel Aviv, reborn through the sonic mantra of Indian ragas, and born again in New York City, saxophonist Oded Tzur explores the cosmopolitan nature of spiritual jazz on his fourth album Isabela.
Armed with eight players, a widescreen compositional vision and a propensity toward musical freedom, Toronto ensemble Eucalyptus gets busy the moment “Infinity Bananas,” the first track on the band’s sixth album Moves, begins its spin.
Drummer and composer Chase Elodia spent the pandemic reading books on media theory, which lead to his debut album Portrait Imperfect.
Church made Darling Please alone in his basement following the death of his beloved brother and bandmate Mike, a terrible occurrence that drenches the songs in bruised emotion, whether or not they directly address the situation.
All covers albums should be this good.
Joined by guitarist/producer Lee Meadvin, bassist Nick Dunston, pianist Paul Cornish and drummer Connor Parks, Vandever unfolds her pieces at a deliberate pace, never jumping straight in, but never letting lanquidity take over.
Though he’s been recording albums under his own name since 1978 (and as a sideman since 1974), guitarist John Scofield, astonishingly, has never recorded an album of unaccompanied guitar.
The loosely linked quintet of songs explore space, as indicated by the title, but it’s not just the cosmic variety.
Continuing their quest to re-imagine and re-brand classic pop-punk for a new generation, Bluedive drop the latest single “Kario Mart” which perfectly keeps the musical momentum flowing.
Something Here Inside is a warm love letter to the Great American Songbook.
