Comprised of Aaron Konkol/key/voc, Jah Boogje/voc-b, Phillip Hall/ddr, Louka Patenaude/g and Richard Hiloner/g, the group Natty Nation serves up R&B-ish reggae with an extra dash of synth and clavinet. The lead singer has a warm and rich voice, used well…
Month: June 2016
Scott Reeves Jazz Orchestra featuring Steve Wilson: Portraits and Places
Alto flugelhorn player and conductor Scott Reeves leads a sophisticated big band through an intelligent collection of originals. the 17 piece band includes all star Steve Wilson” who shines his soprano with a voice and dialogue on the gliding strut…
Julian Lage Trio @ The Blue Whale 06.04.16
Guitarist Julian wage has displayed his wares in a variety of settings over the years in LA. He teamed up with his own trio a few years ago, did a duet gig with Nels Cline, another one with pianist with…
VINTAGE JAZZ FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE…Oleg Kireyev & Keith Javors: The Meeting, Misha Tsiganov: Spring Feelings
Hard Bop jazz that sounds like it was produced by Alfred Lion? What is the label called? Red Note?!? Here are two very impressive albums that make you glad for glasnost. Tenor saxist Oleg Kireyev teams up with an all…
Rob Garcia: Finding Love In An Oligarchy On A Dying Planet
It’s album titles like this that make you glad that there aren’t brick and mortar record stores anymore. Can you imagine going in and asking, “Excuse me, but do you have ‘Finding Love In An Oligarchy On a Dying Planet”?…
****RINGER OF THE WEEK****David Krakauer: Krakauer’s Ancestral Groove-Checkpoint
What are you to make of this album by clarinetist David Krakauer?!? He’s got a Mediterranean tone, thick and rich on his licorice stick, and he uses it here to get back in touch with his Eastern Europe Jewish roots.…
Julian Hartwell: The Julian Hartwell Project
Pianist Julian Hartwell brings together a swinging team of Paul Horner/eb, Jon Cannon/b, Jake Kelberman/g, Tom Cullen/dr and an occasional horn section of Noah Hocker/tp, Seth Ebersole/sax and Harry Forlenza-Bailey/tb. All the songs are originals and display a sophisticated sense…
Anoushka Shankar: Land of Gold
Indian sitarist Anoushka makes the instrumentation and sounds of Central Asia palatable on this release. She teams up with Manu Delgado/hang and Sanjeev Shankar/reed with composing chores passed around. The songs reflect sonic reflections of social issues, sometimes including even…
Omer Avital: Abutul Music
Bassist Omer Avital has been one of the few artists to successfully make an amalgamation of American styled post bop jazz with the harmonies and dancing rhythms of the Middle East. This album is a rich mix with Avital leading…
Anke Helfrich Trio: Dedication
Anke Helfrich plays piano, Rhodes keyboard and harmonium on this wide ranging disc with horn icon Tim Hagans/tp-fh, Martin Wind/b and Jonas Burgwinkel/dr. The team shows a deft flow as Hagans glistens on the lithe take of Herbie Hancock’s “Chan’s Song”…