Co-leaders Aaron Aranita/p-wwinds and David Yamasaki/g lead a pack of Ernie Provencher/b and Scott Shafer/dr through a mix of post bopping originals. Sandara Tsukiyama lends her lovely voice to the cozy samba of “Manoa”. Aranita’s tenor is warm and lyrical…
Month: March 2025
John Patitucci: Spirit Fall
Master of both acoustic and electric bass (be it 4 string, 5 or beyond), John Patitucci teams up with longtime mate from his Wayne Shorter days, Brian Blade , as well as fellow vet Chris Potter on a wide and…
Julian & Roman Wasserfuhr: Safe Place
Trumpeter Julian Wasserfuhr teams up with brother Roman on piano and cellist Jorge Brinkmann (with guest saxist Paul Heller) on this album of mimimalist adventures. The three create gentle ripples on a pretty “Vent Chaud” with some folksy ideas from…
Towner Galaher Organ Group: Brothers
Drummer Towner Galaher forms an Old School soul jazz unit with Ji9mmy Sanders/B3-key, Randy Monroe/eb, Marvin Horne/g and Craig Handy/ts on this mix of comfort food originals. Handy’s muscular tenor is a treat, while Galaher and Monroe lock horns for…
Jessica Jones Quartet: Edible Flowers
Saxist Jessica Jones forms a formidable two tenor front line with Tony Jones along with Stomu Takeishi/b and Deszon Claborne/dr on a mix of bopping originals and covers. The free-bop feel is loose and intuitive, hip on the Monkish “Manhattan”…
Juan Perea: Lightkeeper
Pianist and keyboardist Juan Perea delivers soulful jazz originals in the realm of Joe Sample on this warm collection that features the likes of Eric Marienthal/as, Dean Brown/g, Hadrien Feraud-Jimmy Haslip-Janek Gwizdala-Gary Haase/b, Tom Brechtlein/dr and Steve Thronton/perc. Perea pulls…
Believers: Hard Believers
Guitarist Brad Shepik, bassist Sam Minie and drummer/percussionist John Hadfield m ix ideas and tones form their second time around on this latest release. Shepik does some clever things with his strings, taking you to Africa/Caribbean climates with his toneon…
Bianca Rossini: I’ve Been Alone
Best known for her keeping the Brazilian samba tradition up to date, vocalist/composer Bianca Rossini stretches her boundaries on this latest release. Instead of the tried and true sounds of bossa nova, Rossini breaks free and not only sings the…
Shuffle Demons: Are You Really Real
Here’s a swinging team of saxes that know more about hip riffs than James Brown’s Famous Flames. The reed section of Richard Underhill/as-bs, Kelly Jefferson/ts and Matt Lagan/ts create a magma of music for the grooves dug in by “Mike…
YellowJackets: Fasten Up
One of the longest standing fusion groups, The Yellow Jackets, like Ol’ Man River, keep right on moving along. This latest album has the current and long standing team of Bob Mintzer/ts-EWI, Russell Ferrante/p-key, Dane Alderson/b-MIDI and Will Kennedy/dr with…