Be it with religion, music or politics, there’s nothing like the enthusiasm of a convert, and since Russian-born bassist Alex Gershman discovered the joys of jazz, he’s been on a mission to spread the good news through his musical review…
Month: March 2015
****RINGER OF THE WEEK****Jack Bruce: The 50th Birthday Concerts
Yes, Jack Bruce recently departed from this earth, but the decision to make this 2 dvd set a ROTW had no sentimental value to it. Filmed in two gigs on stage from November 1993 in Cologne, this is a wide…
Chris Klaxton: Starcode
Here’s a pretty impressive debut album from triple threat Chris Klaxton who plays trumpet, writes the material and arranges the music as well on this mature, accessible yet clever release. The band is small enough for flexibility, yet large enough…
OH, YEAH! Dave Alvin & Phil Alvin: Common Ground
You might remember brothers Dave and Phil Alvin from their days in the rock group The Blasters. Well, if you do, you’re dating yourself as they haven’t done anything together in 30 years. Here, the bros reunite and deliver a…
THIS IS A PIANO 101…Red Garland Trio: Swingin’ On The Korner
There is something about going back to the earliest music you first listened to; you wonder “after all these years, is he/she still going to sound as good as I thought when I was first exposed with virgin ears?” For…
SLAM DUNKS…Erika Dagnino Trio: Sides, Mark Holub & Irene Kepl: Taschen Drache, Clockwork Groove: Waiting For Injection, Luiz Moretto Quintet: Vampyroteuthis Infernalis
Here are some releases by the venerable European label Slam. Who says there’s nothing new under the sun? Vocalist Erika Dagnino delivers poetry with Ken Filiano’s bass and effects along with Satoshi Takeishi/s percussion on a fascinatingly free form collage…
THE OTHER SIDE OF THE SWING ERA:…Alexander Melnikov, Isabel Faust, Jeroen Berwaerts, Gerard Costes & Teunis Van Der Zwart: Hindemith: Sonatas For…
Yes, the 30s and 40s were better known as “The Swing Era,” but things were going on in classical music as well. Pianist Paul Hindemith was mixing a bit of both genres during that period as this collections of sonatas…
Antonio Zambujo: Rua da Emenda
When you think of the Portuguese language, why do we imagine Brazil and not Portugal? Go figure! Antonio Zambujo may put an end to that.This release has him singing with a warm and understated voice while playing glorious fado and…
LESSONS FROM AMADEUS…Kristian Bezuidernhout: Mozart-Keyboard Music Volume 7
You listen to this music that is 250 years old, and your first thought has to be “what is being played or composed nowadays that people will still be revisiting in 2260? Makes you think a bit. Pianist Kristian Bezuidernhout…
Vijay Iyer Trio: Break Stuff
Pianist Vijay Iyer has been working with his team of Stephan Crump/b and Marcus Gilmore/dr for over a decade now, and this latest disc is definitively their strongest. Why? Well, Iyer himself has coalesced his style into an identifiable sound…