John Taylor Trio: Decipher (MPS)
Though the British pianist John Taylor played with a full slate of jazz greats including Charlie Haden, Lee Konitz, Jan Garbarek and Kenny Wheeler (with … Read More “John Taylor Trio: Decipher (MPS)”
Lloyd Sachs
Jason Stein Quartet: Lucille! (Delmark)
Bass clarinetist Jason Stein is in a major comfort zone on Lucille! Named after his now 3-year-old daughter, the album features a pair of his … Read More “Jason Stein Quartet: Lucille! (Delmark)”
Tim Berne’s Snakeoil: Incidentals (ECM)
“I’ve always liked the idea of steering people away from the material we start with,” Tim Berne says in the press notes for Incidentals, the … Read More “Tim Berne’s Snakeoil: Incidentals (ECM)”
Nick Mazzarella and Tomeka Reid: Signaling (Nessa)
The first thing that strikes you about Signaling, an exceptional duo effort by alto saxophonist Nick Mazzarella and cellist Tomeka Reid, is its remarkable tonality—not … Read More “Nick Mazzarella and Tomeka Reid: Signaling (Nessa)”
Steve Coleman’s Natal Eclipse: Morphogenesis (Pi)
Steve Coleman’s music has long been animated by a bobbing and weaving, thrusting and parrying dynamism. On Morphogenesis, the first recording by his drummerless Natal … Read More “Steve Coleman’s Natal Eclipse: Morphogenesis (Pi)”
Roscoe Mitchell: Bells for the South Side (ECM)
Recorded in 2015 at Chicago’s Museum of Contemporary Art, as part of a celebration of the AACM’s 50th anniversary, this double album basks in powerful … Read More “Roscoe Mitchell: Bells for the South Side (ECM)”
Bill Evans: Another Time: The Hilversum Concert (Resonance)
With so many previously unissued trio recordings by Bill Evans crowding shelves and “the cloud,” it’s fair to ask whether another archival discovery adds anything … Read More “Bill Evans: Another Time: The Hilversum Concert (Resonance)”
Louis Hayes: Serenade for Horace (Blue Note)
Had Louis Hayes merely taken a leisurely stroll down memory lane in paying tribute to his former boss, Horace Silver, that would have been perfectly … Read More “Louis Hayes: Serenade for Horace (Blue Note)”
Dominic Miller: Silent Light (ECM)
ECM’s sound chamber could hardly suit Dominic Miller better. On his first album for the label, the nylon-string, classical-style guitarist milks every note, thriving on … Read More “Dominic Miller: Silent Light (ECM)”
Aki Takase/David Murray: Cherry-Sakura (Intakt)
Twenty-five years before recording their new duo album, almost to the day, Aki Takase and David Murray recorded Blue Monk, on which they explore some … Read More “Aki Takase/David Murray: Cherry-Sakura (Intakt)”
Noah Preminger: Meditations on Freedom (Dry Bridge)
Having immersed himself in Delta blues on his acclaimed 2016 album, Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground, young tenor star Noah Preminger makes … Read More “Noah Preminger: Meditations on Freedom (Dry Bridge)”
Miles Okazaki: Trickster (Pi)
Miles Okazaki doesn’t have an instantly recognizable guitar sound, such as Mary Halvorson’s, and though he has strong ties to Steve Coleman, having played in … Read More “Miles Okazaki: Trickster (Pi)”
Chris Thile & Brad Mehldau: Chris Thile & Brad Mehldau (Nonesuch)
Coming from most artists, an album like Chris Thile & Brad Mehldau would be considered a side project. But Thile, the virtuosic mandolin player/leader of … Read More “Chris Thile & Brad Mehldau: Chris Thile & Brad Mehldau (Nonesuch)”
Tom Rainey: Obbligato
Obbligato opens with a joke: Drummer Tom Rainey and company are in such a hurry to be “Just in Time” (on the Jule Styne classic) … Read More “Tom Rainey: Obbligato”
Ulysses Owens Jr.: Onward and Upward
There’s such a sense of ease to Ulysses Owens’ third album as a leader, you know the 31-year-old drummer has strongly benefited from his work … Read More “Ulysses Owens Jr.: Onward and Upward”
Matt Bauder and Day In Pictures: Nightshades
It’s hard to imagine a more personal, or personable, modern take on soul-jazz tradition than “Octavia Minor,” the opening track on the sophomore album by … Read More “Matt Bauder and Day In Pictures: Nightshades”
The Bad Plus: The Rite of Spring
When it premiered in Paris in 1913, Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring (Le Sacre du Printemps) incited a riot, mostly for its shocking rewriting of … Read More “The Bad Plus: The Rite of Spring”
Dan Weiss: Fourteen
A stirrer of jazz and ethnic styles as an accompanist for such wide-ranging artists as Miguel Zenón, Rez Abbasi and Joel Harrison, drummer Dan Weiss … Read More “Dan Weiss: Fourteen”
Darryl Harper: The Edenfred Files
For all the freedom from tradition contemporary clarinetists have gained, they frequently make it or break it artistically based on the quality of their sound. … Read More “Darryl Harper: The Edenfred Files”
Jeremy Pelt: Face Forward, Jeremy
Electric music is nothing new to Jeremy Pelt, two of whose mid-2000s efforts for MaxJazz mined the fertile possibilities of fusion. But with last year’s … Read More “Jeremy Pelt: Face Forward, Jeremy”
Taylor Ho Bynum Sextet & 7-Tette: Navigation
An intriguing study in variations, cornetist Taylor Ho Bynum’s Navigation features four different takes of the extended title tune by his excellent, closely knit working … Read More “Taylor Ho Bynum Sextet & 7-Tette: Navigation”
Jane ira Bloom: Sixteen Sunsets
Jane Ira Bloom has always been a lyrical player, but on her first ballads collection, stripped of technical enhancements, this elite soprano saxophonist reveals new … Read More “Jane ira Bloom: Sixteen Sunsets”
Erik Friedlander: Claws and Wings
“Frail as a Breeze,” the two-part song that opens cellist Erik Friedlander’s lovely tribute to his departed wife, might describe his own physical and psychological … Read More “Erik Friedlander: Claws and Wings”
Marty Ehrlich Large Ensemble: A Trumpet in the Morning
Whether or not Marty Ehrlich was affected by the harsh reviews of The Long View, the boldly experimental 2003 recording by his Large Ensemble, this … Read More “Marty Ehrlich Large Ensemble: A Trumpet in the Morning”
Ellery Eskelin/Susan Alcorn/Michael Formanek: Mirage
The great country pedal-steel player Buddy Emmons had a serious brush with jazz (as witness his easy-swinging 1963 Verve album, Steel Guitar Jazz), but otherwise … Read More “Ellery Eskelin/Susan Alcorn/Michael Formanek: Mirage”
Stephan Crump’s Rosetta Trio: Thwirl
On Thwirl, Stephan Crump’s Rosetta Trio plays things a bit closer to the vest than they did on their sparkling previous outing, Reclamation. But they … Read More “Stephan Crump’s Rosetta Trio: Thwirl”
Ben Allison: The Stars Look Very Different Today
Bassist-composer Ben Allison puts together such great bands you can’t help but regret his tendency to record each of them only once. But with standout … Read More “Ben Allison: The Stars Look Very Different Today”
Harold O’Neal: Man on the Street
Harold O’Neal is a tough artist to pin down. Is he the stylish hard-bop reviver responsible for the well-received 2010 effort Whirling Mantis? Or the … Read More “Harold O’Neal: Man on the Street”
Rempis Percussion Quartet: Phalanx
With these excellent albums, saxophonist Dave Rempis, an important musician-presenter in Chicago, launched his own Aerophonic label in June. The two-disc Phalanx captures wide-open live … Read More “Rempis Percussion Quartet: Phalanx”
The Claudia Quintet: September
John Hollenbeck has fashioned his share of attention-grabbing tunes, but few as compelling as “September 29th, 1936: Me Warn You,” a highlight of the Claudia … Read More “The Claudia Quintet: September”