Search Results for: super alone

Dec 17 2018

Album of the Day: “Rêveries Sonores” by Super Alone

 

Artist:  Super Alone

Album:  Rêveries Sonores

Label:  Self-Produced

Style:  Frisellian solo guitar

Favorite Track:  “Cos”

Music from:  Paris, France.

What I like about it:  I like how these pieces are laid open bare, as if Robin Nitram (aka Super Alone) ripped open the chest of his compositions to create the most direct link between the listener and the heart of the song.  I like how these pieces have a lullaby nature to them, even when they growl menacingly.  I like how the rendition of “Blue In Green” honors the original’s melody, but is shaped to snap into place with the original pieces on this recording.  I like how some pieces veer into Frisellian looping territory, because of course I like that.  This album casts a powerful enchantment.

Your album personnel:  Robin Nitram (guitar).

Available at: Bandcamp

Listen to more of the album on the artist’s Bandcamp page.

Be sure to check out the artist’s site.

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Jun 18 2018

The Round-up: Those times were hard

 

Here is some very good new music.

 

Eyolf Dale – Return to Mind (Edition Records)

This music dances on air.  Sometimes it skips across the clouds, sometimes it soars a graceful arc high above them, and sometimes it bounces along the currents and surrenders to the will of the motion.  And on Eyolf Dale‘s newest, the path to get there is full of life and activity.  The pianist’s octet works the range of expressionism between modern Euro-bop and chamber, and makes the difference between the two appear as nothing, as but a single breath of imagery.  Wind instruments, strings and percussion abide in equal strengths on his latest, and that balance feeds right into the music’s singular vision.  There are more than a few moments on Return to Mind that stopped me from what I was doing just to marvel at their beauty.  Those moments haven’t lost a bit of their power through the process of repeat listening.  I don’t expect they will for you either.  Music from Oslo, Norway.

Artist site | Listen | Buy:  Bandcamp – Amazon

 

Bryan Smith – This Is Water (Self-Produced)

It’s all about the melody on the latest from Bryan Smith.  The saxophonist doesn’t get fussy with those melodies.  It’s all about clear lines of definition and a calm touch with their delivery.  From there, his quintet with guitarist Ryan Meagher, pianist Matt Tabor, bassist Andrew Jones and drummer Jonas Oglesbee take the melody for a short drive, and the road ahead never drops off the map.  There’s something comforting about seeing the entire path, and ending up where everything seemed to lead to in the first place.  It’s a special kind of luxury for a listener to be able to let their guard down and simply appreciate a melody for its beauty, as if from a distance.  “Are We Athletes?” adopts an upbeat tempo and a voice to match, but for the most part, this album resides in territory best suited for contemplation.  That just so happens to be where the album shows its best side.  It’s been a while since I listened to it, but I recall enjoying Smith’s 2011 recording See, See.  Music from Portland, Oregon.

Artist site | Listen | Buy:  Bandcamp – Amazon

 

Luis Verde Quartet – Vientos Cruzados (Self-Produced)

The immediate impression made by Viento Cruzados is that Luis Verde had a lot on his mind and wasn’t going to hold back when translating it to a sonic form of expression.  At times, this sprawling work comes off as a bit disjointed, where the flow of thoughts from one to the next isn’t as fluid as one might hope.  But then certain themes get revisited across the duration of fourteen tracks, and a distinct cohesion begins to emerge.  And those moments when the flow converges with the prevailing imagery, the music explodes with life.  The saxophonist’s quartet with pianist Moisés Sánchez, double bassist Reinier Elizarde and drummer Mark Schilders traverses ample territory, and the effect is amplified by the inclusion of several interludes.  As stand-alone pieces, these interludes are intriguing in their own right, but their deft placement in the sequence of events has a resounding impact far greater than their individual traits.  Music from Madrid, Spain.

Artist site | Listen | Buy:  Bandcamp

 

Matt’s Mates – Bodies of Water (SuperSonic)

There’s an intriguing combination of solemn and lively tones on this set from Matt Luff.  The saxophonist’s octet identifies John Coltrane as their guiding music spirit for this recording, and it’s pretty clear right from the start that this was no blithe namedrop.  The ferocity inherent in these tunes has a benevolent presence, and the illusion of contradiction in those qualities makes the music resonate that much greater when it reveals itself, instead, as unity.  Music from Brisbane, Australia.

No artist site | Listen | Buy:  Bandcamp – Amazon

 

Kastenfaul – Kastenfaul (Self-Produced)

The Kastenfaul duo of saxophonist Ali Onur Olgun and drummer Ozan Aktuna is pure gasoline.  They light their music on fire and laugh while fanning the flames.  It’s as simple as that.  It’s also that thrilling.  This two-track EP retails at Name Your Price, so a nice opportunity to explore some new, obscure music at a price that fits your budget.  Music from Istanbul, Turkey.

No artist site | Listen | Buy:  Bandcamp

 

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Feb 27 2012

Tiny Reviews: Viktor Toth, Partikel, Neil Cowley, & L.A. Jenkins

Tiny Reviews, featuring:  Viktor Toth Popping Bopping, Partikel Cohesion, Neil Cowley Trio The Face of Mount Molehill, and L.A. Jenkins The Clarity of the Peculiar.

 

 

Viktor Toth – Popping Bopping

A quartet comprised of alto sax, trumpet, bass and drums, and some random electronic effects.  Album starts with Viktor Toth blowing away on his alto on a modern hard bop tune.  Trumpet gets in some action of its own, a playful bit of muting and sound skewing.  The album begins very much like the dissonance cum old time blues found on the Clean Feed label these days.  There are moments when the album threatens to turn into a Nils Petter Molvaer composition with the airy atmospherics of electronic effects (especially on the final track), but the album never loses its grasp on the blues, much to the benefit of anyone who grabs this strong recording.

Your album personnel:  Viktor Toth (alto sax), Bart Maris (trumpet, effects), Matyas Szandai (bass), and Robert Mehmet Ikiz (drums)

Released on the BMC Records label.  Jazz from the Budapest, Hungary scene.

Available on eMusic.

 

Partikel – Cohesion

Partikel is a sax trio of tenor & soprano, drums, and bass. Some flavoring of world jazz (Latin & African, specifically) mixed with what’s going for modern straight-ahead jazz these days. First listen doesn’t blow me away or anything, but the dynamic percussion makes me want to return for repeat listening. Promising, and worthy of a bit of the spotlight.

Your album personnel: Eric Ford (drums), Max Luthert (double bass), and Duncan Eagles (tenor & soprano sax).

NOTE:  It’s now been about a month since I wrote the above for my eMusic column, and since then, I seem to have confirmed my initial assumption- that repeat listening would generate a more favorable response.  It’s not always easy to digest a sax trio at first; sax often brings a complicated rhythmic template to the table, and when combined with a rhythm section of bass and drums, the resulting complexities can be a bit much to take in at first.  However, some albums just require an acclimation period in order to discover the melodic and harmonic characteristics not evident at first blush.  That is certainly the case with Cohesion, which I find myself enjoying more with the passing of time.

Three of the album tracks are available to stream on their soundcloud page.

Released on the Whirlwind Recordings label.  Jazz from the UK scene.

Available on eMusic.

 

Neil Cowley Trio – The Face of Mount Molehill

This is probably what it would sound like if Badly Drawn Boy composed a soundtrack for piano trio. Infectious grooves, some strings to tug at the edges of the heart, simple melodies that are anything but superficial, and enough stylistic wrinkles to keep the head engaged. A likable album; the kind of cheerful that’s always good to have sitting on a nearby barstool when drinking alone just ain’t gonna cut it.

Your album personnel:  Neil Cowley (piano), Rex Horan (double bass), and Evan Jenkins (drums).

NOTE:  I’ll be providing an extended review of this album, either here on Bird is the Worm or on AllAboutJazz.

Released on the Naim Jazz label.  Jazz from the UK scene.

Available on eMusic.

 

L.A. Jenkins – The Clarity of the Peculiar

Something for the experimental and avant-garde jazz fans. Frenzied guitar busts, trumpet, flugelhorn, trombone, a variety of percussion instruments, a little flute, and a holiday basket of electronic effects, this album has moments of symphonic ecstasy interspersed with interludes of ambient bliss.  Honestly, this album is probably gonna have more interest from listeners for whom jazz is a part-time occupation, but it certainly doesn’t fall out of line with other albums that are widely considered avant-garde jazz.  This is some nifty stuff.

Your album personnel:  L.A. Jenkins (guitar), Martin Rippel (trumpet, flugelhorn, handheld percussion), and Anthony Jacobs (flute, trombone, alien wind instrument, handheld percussion).

Released on Edgetone Records.  Jazz from the Columbus, OH scene.

Available on eMusic.

 

That’s it for today’s article, and the first of two parts of the Tiny Reviews from this batch of new arrivals.

Here’s some language to protect emusic’s rights as the one to hire me originally to scour through the jazz new arrivals and write about the ones I like:

“New Arrivals Jazz Picks“, courtesy of eMusic.com, Inc.
© 2012  eMusic.com, Inc.

My thanks to emusic for the freelance writing gig, the opportunity to use it in this blog, and the editorial freedom to help spread the word about cool new jazz being recorded today.

By • Jazz Recommendations, Jazz Recommendations - 2012 Releases • 0