Beyond Jazz Reviews

Feb 19 2019

Album of the Day: Colorlist – “Full Circle”

 

Artist:  Colorlist

Album:  Full Circle

Label:  Serein

Style:  Ambient Jazz

Favorite Track: “Electricity”

Music from:  Chicago, IL

What I like about it:  I like how the newest from Colorlist has a real edge to it… well, at least in comparison to their previous recordings, which tended to enter a thick drone and bubble up from there.  But the electronic effects of Full Circle char the edges of the harmonies, and burn at the center of things so that the prevailing motion breaks apart and disperses in many directions.  I like how this creates a different environment for their minimalist approach to bring about a bloom of melody.  I like how this project keeps finding new ways to express a familiar, enjoyable sound.

Your album personnel:  Charles Gorczynski (woodwinds, synthesizers), Charles Rumback (drums) and John Hughes (synthesizers, electronics).

Available at:  Amazon | Bandcamp

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

Be sure to check out the artist’s site.

Cover art by Maxwell Loren Holyoke-Hirsch.

By • Beyond Jazz Reviews, Jazz Recommendations, Jazz Recommendations - 2018 • 0 • Tags: , , , ,

Feb 15 2019

Album of the Day: Ensemble, et al. – “The Slow Reveal”

 

Artist:  Enesmble, et al.

Album:  The Slow Reveal

Label:  Imaginator Records

Style:  Chamber percussion, Post-rock melody

Favorite Track: “Guernsey Goodbye”

Music from:  Brooklyn, NY

What I like about it:  I like how an album whose foundation is percussion offers up the dreamiest melodies and atmospherics just as suitable for drifting off in daydreams as it is gasoline to get you scooting along through your day.  I like how the quartet Ensemble, et al. develops a locomotive tempo and how the propulsion is always receptive to the melodic intent… as if a swiftly flowing river were showing care and consideration to the ducks and leaves and sunlight carried along its surface.  I have been addicted to this album for the better part of the last year, and I sincerely apologize for not have shared this magical work with you sooner.

Your album personnel:  Jeffrey Eng, Charlie Kessenich, Ross Marshall and Ron Tucker (drums, percussion, vibraphone, glockenspiel, marimba, keyboard).

Available at:  Amazon | 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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Feb 3 2019

You deserve something beautiful, so here is a post about Spindle Ensemble

 

I spend countless hours searching down new music, and yet, still, there are times I find myself dumbstruck at the sound of a beautiful recording that, instead, found me.  I’m still not sure what led me to the music of Spindle Ensemble, but I am sure it was random good fortune.  A playlist shuffle or an accidental choice of link or a YouTube autoplay or just dumb luck… and it ended up with me hearing a track from their live EP at Cellar Tapes Studio.

I heard this music and my jaw dropped from how gorgeous is was.  I stopped everything I was doing and just listened.  Didn’t even try to figure out which of my twenty(ish) open windows the music was coming from.  Didn’t want to do anything to shatter the moment.

But eventually I came to find that those responsible for the music are violinist Caelia Lunniss, vibraphonist (and marimba) Harriet Riley, cellist Jo Silverston and pianist Daniel Inzani (who also doubles on accordion), and they go by the name Spindle Ensemble.  Their EP can be heard as a video recording, and you can also purchase the album on their Bandcamp page.

They also have a full-length recording, which came out just a little over a year ago.  It’s called Bea, and it is no less lovely than the EP.  Bea was recorded in the converted village chapel of Grand Chapel Studios.  Two of the pieces from the video EP are performed on this recording, as well.

You can purchase Bea on their Bandcamp page.  It’s also available at Amazon.

By • Beyond Jazz Reviews, These are videos that I like • 0 • Tags:

Jul 8 2018

So, about this Bill Frisell guest spot…

 

It’s been a long time.  Nearly ten years, in fact, since I first discovered this album.  The details are a bit fuzzy, naturally, from all that time passing.  But I’m pretty sure I discovered this album simply wandering the halls of eMusic, looking for either cool modern jazz recordings or ambient shoegaze for those early mornings and late nights when the peaceful hours call for peaceful music.  Matt Brown‘s solo project Disinterested falls into the latter category.  As I gave it an initial listen, I thought I heard a Bill Frisell influence.  As it turned out, it was more than just an influence.  Brown had recruited his fellow Seattle resident to contribute to an album track on Behind Us.

That track is called “Blankets,” and it is a beautiful tune on a gorgeous album.  And the rest of the album is truly beautiful… but “Blankets” is the gem of the recording, and it makes me wistful that Frisell only makes that solitary appearance.  The woven melody of “Blankets” possesses an allure all its own, and resonates stronger than anything else on the recording.  It’s undeniable that the two musicians formed a connection, even if for just that brief time.

For almost ten years, I’ve given myself an infusion of this sonic tranquility.  It occurred to me that I should probably give the album a mention, since, y’know, I’ve got this website and all.  Consider yourselves informed.

Your album personnel:  Matt Brown (guitar) and guests:  Bill Frisell (guitar, loops), Nathan Skolrud (drums), Ross Simonini (percussion), Anna-Lynne Williams (voice), and Chris Stromquist (drum sample).

Released originally in 2007 on Dynamaphone Records.

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

Music from Seattle, WA.

Available at:  Bandcamp | Amazon

By • Beyond Jazz Reviews, These are songs that I like • 2

Mar 7 2018

Here’s two albums for when you want to spend the entire day watching the rain fall outside

 

It’s been raining here a bunch lately.  Most days, by necessity, my reaction must be whatevs, because I’ve got stuff to do and places to go and other mundane phrases representing mundane tasks.  But not this day.  Today, I’m going to spend the day on my sofa, surrounded by cats, and just stare out the big windows of my home at a foggy, gloomy rainy day enveloping the quaint downtown skyline.

Here’s two albums that snap right into place with that kind of day.  I listen to them plenty on other other occasions, too, but it wasn’t until today’s overcast skies and patter of raindrops against the window pane that their perfection for just such moment crystalized in my mind.

 

Phil France – The Swimmer

As part of the Cinematic Orchestra, Phil France has displayed a talent for manipulating the equation that binds a pretty melody with captivating imagery and the freedom to roam.  He applied those same principles to his 2013 release The Swimmer (re-released by Gondwana Records in 2017), but where his Cinematic Orchestra produced music that captured the beauty of still life in a frozen moment, France’s solo project is the motion of road trips through the countryside.  The warmth of string sections and blasts of furious percussion add some warmth and edge to all of the massive beauty, and, thankfully, gives it some personality that is occasionally a bit unhinged and not so predictable.  The pulsing keyboards are like raindrops, and the string harmonies are a cloud front that ripples like the sea and fills the entire sky with infinitely different shades of grey.  The music is moody and active, just like scene outside the window.

Your album personnel:  Phil France (keyboards, synths, bass), Stuart McCallum (guitar), Richard Spaven (drums, percussion), Daniel Bridgewater-Hall (violin), Sernay Wu (cello), Vincent Helbers (drums), Susannah Simmons, Adam Robinson (violins), Naomi Koop (viola) and Patrick Carpenter, Phil Kay (production & effects).

Released on Gondwana Records.  Listen to more of the album on their Bandcamp page.

Available at:  Bandcamp | Amazon

 

Trigg & Gusset – Adagio for the Blue

There’s just a hint of space jazz on this 2015 recording by the duo Trigg & Gusset.  Pianist Bart Knol and saxophonist Erik van Geer layer electronics and effects under, over and all through this laid-back session, and give peaceful music energetic undertones… like ripples disturbing the serenity of a lake’s surface just enough to add distinction and texture.  They have a series of guests that add even more texture, with instruments like flamenco guitar, trumpet, double bass and electric guitar.  The effect ranges anywhere from sparks flying to moonlight settling in for the night.

In more than a few ways, it reminds me of Galaxies Like Grains of Sand by Hampshire & Foat.  It, too, possessed a vague space jazz sound and resilient tranquility, as if a soundtrack for astronauts watching shooting stars on a lazy day on Mars.

Your album personnel:  Bart Knol (piano, Fender Rhodes, electric guitar, synths, beats, samples), Erik van Geer (tenor sax, bass sax, bass clarinet, flute) and guests: Dominique Bentvelsen (double bass), Midas Ghijsels (acoustic & flamenco guitars), Just Lavooij (double bass), Coen Hamelink (trumpet), Matthijs Blom (electric guitar).

Released on Preserved Sound.  Listen to more of the album on their Bandcamp page.

Available at:  Bandcamp | Amazon

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