Jazz Recommendations

There’s an appealing moodiness to this alt-contemporary jazz album from the quartet Leaf.  The music’s contemplative nature provides an essential balance for those passages where the shine of the jazz-rock fusion threatens to get a bit too bright.  There’s nothing fussy about the melodies; nicely crafted and rolled out simply, they’re easy to embrace even when a soloist takes it for a ride.  Of this, the quartet displays a nice patience in developing them into something more, and that preference of the soloists to stay within the fold is what allows them to go wandering far and wide and never let their melodic starting point fall out of view.

There’s nothing particularly groundbreaking about this album.  No new territory is struck.  But it’s plenty enjoyable, and for those of you who prefer the modern contemporary jazz sound, this is a nice option.  Besides, for a debut album, Leaf is a promising start.

Totally obscure reference: Anyone who is familiar with (and likes) Azure’s When She Smiles should give this one a listen.  Absent the Nordic jazz influence, it falls within the same family.

Your album personnel: Eric Kappauf (piano), Olivier Grenier Bédard (guitar), Jonathan Arseneau (double bass) and Dave Croteau (drums).

This album is Self-Produced.

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

Music from Montreal, Québec.

Available at:  Bandcamp

There’s a compelling mix of influences and expressions on Solstice, and tracing them as they perpetually come together and pull apart is the album’s winning quality.  Athens-based ensemble Omikron Project additionally sources its regional roots in music to Dutch and French origins, and the way these folk musics lend to the abiding sound is one of several points of interest.  That instruments like Hohner Guitaret, Aegean bagpipes, steel guitar, and didgeridoo are joined with more jazz traditional instruments such as soprano sax, drums, and bass are another source of delight.  But perhaps the greatest source of joy comes from the diverse array of expressions the ensemble produces from the unusual mix of ingredients.  The percussion-heavy “TTC” and the ambient fusion of “Floating” and the post-bop of “Five on Fire” and the electro-acoustic drone of “Zero Option” and the folk-heavy “Lost In Three” all lead to a parade of different sounds that, remarkably, all flow together in a way that makes perfect sense.

A nifty recording, and one not to let fly under your radar.

Your album personnel:  Nikolas Tsilogiannis (drums, percussion, idiophones), Alex Drossos (soprano sax, didgeridoo, beckophone), Henk Spies (soprano sax, electronics) and Dinos Zoumperis (bass, Hohner Guitaret, modular synthesizer, Aegean bagpipe).

This album is Self-Produced.

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

Music from Athens, Greece.

Available at:  Bandcamp

Mimicry is a wonderful straight-ahead saxophone session from the trio of Maarten Hogenhuis, bassist Thomas Rolff and drummer Mark Schilders.  Hogenhuis has an appealingly casual delivery that is generous with restraint and heavy with lyricism.  Shaping the melody like a flickering candlelight, Hogenhuis translates this to the trio’s rhythmic approach, which often gives the impression of a dancing flame.  When the trio slows things down on “The Single Petal of a Rose-Le Sucrier Velours” and “Sonder,” the music exudes thick emotions that draw the attention in, but it’s when they scoot along at a brisker pace that the fun emerges.  For instance, “Coko” dares the foot not to tap along to the tempo and the hyperactive “Three Monkeys” can’t sit still, doesn’t even try.

I enjoyed this album right from the start.  Each subsequent listen only increases my adoration of the recording.

Your album personnel:  Maarten Hogenhuis (saxophones), Thomas Rolff (double bass) and Mark Schilders (drums).

The album is Self-Produced.

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

Music from the Amsterdam scene.

Available at:  Bandcamp | Amazon

The debut from guitarist Renato Dias is a nice, laid-back affair, and heavy with a dreamy atmosphere.  Joined by bassist Filipe Teixeira and drummer Filipe Monteiro, the trio patiently explores each melody in an environment where tempos often have the presence of an urgent whisper.  The emerging pattern is that melodies are grounded in fragmented imagery, where there is no clear start or end.  But then there are those tracks like “Mariana (and Bunny, The Cat)” where the melody is stated crisply and leads the way.  “Next Exit” raises its voice a bit, but for the most part, Suspiro is rainy day music when the sound of music blends in with the sound of raindrops and a hushed city watches it all come down.

There are more than a few moments on this album that I found captivating.

Your album personnel:  Renato Dias (guitar), Filipe Teixeira (double bass) and Filipe Monteiro (drums).

Released on the Porta Jazz label.

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

Music from Porto, Portugal.

Available at:  Bandcamp