Jan 1 2016
So… about 2015 (Chapter 1): Me and the NPR Music Jazz Critics Poll
This was my third year to be invited to participate in the Jazz Critics Poll at NPR Music. Begun originally by respected jazz critic Francis Davis back when the Village Voice was his home turf, this nifty compilation of Jazz’s best of 2015 is now housed over at the NPR site. This was the poll’s 10th edition. I’m no less flattered today than I was the first time around I was asked to submit a ballot.
Here is a LINK to the amalgamated results, showing the top ten and also the top sixty, as well as some sub-categories. It includes comments from Davis on each of the top ten results. They also have sample tracks from each of the albums that fell in the top ten, and links to various other articles about the artists.
Davis talks about this year’s results in a column on the NPR site HERE, with an expanded take on this year’s winner (a tie) between Rudresh Mahanthappa for Bird Calls and Maria Schneider for The Thompson Fields.
Also, the individual ballots are compiled and maintained by Tom Hull over on his site, Hullworks. Here’s a LINK to view the entire list of albums that received votes. In addition, there’s now a list of all of the jazz critics (LINK), with each leading to their specific ballot. My ballot (Dave Sumner) can be found HERE.
Every year that I compile and create my own site’s year-end Best Of list reinforces my genuine respect for the work Davis, Hull and the NPR staff put into making this thing happen. It’s a mammoth undertaking to be sure.
So, about those results… As you may have guessed, I have an opinion or two, oh yes. Also, I’m gonna embed some music from my favorite albums of 2015 for you to listen to as you read.
Here’s my ballot:
1. Chris Lightcap, Epicenter (Clean Feed)
2. Rudresh Mahanthappa, Bird Calls (ACT)
3. Kamasi Washington, The Epic (Brainfeeder)
4. PRISM Quartet, Heritage/Evolution Volume 1 (Innova)
5. Giovanni Francesca, Rame (Auand)
6. Tomoko Omura, Roots (Inner Circle)
7. Greg Foat Group, The Dancers at the Edge of Time (Jazzman)
8. Eric Hofbauer, Prehistoric Jazz, Vol. 1: The Rite of Spring (Creative Nation Music)
9. Reijseger Fraanje Sylla, Count Till Zen (Winter & Winter)
10. Ghost Rhythms, Madeleine (self-released)
Vocal: Charenee Wade, Offering: The Music of Gil Scott-Heron and Brian Jackson (Motéma)
Debut: Kamasi Washington, The Epic (Brainfeeder)
Latin: Carlos Henriquez, Bronx Pyramid (Blue Engine)
Reissue/Archival: No submission
In what some might refer to as a surprising turn of events, a few of my selections actually correspond to the amalgamated list. In previous years, that wasn’t the case. In fact, this may be the first year when any of my top ten selections appeared in the amalgamated top ten. My #1, #2 & #3 selections (Chris Lightcap, Rudresh Mahanthappa and Kamasi Washington) were #10, #1 and #4 in the amalgamated list. In addition, my #23 album of the year (Charles Lloyd) received the #9 slot on the amalgamated list, and my #21 selection (Mike Reed’s PP&T) got the #23 slot on the NPR poll.
For the sub-genre categories, my choice of Kamasi Washington as having the Debut of the year was in line with the amalgamated list. I was joined by two other critics in choosing Carlos Henriquez for the Latin Jazz category. Worth noting that several of the albums that received more votes in Latin Jazz were receiving serious consideration from myself, too, as I put together my ballot. And I was joined by three other critics on my choice of Charenee Wade in the Vocal category. Her album Offering: The Music of Gil Scott-Heron & Brian Jackson also received the #29 slot on my Best of 2015 list.
I didn’t make a selection in the Archival/Reissues category. I had in previous years, despite my focus on only new music, but that was primarily due to my weekly recommendations column for eMusic and Wondering Sound, which, obviously, didn’t have any qualms with focusing on archival material. So, as a result, I kept on top of older music being reissued (or issued for the first time). But that column ended this year, and so I just didn’t feel as compelled to to keep abreast with what was being released by way of old stuff, and, consequently, I didn’t feel like I should cast a vote. I mean, I feel like if I’m gonna cast a vote, it’s gotta be because I have listened to a wide swath of that particular music category and can offer an experienced opinion on what’s what. Otherwise, it’s just a list (or selection) of what I’ve listened to and not any kind of qualitative assessment. But that’s just what I think.
But even though some of my choices corresponded to the amalgamated list, overall, however, many of my selections received a vote only on my ballot. Recordings by Giovanni Francesca, Ghost Rhythms and Reijseger/Fraanje/Sylla had only me vouching for them. I was joined by an additional critic, however, in casting a vote for albums by Tomoko Omura, Prism Quartet and Greg Foat Group. Eric Hofbauer only received my vote on this year’s poll, but someone gave his The Rite of Spring a vote on the 2014 poll. It’s album album that came out right on the cusp of my “voting year” cutoff (Nov. 1 – Oct. 31). It’s very likely that whoever voted for it last year may have received a copy of it sooner than I and had enough time to absorb the music and judge it. So, really, the Hofbauer counts as having received two votes.
I don’t mind that the albums I’ve chosen aren’t getting the recognition they deserve (yet). As I’ve stated previously, it’s my sincere belief that the Jazz Critics Poll provides the opportunity for those albums to receive a second look by other critics. The albums definitely deserve it. And I’m thrilled to be given the additional platform of the NPR poll to provide that opportunity.
Let’s go over some of the albums that made the Critics top ten list. As with previous years, what I write below may be kind of harsh… about the only time you’ll see me taking that tone about music on this site. These year-in-review posts are the only time I really indulge that kind of negativity. That said, it’s so very important to remember that each of you should decide on your own what you think about these recordings. The NPR site article includes embedded audio for you to give a listen yourself. It’s also worth noting that each of them were included in my weekly recommendations column, so it’s not like there’s an album on the Critics top ten list that is so offensive as to incur a beating. But, yes, I have an opinion or two.
1. (Tie) Rudresh Mahanthappa Bird Calls and Maria Schneider The Thompson Fields
Mahanthappa received the #2 slot on my Best of 2015 list, so there’s no reason for me to go into this selection. Just read what I wrote for his album on my own list (LINK). I really like the Schneider recording, and though it didn’t make my top thirty Best Of list, it did receive some consideration, and I can see how it would captivate the ears of other critics. As I wrote back when it first came out, it has “an expansive sound possessing a sightline that just seems to go on forever.” Plus, a new Maria Schneider recording has become something of an event in jazz circles (deservedly), so that’s gotta play a factor in it, too. Am I surprised to see this album receive a share of the top slot? No, not really, not really at all.
3. Jack DeJohnette Made in Chicago
Okay, whatever. I just don’t see it. It’s a live performance of some serious jazz giants that came holding some AACM action. But it’s often muddled, and too many times I found the music’s dramatics a little bit dull. If you told me you were at the show and it was one of the best things you’ve ever heard, okay, I believe that, but if it’s gonna get put on a recorded medium, that electricity sure as hell better come through when I’m sitting at home and hitting the play button. Honestly, the only reason I included it in my recommendations column was because I sort of felt like I should in consideration of the talent pool contributing to the recording, and figured, hey, it might float the boat of one or three readers. But here it is on a critics top ten list. Let’s move on.
4. Kamasi Washington The Epic
9. Charles Lloyd Wild Man Dance
10. Chris Lightcap’s Bigmouth Epicenter
I’m not gonna talk any about the above three since they all appeared on my site’s Best of 2015 list top thirty, so there’s no real disagreement between me and the Critics. But I will add that my statement about a live performance recording and electricity… that’s something that Charles Lloyd and crew definitely understood when they put together their Wild Man Dance recording. That album delivers all kinds of heavy voltage to the listener at home, oh yes.
5. Vijay Iyer Trio, Break Stuff
Iyer is about as talented as they come on piano. I probably enjoyed Break Stuff more than any of his other recordings. It’s a good album, but that’s about as strong a reaction as the recording elicits from me. That’s how it is for me now and it’s how it was for me when I wrote something about it when it first came out.
6. Henry Threadgill Zooid In For a Penny, In For a Pound
This album may be one that I regret not giving a slot on my site’s Best of 2015 top thirty list. It was my Album of the Week when it first came out (LINK), and I still like the recording very much today. But me and Threadgill’s music go way back, as far back as to when I first started getting into modern jazz, and there’s always been a slow acclimation process for me warming to any one of his particular albums. In a year, maybe more maybe less, as I continue to listen to this nifty album, the connections between me and the music may continue to strengthen, and I get to where I think, yeah, probably should’ve given this album one of the thirty slots on my Best of 2015 list. But that’s par for the course with these lists… time always nudges things around.
7. Mary Halvorson Meltframe
I’ve got some strong feelings about this album and about the musician. I don’t see how this album gets anywhere close to a top ten list. I don’t even think this album is Jazz. Unless I’m wrong. And I could be. I really really really might be wrong. But I don’t think so… at least, not now. Halvorson and her crazy guitar action might require, say, thirty to fifty years (conservatively) before I or anyone else who isn’t insane can figure her music out. Y’know what, go and read what I wrote about this album, because I think it adequately captures what I’m trying to say here (LINK). But the point I want to get across is that if you are reading this and you are a critic and you are one of the critics who voted for Meltframe, then I think you are insane, because no reasonable person would listen to this album and think, “Oh, hey, sure, I get what this album is trying to say and now I’m going to make a logical, level-headed assessment of it and measure how it stacks up to other albums in the context of the modern jazz environment and then give it a numerical value, voila!” No freakin’ way. Come talk to me in thirty years and maybe we can figure this album out together.
8. Steve Coleman and the Council of Balance Synovial Joints
A real nice album that possesses equal amounts of sharp intelligence and raw emotional power. It was one of the final cuts for my top thirty Best of 2015 list, and it was one that pained me considerably when I finalized the list and saw that it was standing on the outside looking in. The way my sliding ratios work when constructing the list gave it a possible value as high as #15, which just proves how slight the difference is between a #15 and #35 album. No issues with this receiving a top ten slot on the Critics list. Here’s a LINK to when I first wrote about the album around its release date.
*****
And that about wraps it up for today. Remember, as I stressed previously, go to town on that NPR Music Jazz Critics list… and not just the top ten list, but all the albums that received votes. Many of them have been written about on this site, but this is a great opportunity for you to revisit some albums that maybe you didn’t give enough attention before.
I’ll be writing a couple more Year In Review columns over the next couple days. Check back in tomorrow for another.
Cheers.
Jan 4 2016
This Is Jazz Today: Made to Break, Matthieu Donarier, Book of Air and more!
Well, look what I found. As I was taking care of some badly overdue year-end clean-up, I found a bunch of first drafts and notes for albums that I never managed to fit into a column… and it looks like there’ll be a couple more after this one. Most of these albums were released during the second half of the year, and of today’s batch, most all come from tiny labels or are self-produced. So we’re talking the kind of stuff that’s typically gonna fly under most radars, which makes me even happier to get the opportunity to feature them today.
Every one of these This Is Jazz Today columns, I look over what’s been compiled and I can’t help but think what a cool collection of music it is. I typically don’t state that fact just because I’d be saying it every week… but it’s true, and this week’s batch of recommendations definitely stacks up. Some very cool music here. Enjoy.
Let’s begin.
Made to Break – Before the Code (Trost Records)
It’s really difficult to untangle the melody from the motion on Ken Vandermark’s latest Made to Break recording. The sense of perpetual forward propulsion never ceases to be a prominent driving factor of this music, and yet the melodic freedom expressed by each of the quartet members cements it as an integral piece for the show to go on. How that all shakes out is that the ear is living from moment to moment even though the music is already looking way down the road. That kind of tension between sonic expectation and creative intent is pretty damn compelling, and it’s why the album’s three extended pieces (one at 11 minutes, the other two each over 20 minutes in length) seem to fly right by without notice of the passing of time. Along with Vandermark on his reed instruments is Jasper Stadhouders on bass, Tim Daisy on drums and Christof Kurzmann with the electronics and effects. One of the enjoyable qualities of the electronics is that they often come off sounding like a violin on overdrive. That, and sometimes a percussive instrument not unlike vibraphone. It really is a nifty element used in a way that isn’t the standard way electronics seem to get utilized in many of today’s modern jazz recordings.
Artist site | Listen | Buy: Bandcamp – Amazon
*****
Matthieu Donarier – Papier Jungle (Yolk Records)
A real conversational tone taken by the trio of saxophonist Matthieu Donarier, guitarist Manu Codjia and drummer Joe Quitzke. Tempos pulse beneath melodies that take sharp angles and sometimes swerve wildly in unexpected directions. Things get plenty more interesting during the occasional passages when the trio slows things down, but mostly that’s a result of the inevitable compare and contrast with those up-tempo sections that surround it. With a number of different projects of his I’ve now encountered, I’m increasingly impressed with the way Donarier is able to generate volatility while containing it with a tight creative focus… like watching a tesla coil kick out tendrils of light inside a plasma globe… expressive like crazy and a little bit mesmerizing.
Artist site | Listen | Buy: Amazon
*****
Julien Wilson Quartet – This Narrow Isthmus (Lionsharecords)
A nice live set from the quartet of tenor saxophonist Julien Wilson, pianist Barney McAll, bassist Jonathan Zwartz and drummer Allan Browne. They mix it up a bit in terms of tone and tempo, but the meat of the album is found in the ballads… those radiate a strong heat, some serious emotion and yet still come off light as a lover’s breath. Nothing fancy going on here, just a flag planted right at jazz central and making their stand with a straight-ahead statement.
Artist site | Listen | Buy: Bandcamp
*****
Cicero Lee – Those Who Stay (Self-Produced)
Though at its core, a trio of Cícero Lee on upright bass, Carlos Garcia on piano and José Salgueiro on drums, it’s the addition of guests Desidério Lázaro (sax), Tiago Oliveira (guitar) and João Frade (accordion) that really allow this album to develop such a remarkably engaging personality. This especially applies to those tracks when Frade adds his accordion. The way it balances out with the sharp lyricism of Garicia and Lee on piano and bass is an effective device. Relatively straight-ahead on most album tracks, and Lee’s crew serves those tracks up just fine, but when the Portuguese influence emerges, the album really takes off. Good stuff.
Artist site | Listen | Buy: Bandcamp – Amazon
*****
Aron Ottignon – Waves EP (Loop Recordings)
A nifty trio session from Aron Ottignon on piano, Samuel Dubois on steel pan drums and Rodi Kirk on percussion and production effects. This get-up-and-dance recording has plenty of melodic depth to get its hooks into you, but the enjoyment is gonna come from how they get carried along on the rapidly flowing rhythmic currents. Just an EP, but it’s a promising sign if Ottignon is able to flesh this sound out and expand on it for a full-length recording. But for now, this catchy little set should keep you happy.
Artist site | Listen | Buy: eMusic – Bandcamp – Amazon
*****
Emmanuel Baily – Night Stork (Igloo Records)
A real pleasant liveliness to this mix of contemporary jazz, folk and baroque classical. Guitarist Baily keeps the music light on its feet, even when it grows introspective. Joining Baily are Khaled Aljaramani (oud), Lambert Colson (cornet), Jean-François Foliez (clarinet) and Xavier Rogé (drums). The addition of oud is a real nice surprise, and the added textures it brings to the table are something special… especially in light of the clarinet’s dancing motions. When the quintet digs into a melody, it’s catchy as hell. A nice album that really grew on me the more I listened to it. Good soundtrack for a Sunday morning and Spring weather is pouring a cool breeze and warm sunlight in through the window.
Artist site | Listen | Buy: Amazon
*****
3/4 Peace – Rainy Days on the Common Land (El Negocito)
An interesting personality to this one, switching between conversation techniques that employ straight-ahead jazz, Nordic folk jazz, classical and some free improv. And while the varied sounds do differentiate from one another, they all clearly come from the same flame. Sometimes that fire possesses a distant warmth, other times a comforting heat, but in each instance, it’s equally captivating. This trio of Ben Sluijs (alto sax, flute), Christian Mendoza (piano) and Brice Soniano (double bass) does a great job of mixing things up, and keeping the ear guessing what comes next, which, when you think about it, is a pretty nifty result considering how sparse and contemplative the music can get at times. When the trio adopts a solemn tone, it resonates with some serious emotional power.
Artist site | Listen | Buy: Bandcamp – CDBaby – Amazon
*****
Book of Air – Fieldtone (Sub Rosa)
This music is all about how a massive stillness can descend upon a particular spot on this planet and how sounds can emerge as if born from the quiet itself. Everything about this music is the patient, gentle breath of tranquility. Book of Air is the Belgian quintet of Nathan Wouters (double bass), Indré Jurgeleviciuté (kankles), Bert Cools (electric & acoustic guitars), Benjamin Sauzereau (electric guitar) and Stijn Cools (drums), and the four long pieces they offer on Fieldtone are about as focused an expression of peacefulness as anything not encountered on the ECM label. Speaking of which, if I had to draw some form of comparison, I’d probably reference a very laid-back version of a Steve Tibbetts recording. An appealing pattern to this music is how it begins with a thick silence, then gradually introduces ambient sounds, slowly at first, then increasing at a quicker pace in the second half of the piece… but never really growing into anything more than a comforting murmur.
Artist site | Listen | Buy: Bandcamp – Amazon
*****
Michel Bisceglia – Blue Bird (Prova Records)
Really beautiful piano trio recording, which also serves as the soundtrack for the movie of the same name. A trio of Michel Bisceglia (piano), Werner Lauscher (double bass) and Marc Léhan (drums) cast a moody glow over each of these tunes, serving up a bunch of melodies that are meant for ruminating and drifting off into daydreams. This is the kind of music you put on when the rain is coming down, the city lights attempt to beat back the gloom of grey skies and the sound of raindrops pelting the rooftop is just begging for some sound to mesh with.
Artist site | Buy: eMusic – Amazon
*****
Have a great time digging through the list!
And remember, it’s simple: You like what you like.
Cheers.
***
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By davesumner • Jazz Recommendations - 2015 Releases • 0