29 Jan
Spirited and Delicious World-beat Jazz
Saturday, 29 January 2011
Published in
Concert Reviews
Queens College Professor Neil K. Friedman Ph.D. was the host to a neighborhood jazz outing for nephew Adam Kassell Hoffman of Londonderry, New Hampshire and college gal friend at Cleopatra’s Needle, 2485 Broadway between 92nd and 93rd Street, New York, NY on March 18, 2005 to introduce The Spirit of Life Ensemble’s world-beat to the youthful neophytes.
Jazznet Denmark did an interview with composer, multi-instrumentalist, sound manipulator, arranger, producer and record label owner and self taught...
02 Mar
The Rub And Spare Change by Michael Formanek
Tuesday, 02 March 2010
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
Well-traveled bassist Michael Formanek and his band-mates, here on The Rub and Spare Change, are accelerators of the new jazz with roots in New York City amid col…
01 Mar
Live at Montreux 1997 by Blu-Ray DVD Emerson Lake & Palmer
Monday, 01 March 2010
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
In the early 1970’s, Emerson, Lake & Palmer helped accelerate the burgeoning progressive-rock movement with dazzling technical acumen and a distinct convergence of classica…
26 Feb
Live in Lisbon by Peter Evans Quartet
Friday, 26 February 2010
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
There’s more than meets the eyes and ears on this 2010 release by gifted trumpeter Peter Evans and his superfine band. In the liners, Evans states his plight which may b…
19 Feb
NDR Jazz Workshop - Hamburg, Germany May 17, 1973 by Soft Machine
Friday, 19 February 2010
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
Among the wealth of archival material released during present times, this combo CD+DVD product looms as a rather scintillating entry into the band’s storied discography.…
10 Feb
Deluxe by Chris Lightcap's Bigmouth
Wednesday, 10 February 2010
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
Deluxe marks bassist Chris Lightcap’s third album as a leader. He’s well-travelled and looms as a significant session bassist for a wide scope of progressive-jazz…
08 Feb
Hologramatron by Barry Cleveland
Monday, 08 February 2010
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
Barry Cleveland is an editor for Guitar Player magazine, yet fashions a gem on his third release as a leader. One of the notable aspects of this outing pertains to Cleve…
05 Feb
Ghost Surveillance by Algernon
Friday, 05 February 2010
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
Chicago continues to thrive on numerous, and dare we say, cutting-edge musical fronts. For example, Algernon is a quintet that incorporates many genres, such as psycho-r…
29 Jan
Spiritual Lover by John Hebert Trio
Friday, 29 January 2010
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
Bassist John Hebert and his venerable band-mates generally reside within the core progressive-jazz and free-jazz realms. And many of these genres or stylizations are rep…
24 Jan
Epileptical West - Live in Coimbra by Angles
Sunday, 24 January 2010
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
Producer and saxophonist Martin Kuchen professes jubilance and assists with generating a distinct group sound, teeming with abundant contrasts, riotous exchanges and cli…
Scenes is a jazz guitar trio including John Stowell on guitar, Jeff Johnson on bass and John Bishop on drums. They’ve been playing and recording together for over nine y…
That there is still, in this jazz label-less era we currently live in, a place where experimental jazz can find a home and a means to release music that is not self-prod…
12 Jan
Moments by James Brandon Lewis
Tuesday, 12 January 2010
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
Saxophonist James Brandon Lewis presents a set of diverse jazz sounds on his debut recording Moments, recorded in Valencia, California where Lewis is a graduate st…
09 Jan
Artificial Joy by Taylor's Universe
Saturday, 09 January 2010
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
Artificial Joy continues Danish guitarist, keyboardist, composer, and arranger Robin Taylor's success at crafting tasty, memorable, and highly enjoyable instrumental…
08 Jan
Odds And Unevens by Brown Vs Brown
Friday, 08 January 2010
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
The band moniker might intimate the premise for a USA Supreme Court ruling. However, it’s a finely-tuned and irrefutably explosive prog-rock unit emanating from Holland.…
07 Jan
All is Gladness in the Kingdom (feat. Steven Bernstein) by Fight The Big Bull
Thursday, 07 January 2010
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
Guitarist Matt White leads this Virginia-based large ensemble featuring estimable and perennially cutting-edge trumpeter Steven Bernstein. Simply stated, this unit proje…
05 Jan
...Ma Io Chin Questa Lingua' by Chant
Tuesday, 05 January 2010
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
Italy’s Auand progressive record label offers a study in stark contrasts due to its diverse catalogue, including American and European artists, for example. This 2010 re…
Now residing in Rome, American pianist Greg Burk shines as a musical visionary throughout this compelling studio date. A supreme improviser, Burk can swing with just about …
ECM Records presence within jazz, improvisation, neo-classical, world music and other jazz-related genres/hybrids, captured the ears and minds of music adventure seekers, h…
Strong material serves as a catalyst for this band’s second album in ten years. Founded by guitarist Stever Rothery of the progressive-rock band Marillion, singer Hannah…
Alto saxophonist and composer Loren Stillman follows up his 2007 debut release, Blind Date with his new Pirouet Records release, Winter Fruits. Blind Date …
The young Belgian saxophonist Robin Verheyen makes a strong debut with Starbound, a flowing quartet exploration highlighting the New York resident's open-ended app…
The Boston-based ensemble 3 Play+ makes its CD debut with American Waltz, a contemplative set of melodically-grounded compositions and free-form, high-energy ex…
The musicians who have the greatest longer-term impact are the ones who have something new to say. But they are also usually harder to appreciate at first, because they'…
18 Apr
Mayhem by Jeff Palmer Garramone Battle
Saturday, 18 April 2009
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
Jeff Palmer and Dave Garramone have previously recorded with some of the greats - John Abercrombie, Victor Lewis, Adam Nussbaum - and Palmer has played with John Scofiel…
The trio’s second album is purportedly heavier and somewhat nastier than its first jazz-trio date. They’ve upped the ante during this aerial assault, that owes homage to…
11 Apr
Renku in Coimbra by Michael Attias
Saturday, 11 April 2009
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
A renku is a form of Japanese poetry that originated over one thousand years ago. Here, superfine and somewhat under-recognized saxophonist Michael Attias uses the renku…
This 2009 release by the Dutch progressive-rock band Knight Area was well-received by critics and snagged kudos in webzines and reviews across the world wide web, for ex…
07 Apr
Palace Ghosts and Drunken Hymns by Will Holshouser Trio + Bernardo Sassetti
Tuesday, 07 April 2009
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
Portugal-based Clean Feed Records asked New York based accordionist Will Holshouser and his trio to record with revered Portuguese pianist Bernardo Sassetti for the form…
Vigor, youth, and technique fall into alignment with young Belgian saxophonist Robin Verheyen’s international quintet, featuring laudable American pianist Bill Carrother…
Turkish-born guitarist/composer Sinan Bakir makes a strong debut as a leader with the self-released On My Way, an inventive guitar-trio outing with bassist Thomson K…
Flutist, alto flutist, piccolo flutist and composer Nicole Mitchell has received so many honors from jazz magazines and critics over the years it’s a wonder why she hasn…
31 Mar
King Crimson Songbook, Volume 2 by CJ3
Tuesday, 31 March 2009
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
Ian Wallace, the former drummer with the progressive rock powerhouse band King Crimson, and who passed away in 2007, leads this jazz trio through a collection of tunes a…
30 Mar
DVD: The Six Wives of Henry VIII - Live at the Hampton Court Palace by RIck Wakeman
Monday, 30 March 2009
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
Keyboardist Rick Wakeman’s 1970s classic progressive-rock concept album The Six Wives Of Henry VIII, was never performed in its entirety until May, 2009 when the eve…
This young British band has been blazing a trail of fire and brimstone through progressive-jazz circles, while receiving glowing critical reviews along the way. With the…
30 Mar
Whats Rattlin On The Moon? by Beppe Crovella
Monday, 30 March 2009
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
Beppe Crovella’s hallmark of ingenuity becomes prominent during this prismatic endeavor, where he covers the works of influential Soft Machine keyboardist Mike Ratledge.…
28 Mar
Angel City Dust by Steuart Liebig and the Mentones
Saturday, 28 March 2009
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
Electric bassist Liebig has traveled a long and winding road to get where he is, including stints with Les McCann and Julius Hemphill and a bit of time studying classical c…
28 Mar
Seize the Time by Ted Sirota's Rebel Souls
Saturday, 28 March 2009
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
Take a quick look at the song list on the back and the first thing you'll notice is that this set begins with a Clash tune. The Clash? Did we bypass Radiohead and go straig…
Ghanaian drummer, percussionist Kwaku Kwaakye Obeng imparts a world-groove quotient into the progressive-jazz and jazz-improvisation realm, here on this cunning and larg…
Slovenian guitarist/composer Samo Salamon has received critical acclaim in recent years as one of the more original voices of the European jazz scene. Adding to his impress…
25 Mar
Shape Shifter by Scott Reeves Quintet
Wednesday, 25 March 2009
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
Shape Shifter is a most felicitous title for this live CD. The Scott Reeves Quintet displaces expectations, interrupts calm toe-tapping, and even quibbles with th…
25 Mar
Varmint by Jason Adasiewicz's Rolldown
Wednesday, 25 March 2009
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
A major force in Chicago’s jazz and improvisation circles, vibist Jason Adasiewicz’s second group-led release comprises the element of surprise along with familiar persu…
23 Mar
Things Have Got To Change by Marty Ehrlich Rites Quartet
Monday, 23 March 2009
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
Multi-reedman Marty Ehrlich steers his estimable band-mates through a progressive-jazz jamboree that offers a prismatic stance. The leader has performed and recorded wit…
Many jazz albums (not all, so save the hate mail) can be set into two categories: Serious and Upbeat. Serious jazz albums can have earnest titles such as CONFLICT
21 Mar
Thinking Out Loud by Trey Wright
Saturday, 21 March 2009
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
Thinking Out Loud by Atlanta, GA-based Trey Wright Trio, raises the bar for energized, collaborative and highly listenable guitar, bass and drum trio music. Pay a…
Gypsy Schaeffer is not an individual, but an adventurous Boston-based jazz quartet with an improbably large stylistic sweep. New Album is their third recording for…
18 Mar
Wait Till You See Her by John Abercrombie Quartet
Wednesday, 18 March 2009
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
Guitar great John Abercrombie weaves some magic with violinist Mark Feldman, drummer Joey Baron and new member, bassist Thomas Morgan who replaces Marc Johnson. Ten years r…
17 Mar
Hope and Destruction by Eyal Maoz's Edom
Tuesday, 17 March 2009
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
Israel-born guitarist Eyal Maoz pulls many tricks out of his bag for his second release on Tzadik Records. With traditional Jewish music underpinnings here and there, th…
16 Mar
Today On Earth by Joe Morris Quartet
Monday, 16 March 2009
Published in
Progressive - CD Reviews
Joe Morris picks up his electric guitar for this multifaceted progressive-jazz endeavor, while switch-hitting as a bassist in recent years. He gained prominence via his …