Carlo Costa Quartet Neither Nor Records (CD) Sediment is an interesting new foray into free improvisation, based around concepts percussionist Carlo Costa outlines to his bandmates. This certainly is no easy task, for free improvisation is a very difficult thing to do well. Getting the right balance of voices in any given ensemble takes a
Tomas Fujiwara Trio Relative Pitch (CD) Released December 2, 2014; recorded live by Jonathan Goldberger at Barbes, Brooklyn, September 11, 2013; mixed by Goldberger; mastered by Nate Wood at Kerseboom Mastering; produced by Tomas Fujiwara; artwork by Tetsuo Hasegawa; photography by Peter Gannushkin; art design & layout by Spl@T!; executive production by Kevin Reilly and
Nate Wooley’s Seven Storey Mountain Pleasure of the Text (CD) This record is one of the true masterpieces of the new millennium. It contains two CDs, both recorded live at Issue Project Room (Brooklyn), the first on March 11, 2011, and the second on June 6, 2013. Led by the visionary trumpet player, Nate Wooley,
Chris Pitsiokos Trio New Atlantis (CD/DL) Recorded by WKCR-FM, Brooklyn, NY; engineered by Gabe Ibagon, Oct 2, 2014; mixed by Chris Pitsiokos; mastered by Weasel Walter. Personnel: Chris Pitsiokos (alto saxophone, composition) Max Johnson (bass) Kevin Shea (percussion) Track Listing: Prologue Lethe Clotho Lachesis Atropos Dissolution Epilogue Gordion Twine is a superb record featuring three
Barker Trio Phantom Ear Music (CD) Personnel Andrew Barker (drums, compositions) Michael Foster (tenor & soprano saxophones) Tim Dahl (bass) Track Listing You Are a Real _____ Scarface Pajamas Failed States A Teeming Portal Inner Vortex New Wolves, Old Bones Invalid Request Review Barker Trio’s gripping yet subtle self-titled debut record is one of the
Relative Pitch (CD) Personnel Peter Evans (trumpet) Tim Dahl (bass) Mike Pride (drums) Art is not entirely beautiful. Its ability to shape transcendent experience into material reality is often attached to aesthetic pleasure or “meaning,” but that isn’t to say such an angle requires consonance. Indeed, a large swath of art relies on confrontation, bewilderment
Craig Taborn played six nights at the Stone this past week in a highly anticipated residency. Taborn, who is widely regarded as one of the most talented and innovative piano players since he emerged in the mid-1990s, put on a broad range of fascinating performances. Each night featured different bands and he drew from his
Relative Pitch Records (CD) Released February 19, 2016. Recorded by Atticus Pomerantz. Mixed and Mastered by Jim Clouse. Photography by Bayley Sweitzer. Executive production by Kevin Reilly & Mike Panico. Personnel: Leila Bordreuil (cello) Michael Foster (saxophones) Track List: Born of Its Own Asphyxiation Pleasure and Cruelty Intimate Shrinkage of My Body and the Castration
I have never heard “environmental improvisation” used as a term, but it seems fitting to describe the music of the Sandra Weiss Quintet that I experienced at the 65Fen Series at Delroy’s Cafe and Wine Bar last night. The band is led by the Swiss reeds player (bassoon and alto saxophone) and is comprised of
Brian Groder Trio Latham Records (CD) New York-based trumpeter/flugelhornist and composer Brian Groder is still relatively little-known, though he’s been a fixture in East Coast jazz communities since the 1980s. He made something of a splash on the creative music scene several years ago in collaborative recordings with pianist Burton Greene and reedist Sam Rivers,
