V.i.j.a.y. I.y.e.r. S.e.x.t.e.t. - 'F.a.r. F.r.o.m. O.v.e.r.' (2017)
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t.y.s.h.a.w.n. s.o.r.e.y. - 'v.e.r.i.s.i.m.i.l.i.t.u.d.e.' (2017)
this man is getting a lot of buzz lately, so i thought i'd see what all the fuss was about. at first i wasn't as into it, because i couldn't really tap my foot to it. but, then i kinda started thinking of it more like contempo classical, like morton feldman type stuff, and then i could get down with it, couching it that way. still doesn't make me reach for it all that often. still, i could say the same about most contemporary classical that i own, and that doesn't make me respect it any less. ya gotta be in the right mood. when you are, it hits the spot.
_pert plus
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A.m.i.r. E.l.S.a.f.f.a.r. R.i.v.e.r.s. O.f. S.o.u.n.d. - 'N.o.t. T.w.o.' (2017)
Super sick iraqi informed heavy hitting american jazz. I actually bought this album to bring it to you. That's rare for me.
_DJ Culture Jam
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L.i.n.d.a. O.h. - 'W.a.l.k. A.g.a.i.n.s.t. W.i.n.d.' (2017)
smooth jazz but not in the make you want to barf sense of the term.
_DJ Pert Plus
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d.e.v.i.n. g.r.a.y. - 'r.e.l.a.t.i.v.e. r.e.s.o.n.a.n.c.e.' (2015)
kris davis on piano is about all you need to tell you that this one is worth the price of admission. seriosly killer playing on this, and really exciting writing to boot. gray is for certain one to watch.
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a.n.n.a. w.e.b.b.e.r.'s. s.i.m.p.l.e. t.r.i.o. - 'b.i.n.a.r.y.' (2016)
i've only had this record for one week, and it has already catapulted itself to becoming one of my top favorite jazz records in my collection. all about jazz describes it as it being akin to math rock. now, while i must admit that i do find the term math rock to be cringe inducing, i also must admit that that music has always sizzled my bacon from a very early age. my wife once described one of my favorite mathy rock bands as playing 'angry man music'... and, truth be told, that description does apply to most rhythmically complex heavy rock music. so, i found it to be quite vindicating that here comes anna webber, canadian born brooklyn based jazz composer, who makes music that is intensely heavy, rhythmically next level, and at the same time very cohesive and catchy. the fact that this is accomplished in such a way that is neither angry nor manly is especially impressive and exciting. when it comes down to it, it's all about the tunes, and the tunes on this one are fully baked explosions of flavor. a masterpiece, this.
_alibi
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m.a.t.t. m.i.t.c.h.e.l.l. - 'v.i.s.t.a. a.c.c.u.m.u.l.a.t.i.o.n.' (2015)
bloody pandaman dan weiss plays on this. he and matt mitchell are tight bros. mitchell plays keys on dw's solo records. that's all fine. how's this record. it's heady. it's two discs. it's intense. it's complex. and it's pretty killer stuff indeed.
_alibi
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j.i.m. b.l.a.c.k. - 'm.a.l.a.m.u.t.e.'
jim black is one of the sickest drummers working in jazz today. more than that, he is also one of the most interesting composers in contemporary jazz. his tunes are very listenable, you could put any given recent album of his on at a dinner party and let it be classy background music. closer listen reveals his groups always pushing boundaries. they're just not in your face about showing off their skills. this understatedness is something i find really essential to enjoyable contemporary jazz. this record is super sweet. it has electric bass guitar, which i usually hate in a jazz context, but here is used really impressively. black's music has always been very much informed by a rock aesthetic, and this record does this post rock jazz sound especially well. i remember when i was really into listening to tortoise in the late 90s, as they innovated and shaped the quote unquote post-rock sound. their members were jazz musicians, and they'd put out these side project albums, all of which fell terribly flat next to the seminal music tortoise was making circa millions now living will never die and tnt. listening to jim black makes me imagine him sharing a stage with tortoise in the late 90s playing this wonderful music. this seemed to be what those musicians were driving at back then. they just lacked the stellar songwriting skills of jim black.
bonus points: as a new parent, i can hardly think of a funnier song title than 'toys everywhere' at this particular moment in time. :D
bonus bonus: elias stemeseder, austrian born in 1990, is one of the sickest pianists in the biz right now.
_alibi
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m.i.l.e.s. d.a.v.i.s. - 'e.l.e.v.a.t.o.r. t.o. t.h.e. g.a.l.l.o.w.s. s.o.u.n.d.t.r.a.c.k.' (1958)
if someone might ask you, 'are you a fan of miles davis?' it's a bit of a loaded question. it's like saying, 'what are your thoughts on that dude johann sebastian bach?' the shadow looms long. albert einstein, he was pretty good at math, right? ...by this token, it's easy to pass over his work, just because it can be hard to find an entry point. i suggest you try starting with this album.
_alibi
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T.o.m.a.s.z. S.t.a.n.k.o. N.e.w. Y.o.r.k. Q.u.a.r.t.e.t. - 'D.e.c.e.m.b.e.r. A.v.e.n.u.e.' (2017)
this album is the sound of a bottle of fine old peaty scotch.
_alibi
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