Pete will be featuring new releases from Fur, The Core, the Julian Costello Quartet and the trio of Arild Andersen, Daniel Sommer and Rob Luft. Not forgetting trumpeter Julien Knowles and pianist Ingi Bjarni. He’ll also be running through the jazz gigs coming up in and around Cambridge, illustrated with music from Rebecka Edlund’s Virgin Forest. Listen HERE at 4pm BST.
Gary Brunton: Poem For No 15 from
GWAWR (Juste-Une-Trace)
Mikael Mani: She’ll Arrive Between 10
and 11 from Guitar Poetry (ACT)
Looty Trio: Ca de Bou from Boxer
Rebellion (AUT)
Mark Lockheart: Mingle Tingle from
Dreamers (Edition)
Maridalen: Lorraine from
Gressholmen (Jazzland)
Iris Trio: A Blue in Every Hue from
Project Earth – The Blue Chapter (Centrediscs)
Iris Trio: Jay from Project
Earth – The Blue Chapter (Centrediscs)
Charles Lloyd: Monks Dance from
The Sky Will Still Be There Tomorrow (Blue Note)
Intro / Outro – Stephane Huchard: Jakawa Jungle
Spoon from Toutakoustiks (Blue Note Fr)
Roddy Ellias: Chant from Moon
Over Lake (self-released)
Maridalen: Fuglefangeren from
Gressholmen (Jazzland)
Bruno Heinen & James Kitchman: Warm
Valley from Rain Shadow (Ubuntu Music)
Joachim Ullrich’s Family of Choice:
The Small Village from Five Simple Songs (Jazzhausmusik)
Matthieu Bordenave: The Blue Land from
The Blue Land (ECM)
Roddy Ellias: Summer’s End from
Moon Over Lake (self-released)
Byron Asher’s Skrontch Music: Papa
Likes His Outside Women, Mama Likes Her Outside Men from Lord When You
Send the Rain (Sinking City)
Bevort 3: Northbound from Northbound
(Gateway Music)
Michael Attias: Hexway Liner from
Quartet Music Vol 1: LuMiSong (Out Of Your Head)
Threeway w John Etheridge: AB4BC from Harken! (JazzCat)
Marta Klouckova Quartet: Poustim Te from
Loving Season (Hevhetia)
Eva Novoa, Drew Gress & Devin Gray:
Indigo Blue from Vol 1 (577)
Bevort 3: Ebullient Encounter from
Northbound (Gateway Music)
Kjetil Mulelid: Heroes from Agoja
(Odin)
Christian McBride & Edgar Meyer: Barnyard
Disturbance from But Who’s Gonna Play the Melody ? (Mack Avenue)
Koma Saxo: Omkomma Hemma from Post
Koma (We Jazz)
Koma Saxo: Stundens Hetta from
Post Koma (We Jazz)
John Turville: Cancion 4 from Head
First (Whirlwind)
Julien Tassin: Believe from Great
Expectations (Igloo / WERF)
Joe Webb: Collblanc from Collblanc
(Edition)
Joe Webb: Munchin Munchen from
Collblanc (Edition)
Ludovico Carmenati Ensemble: That’s
It from Songs and Tunes (Notami Jazz)
Intro / Outro – Stephane Huchard: Jakawa Jungle
Spoon from Toutakoustiks (Blue Note Fr)
Michael Arbenz: Brilliant Moon from
Classicism – A Point of View (self-released)
Emile Parisien Quartet: Wine Time
Part 1 from Let Them Cook (ACT)
John Etheridge: Goodbye Pork Pie Hat from
Blue Spirits Live (Dyad)
Jouni Jarvela, Lenny Pickett, Pepa Paivinen
& Jonatan Sarikoski: Clarinet Trio VI from Jouni’s Pipe Dream (Jouni’sPipe Dream)
Florestan Berset, Francesco Losavio &
Norbert Pfammatter: A from A Vol D’Oiseau (Fundacja Sluchaj)
Byron Asher’s Skrontch Music: Threads
from Lord When You Send the Rain (Sinking City)
Trish Clowes & Ross Stanley: Tres
Palabras from Journey To Where (Stoney Lane)
Atom String Quartet: Interference from
Universum (Warner Classics)
Oknytt: Gubbkepsen from Nogot
om en Bjork (self-released)
Acceleration Due To Gravity: Cedar
Run from Jonesville (Hot Cup)
John Surman: Words Unspoken from
Words Unspoken (ECM)
Julian Costello Quartet: And All the
Birds Were Set Free from And All the Birds Were Set Free (33 Jazz)
Ted Morcaldi: Time Windows from
Live 2023 (self-released)
Federico Calcagno Octet: Perseverance
from Mundus Inversus (Habitable)
Misha Mullov-Abbado Group: Bear from
Dream Circus (Edition)
Ambrose Akinmusire: Owl Song I from Owl Song (Nonesuch)
Olivier Le Goas: Mirage from Sunland
(Double Moon)
DASH!: Untie from Radio Rotor
(self-released)
Erskine & Kavuma: The Day After from
Ultrasound (Banger Factory)
Stefan Karl Schmid, Lars Duppler &
Hilmar Jensson: Illusionist from Blidur (self-released)
Frank Carlberg Large Ensemble: Wrinkle
on Tinkle from Elegy For Thelonious (Sunnyside)
Empirical: She Moves from Wonder
is the Beginning (Whirlwind)
Jeremy Rose & The Earshift Orchestra:
Unverified Persona from Discordia (Earshift)
Stefan Karl Schmid, Lars Duppler &
Hilmar Jensson: Augnablik from Blidur (self-released)
Arne Torvik Trio: Eastbound from
Songs For Roman (Losen)
Intro / Outro – Stephane Huchard: Jakawa Jungle
Spoon from Toutakoustiks (Blue Note Fr)
Matteo Mosolo & Flavio Zanuttini:
Under Watts Towers from Half Black Half White Half Yellow (Caligola)
Max Nagl Trio: Van Doner from Fauteuil
(Jazzwerkstatt)
Mary Halvorson: The Tower from
Cloudward (Nonesuch)
Elina Duni: I’ll Be Seeing You from A Time
To Remember (ECM)
John Pope Quintet: Free Spin from Citrinitas
(New Jazz and Improvised Music Recordings)
Mark Lotz: Frouzan from Freshta (Zennez /
Berthold)
German Lema & Nicolas Ojeda: The Peacocks from
Su Trazo y el Siencio (Ears & Eyes)
Theo May’s Odd Unit: Twelve’s Blood from
Alive in the Forest of Odd (Discus Music)
Deon: Lost in the Woods from Soft Steel (Trytone)
Advancing on a Wild Pitch: Marcus
Hook from Disasters Vol 2 (Hot Cup)
Per Texas Johansson: Klarinet 1 from
Orkester Omnitonal (Moserobie)
Little North & Oscar Andreas Haug:
Colors from While You Wait (ACT)
Erskine & Kavuma: The Return of
Johnny Bravo from Ultrasound (Banger Factory)
Vijay Iyer, Linda May Han Oh &
Tyshawn Sorey: Arch from Compassion (ECM)
Christof Thewes Quartet: Honulullu
Bakterium Konform from SurRealBook H (self-released)
Julia Werup: No More Fuss from
Dear Frances (Stunt)
Circles 44: Spiral Dance from In
the Grip (AUT)
Jean Toussaint: Cry of the Unheard from
Songs for Sisters, Brothers & Others (Lyte)
Moritz Gotzen Trio: Melrosa from
Liliths Kirche (Timezone)
Max Nagl Trio: Radax from Fauteuil
(Jazzwerkstatt)
Circles 44: In the Grip from In
the Grip (AUT)
Nikki Iles & NDR Big Band: Big
Sky from Face to Face (Edition)
Q3: Through the Clouds from Water
Speckled Midnight (self-released)
Interview with Martin Hallmark
Q3: Odyssey from Water
Speckled Midnight (self-released)
Q3: Postlude from Water
Speckled Midnight (self-released)
Julie Sassoon, Lothar Ohlmeier & Mia
Ohlmeier: To Be from Inside Colours - Live (Jazzwerkstatt)
Intro / Outro – Stephane Huchard: Jakawa Jungle
Spoon from Toutakoustiks (Blue Note Fr)
Reverso: Ma Jolie from Shooting
Star (Alternate Side)
Mary Halvorson: The Tower from
Cloudward (Nonesuch)
Andy
Bowie Quartet: Alabama (unreleased)
Yannick Peeters: Playtime’s Over from
GingerBlackGinger (WERF)
Reverso: Lili’s Blues from Shooting
Star (Alternate Side)
Print: Mirror of Time from Secrets For You
(Le Triton)
Pierre-Francois
Blanchard: Puzzled from #Puzzled (Les Rivieres Souterraines)
Jean Toussaint: God Bless the Child from
Songs for Sisters, Brothers & Others (Lyte)
Anni Kiviniemi Trio: Tiu Dropar from
Eir (We Jazz)
Teitur & Aarhus Jazz Orchestra: Gmail
Needs My Password Again from Songs from a Social Distance (Stunt)
Yuhan Su: Hi-Tech Pros and Cons from
Liberated Gesture (Sunnyside)
Intro / Outro – Stephane Huchard: Jakawa Jungle
Spoon from Toutakoustiks (Blue Note Fr)
As always, an honour to be invited to participate. Full results here:
Encuesta 2023 – Periodistas Internacionales - El Intruso
Adam Baldych & Leszek Mozdzer: Passacaglia
from Passacaglia (ACT)
Roberto Ottaviano Eternal Love: Gare
Guillemans from People (Dodicilune)
Preston Glasgow Lowe: May from
Something About Rainbows (Whirlwind)
Perplexities On Mars: April Fool’s
Day from Perseverance (Jazzhausmusik)
Adam Baldych & Leszek Mozdzer: December
from Passacaglia (ACT)
Gerhard Gschlossl: Dem Deutschen Funk
from Solo 1 (Trouble In The East)
David Preston: Blues For Klemens from
Purple Black Vol 1 (Whirlwind)
Pablo Masis: Warriors Pt2 from
Thought and Memory (Brooklyn Jazz Underground)
Alf Carlsson: Brudpolska fran Rattvik
from Lights (Naxos Prophone)
Potsa Lotsa XL: Cyprinidae from
Chamber Works (Trouble In the East)
Espen Berg: Part 5 from The Hamar
Concert (NXN)
The Banger Factory: Warriors Pt2 from
Warriors (Banger Factory)
Theo May’s Odd
Unit: A Place Without Words from Alive in the Forest of Odd (DiscusMusic)
Clark Sommers: Cave Dweller from
Feast Ephemera (Irabbagast)
Trombone Ensemble Nabou Claerhout: A
Day at the Huge Field With a Little House from Trombone Ensemble Nabou
Claerhout (WERF)
Ron Horton: Beloved Refracted from
A Prayer for Andrew (Newvelle)
Huw Warren:
Reciete de Samba from Choro Choro Choro (Maizeh Music)
Brulez les Meubles: Big Blues from
Crayonnage (Tour de Bras / Circum-Disc)
Yeliz Trio: Ballade du Duke from
The Wanderer (Yeliz Musique)
Intro / Outro – Stephane Huchard: Jakawa Jungle
Spoon from Toutakoustiks (Blue Note Fr)
One of the highlights of the Christmas period is selecting my ‘Pick’ of the previous year’s releases. It ensures I go back and listen again to my favourite albums. That said, it’s never an easy task. Hence the sizeable appendix of other albums I wouldn’t be without.
I hope there’s an album below that you may not have
encountered. Something that piques your interest enough to investigate further.
And you’ll find samples of all of the music on my podcasts.
Hausquartett: From the Cadavre Exquis Collection
(Leo)
Cadavre Exquis ,
which translates to ‘exquisite corpse’, is an art term contrived by the
surrealists. Apparently it’s a bit like the word game consequences, except each
player draws part of a body without knowing what has been drawn before. And by
analogy the band constructed this music during lockdown in a somewhat similar
fashion. Check their website for videos explaining the process. When they
managed to get to the studio, they produced an album of inventive and creative
jazz, one with a sense of humour (reflected by the album cover!).
And even though
Hausquartett have been together for over two decades, they still describe the
band as a ‘work in progress’. I very much look forward to seeing and hearing
where they progress from here.
Matteo Mosolo & Flavio Zanuttini: Half Black Half White Half Yellow (Caligola)
The recording
comprises nine originals from Matteo, all of which capture Mingus’ earthy,
blues-inflected sound.
According to the
promo material the pair have known each other for two decades. Matteo is a
musician skilled on multiple instruments and his interests extend to classical
and rock music. His double bass playing can be propulsive at times. Then
tender. Check out his earlier solo
outing, Isolation, where he also acknowledges the influence of Charlie
Haden.
Flavio Zanuttini is
a trumpeter who is as adept at performing solo as he is in a big band setting. Here
his bright tone contrasts with Matteos darker hues, giving us a striking series
of duets. I’m sure the big man would have been impressed.
Valtteri Laurell Nonet: Tigers Are Better Looking (We Jazz)
Key to the success
of this album is the presence of veteran clarinettist Antti Sarpila, who takes
centre stage on many of the pieces. And his velvety tone often adds a retro
feel to proceedings. There are also some lovely voicings from the brass and
woodwind.
Valtteri’s six
melodic and gently swinging compositions are memorable, and based on the
writings of novelist Jean Rhys. And the leaders approach is influenced by
the work of Gerry Mulligan, Miles Davis and Charles Mingus. On occasion it also
brings to mind the work of Johnny Dankworth.
Tigers Are
Better Looking was originally commissioned for a festival in Finland. Let’s
hope it doesn’t mean that it is a one-off for this line-up. I could do with
more.
Gard Nilssen’s Supersonic Orchestra: Family (We Jazz)
It comprises seventeen
pieces including seven saxophonists, two trumpeters, two trombonists, three
bass players and three drummers, with the likes of Per Texas Johansson, Eirik
Hegdal, Mette Rasmussen, Petter Eldh, and Ole Morten Vagan on board. Plus the
occasional import, such as Polish saxophonist Maciej Obara. And you’d certainly
need a sizeable stage for that lot, which they must’ve had at the Mondrian Jazz
Festival in The Hague, Netherlands, where this was recorded last October. I
wish I’d been there.
And although many
of these players are versed in free jazz, this is no left-field blow out. The eight
originals were composed and arranged by Gard and saxophonist Andre Roligheten
(both regulars on my end of year lists).
Recording a band of
this size at a festival must be some task, but the engineers have done a great
job, capturing everything from the ensemble at full tilt to the subtleties of a
bass solo. Along with the Trondheim Jazz Orchestra, this must be one of the
most exciting big bands on the European stage.
John Pope Quintet: Citrinitas (New Jazz and Improvised Music)
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Citrinitas gives
us eight originals from John, occasionally funky, falling into a kind of bluesy
free-bop bag, with some tasty unison playing from the front line. Which can
easily dissolve into a loose polyphony. Alongside John on double bass are Jamie
Stockbridge and Faye MacCalman reeds, Graham Hardy trumpet and flugelhorn, and
Johnny Hunter percussion.
And it’s good to
see the quintet being lauded outside of Tyneside. In fact the album has
recently got a rave review on a Scandinavian website. Wouldn’t it be good to
see the band representing the UK at an international festival such as Jazzahead
?
And kudos to New
Jazz and Improvised Music for doing a stellar job in documenting the creative
scene in the North of England.
Jochen Rueckert: With Best Intentions (Colonel Beats)
It is yet another production with a timeline influenced by
the pandemic. Not only that, it seems Covid determined the selection of the music
itself, Jochen choosing simpler pieces, allowing plenty of space for his
bandmates to blow. And blow they do. Underpinned by the driving bass and drums
of Doug and Jochen.
The soloing is top drawer. And worthy of particular mention
is the title track, a wonderful duet featuring just Nils and Joris.
It’s an album that has been a regular on my CD player ever
since its release earlier in the year. I think it’s one of the leader’s best. And
they’re a band I very much hope will stay together and even record again. And
Jochen’s credits on the CD case have some interesting asides regarding music streaming
services that I must admit, raised a smile.
German Lema
& Nicolas Ojeda:
Su Trazo y El Silencio (Ears & Eyes)
The album as a whole is a tribute to Nicolas’s late father,
renowned artist Julio Ojeda. Before his death the pair gave him a parting gift,
a rendition of Jimmy Rowles’ The Peacocks. They subsequently went on to
record this album, which features a version of that song.
The remaining five pieces are originals from Nicolas and
German. Memorable tunes, beautifully rendered by the pair. German seems to be
better known as an organist, but clearly he is equally adept at the piano.
The album title translates to His Sketch and Silence,
and the artwork features a striking painting from Julio, one that somehow
captures the music herein. Su Trazo y El Silencio is released on Ears
and Eyes Records, a label making a great job of documenting the current
Argentinian scene.
Rudy
Royston Flatbed Buggy:
Day (Greenleaf)
Rudy provides eight originals alongside one each from Hank
and Joe. They often have a hoe-down feel and regularly get me shuffling around
the floor. And whereas Rudy described the music on the band’s debut as dusty
(!), here he says there is more of an indoor feel to proceedings.
Rudy has established his credentials with the likes of Bill
Frisell, JD Allen and Dave Douglas. His seemingly effortless swing underpins
the melodic solos of his bandmates. The album is dedicated to his late brother,
and also to his mentor, cornetist Ron Miles, who died in 2022. And most of the
track titles allude to the concept of ‘time’.
It’s a most enjoyable outing. You can find Day on
Dave Douglas’s Greenleaf Records.
Tingo: Kvartetten Fra Verdens Ende (GO’Danish Folk Music)
They’re a band I was lucky enough to see live while I was on
holiday in Denmark last June, where they enthralled a small crowd crammed into
a courtyard off a back street in Copenhagen. The band comprises Tim Evie on
trumpet, Cecilie Strange saxophone, Benjamin Gower-Poole bass and Per Rask
Ringsted, drums.
The album features some memorable lilting melodies combined
with some sensitive playing. A kind of musical panacea for these turbulent
times.
And Tingo are one of a number of Nordic band mining territory
between jazz and folk. If this approach is up your street, then the bands Here’s
To Us and Maridalen are also worthy of investigation.
Robert
Jukic 4 : Res
Publica (Jazz Cerkno)
His album Res Publica is the third release from his
quartet. It was recorded live at the Jazz Tserkno Festival in Slovenia in May 2022
and revisits compositions from the band’s two studio albums, Caminos de
Gloria (from 2021) and Izza (from 2022).
Robert's music falls into a loose free-bop style and his compositions allow his bandmates plenty of space
to have their say. And in the live setting they do just that. The
quartet features compatriots Tomaz Gajst
on trumpet, Bostjan Simon on reeds and Kristijan Krajncan on drums.
Elsewhere Robert
Jukic’s eclectic approach has placed him into rock, folk and classical
settings. But here it’s undiluted and exciting contemporary jazz performed by a
classy band that deserve wider recognition.
A selection of
other releases I wouldn’t be without:
Chris Batchelor’s Zoetic - Telling the Tale
(Pokey); Flen - Valkommen Till (self-released); Johan Lindstrom &
Norrbotten Big Band (Moserobie); Mixing Memory and Desire - Strange
Destination (WLJWC); Trieders Holz - Vertraute Orte (nWog); Elina
Duni - A Time To Remember (ECM); Mark Lotz - Freshta (Zennez/Berthold);
OyvindLAND - Nonett (Ora Fonogram); Per Texas Johansson - Den
Samsta Losningen Av Alla (Moserobie); Meinrad Kneer Quintet - Der Zweite
Streich (Jazzwerkstatt); Philippe Cote & Francois Bourassa -
Confluence (Odd Sound); Hans Ludemann TransEuropeExpress Ensemble - On
The Edges 3 (BMC); Andre Roligheten - Marbles (Odin); Hugues Mayot’s
L’Arbre Rouge - Invocations (BMC); Allison Miller - Rivers In Our
Veins (Royal Potato Family); Henri Texier - An Indian’s Life (Label
Bleu); Galumphing Duo - Contrast of Opposites (AMP Music); I.P.A.
- Grimsta (Cuneiform); Deon - Soft Steel (Trytone); Velvet Revolution
- Message in a Bubble (BMC); Nils Wogram - The Pristine Sound of Root 70
(nWog); Tomas Fujiwara - Pith (Out of Your Head); Will Bernard &
Beth Custer - Sky (Dreck to Disk); Clement Janinet La Litanie Des Cimes
- Woodlands (BMC); Steven Kamperman - Maison Moderne (Trytone); Florian
Arbenz - Conversation #10 Inland (Hammer); Shannon Barnett Quartet -
Alive at Loft (Klaeng); Mark Lotz Trio - Turn On, Tune In, Drop Out
(Zennez); Regnfang - Alting Har En Tid (self-released); Linley
Hamilton - Ginger’s Hollow (Whirlwind); Melissa Pipe Sextet - Of
What Remains (Odd Sound); Terese Lien Evenstad - Movement (Berthold); Frans
Vermeerssen, Dion Nijland & Thomas Jaspers - The Trail (Trytone); Gina
Schwarz & Multiphonics 8 - Way To Blue (Cracked Anegg); Michal
Tomaszczyk - Zadora (self-released); AAAPUZ - AAAPUZ (Trouble in the
East); Chris Biscoe - Music Is – Chris Biscoe Plays Mike Westbrook
(Trio); Karmen Roivassepp & Aarhus Jazz Orchestra - Ambivalence
(Jaeger Community Music); Sam Bardfeld Trio - Refuge (Brooklyn Jazz Underground);
Robert Jukic 4 - Res Publica (Jazz Cerkno); NoSax NoClar – No Dahiss
(Yolk)
