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An occasional blog about populist politics and popular music, not necessarily at the same time. LinksLocal Links My Other Websites Music Politics Others Networking Music DatabaseArtist Search: Website SearchGoogle: Recent Reading
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Thursday, November 28, 2024 Music Week
November archive (in progress). Music: Current count 43229 [43200] rated (+29), 21 [28] unrated (-7). Having delayed posting of last week's Music Week until Friday (Nov. 22), I was uncertain whether to try to rush this week's post back to its normal Monday/Tuesday time frame, or hold back until the end of November (Saturday, Nov. 30), or even just skip the week and resync next Monday. I figured it would depend on what I had to say when about the 2024 Francis Davis Jazz Critics Poll. My goals for the week there were to whip the website into shape, both as the eventual home of the ballots and totals, and as a useful resource for voters. For the latter, I've mostly focused on a long and detailed Voters Notes file. My other big project was to come up with a second round of invites to vote. The first round went out on Nov. 20 to 228 critics, most of whom have voted in recent polls. I'm looking to add another 40-60 names to the list, or possibly more. (Some early research uncovered over 150 new names, but they still need to be vetted and contacted, and that's slow work.) To date, I'm fairly happy with the website work -- the Voter Notes file still doesn't have everything I wanted, but it's getting there, while the hypothetical FAQ has been nixxed, at least for now. But I've made damn little progress on the second round voter list -- so little that I've decided to run this without waiting for better news. I've had to hack on the software to handle the expansion of the Vocal/Latin/Debut categories, but that wasn't too difficult, so I'm generating good ballot and totals pages. I've tabulated 19 ballots, which reference 130 New Albums, 38 Rara Avis, 25 Vocal Albums, 22 Latin Albums, and 15 Debut albums. Lists of albums so far receiving votes are available here (alphabetized by artist, so as not to reveal much about the standings). Still, these lists are good for prospecting. I haven't run numbers this year yet, but in the past I've found that a third or more of the albums receiving votes were not previously in my tracking file. Much of the new jazz this week was suggested by ballots. Counting the ballots is the fun part of the job. The bane of my existence is the aggravation and especially the uncertainty of email. I sent a message to 202 people on my "jazzpoll" email list, but how many actually received it? I don't know, and don't know how to find out. I sent 228 ballot invites out from my own email address, using a very laborious process that I believe works better than the mass mailing list, but how much better I still don't know. (I do know that 8 of those messages bounced.) This uncertainty haunts me, with visions of imminent failure. On the other hand, the people who do respond are doing great work, and their data input is extremely valuable. In the end, they will make this worthwhile, but the meantime is rough. We have zero plans for Thanksgiving tomorrow, so maybe I'll get some work done. Perhaps even more urgent than the Poll is wrapping up the wrecked bedroom project. A few months ago, a chunk of ceiling fell in. I got a contractor to come in and patch it, recover the whole ceiling with new drywall, and steam the ugly wallpaper that has covered the walls since we moved in in 1999. The closet had even uglier wallpaper, and even worse surfaces. (This is a 1920 house, so lath/plaster everywhere.) I had bought paneling some years ago for the closet, but never got into it, so that became my piece of the project. It's taken many weeks, during which all the stuff from the room got moved into other rooms, creating endless hassles for both of us. (I just posted a picture on Facebook.) Tomorrow I'll work on the closet, and we'll start to move back into the room. Most of the weight is in books, which will fill three bookcases. Also the futon, a desk, and a piece I made to fit under the east window, with a couple drawers and a surface Laura keeps plants on. When I made my initial cut on Wednesday, I was thinking that, like, last week, I would post an early draft of this, then update it later in the week. So, expecting to add later reviews, in my last November Music Week, I didn't set up a December Streamnotes file. Unclear right now how I intend to handle this. I might also note here that while I have no desire to open another Speaking of Which can of worms, I have added a couple more items to my final (post-election) column, pushing the word count up to 37102. The latest add was an Alfred Soto piece, which he promised to be his last word on the subject. As I didn't get this posted on Wednesday, when I made my initial cut, it will go up on Thursday, a Thanksgiving I have no social plans for, and otherwise am pretty indifferent about. Maybe I'll cook a little something for just the two of us? (I just pulled a pound of beef liver out of the freeezer. I have onions, and for sides some cabbage and pasta. That shouldn't take too much time away from working on house, poll, and blog. And if it does, it's a holiday, right? One more day won't make much difference.)
By the way, here's a Thanksgiving meme for you, courtesy of Richard D. Wolff, where the text (reduced from all caps) reads: "Happy Thanksgiving/Celebrating the day Americans fed undocumented immigrants from Europe." That's a good note to end on, and get this out of the way. Today's new records, including a low A- from Joe Fonda and a Reut Regev album that needs another spin, should wait for next week, when hopefully I'll have more to report. New records reviewed this week: Holman Álvarez: Hidden Objects (2023 [2024], Sunnyside): Pianist, from Colombia, based in New York, nothing much in Discogs but claims five albums (2011-22) from his days in Bogotá. Quartet here with Adam O'Farrill (a standout on trumpet), Drew Gress (bass), and Satoshi Takeishi (drums). B+(**) [cd] Awon x Phoniks: Golden Era 2 (2024, Don't Sleep): Rapper Antwan Wiggins, goes back to 2013 with the producer "known for his vintage-90's boom bap production style and melodic jazz and soul samples." Flow reminds me of Digable Planets. A- [sp] Peter Bernstein: Better Angels (2024, Smoke Sessions): Jazz guitarist, several dozen albums and tons of sidework since 1998, I figure he's part of the Wes Montgomery tradition but looking through his discography, the tributes I see are to Tal Farlow and Attila Zoller. Quartet here with piano (Brad Mehldau), bass (Vicente Archer), and drums (Al Foster). B+(*) [sp] Betty Bryant: Lotta Livin' (2023 [2024], Bry-Mar Music): Jazz singer, 94, website claims 14 albums but Discogs only lists 3, plays piano, wrote 4 songs to go with 5 standards. Opens with a swinging "Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea," shifts into songs that are talkier (including a delightful take on "The Very Thought of You." Band swings, and the sax is lovely (Robert Kyle). A- [sp] Scott Colley/Edward Simon/Brian Blade: Three Visitors (2024, GroundUP Music): Bass-piano-drums trio, all long- and well-established, impressive enough on their own, plus a few guest spots: another strong sax spot for Christ Potter, but the rest is less interesting: several vocals, some strings, and percussion (Rogério Boccato). B+(**) [sp] Steve Davis: We See (2024, Smoke Sessions): Trombonist, started with Art Blakey in the late 1980s, 20+ albums since 1995. Live set at Smoke Jazz Club in New York with a sextet of peers: Eddie Henderson (trumpet), Ralph Moore (tenor sax), Renee Rosnes (piano), Essiet Essiet (bass), and Lewis Nash (drums), jumping right into "Milestones." B+(**) [sp] Elucid: Revelator (2024, Fat Possum): Rapper, from Queens, mixtapes back to 2002, half-dozen albums but better known as half of Armand Hammer. Too dense to decipher easily, but worth the effort. A- [sp] Everliven Sound & Slimline Mutha: Echo Chamber (2024, self-released): Duo of Cymar Simmons (Cymarshall Law) and Jaron Simmons (Skit Slam), have an album from 2008, a single back to 2000, working with a "jazzy hip-hop beatmaker" from UK. Has a nice bounce to it. B+(***) [sp] Ruth Goller: Skyllumina (2024, International Anthem): Bassist-vocalist, born in Italy, based in UK, had a previous album called Skylla in 2021. This strikes me as slow and ponderous, which may be unfair, but that's all I have for now. B [sp] Paul Heaton: The Mighty Several (2024, EMI): English singer-songwriter, best remembered from the Housemartins (1986-87) and the Beautiful South (1989-2006), followed by often catchy but less compelling solo and duo albums. After several duos with Jacqui Abbott, this one is nominally solo, but guest singers pop up here and there (Rianne Downey, Danny Muldoon). B+(**) [sp] John Hollenbeck & NDR Bigband: Colouring Hockets (2023 [2024], Plexatonic): Drummer, founded Claudia Quintet in 2001, later expanded to working with big bands, like this group, conducted by JC Sanford. Once again, mallet instruments are featured, with Patricia Brennan joining Claudia's Matt Moran. B+(***) [cd] Snorre Kirk: What a Day! (2024, Stunt): Danish drummer, sixth album since 2012, composed eight tunes here, band members listed below the title: Giacomo Smith (alto/soprano sax), Joe Webb (piano), Anders Fjeldsted (bass), with a guest guitarist (Alexander Honey Boulton) credited with three tracks on the back cover. Easy going, quite enjoyably mainstream. B+(***) [sp] Lemadi Trio: Canonical Discourse (2024, A New Wave of Jazz Axis): José Lencastre (alto sax), Dirk Serries (guitar), and Martina Verhoeven (crumar piano), runs a bit slower than the other albums in this series. B+(**) [cd] Peter Lenz: Breathe: Music for Large Ensembles (2023 [2024], GambsART): Austrian drummer, studied in Graz, Amsterdam, and New York, where he is now based. Has a couple previous albums, back to 2012. Two big band pieces (one called "Eleanor," as in Rigby), two with added strings, one stripped down to "chamber orchestra," with some vocals. B [cd] David Maranha/Rodrigo Amado: Wrecks (2023 [2024], Nariz Entupido): Electric organ and saxophones duo -- credit uses plural, but tenor is Amado's standard. The organ is dense and ugly, so it takes a while for the saxophone, initially aligned, to rise out of and distinguish itself from the murk. B+(***) [cd] Claire Martin: Almost in Your Arms (2024, Stunt): English jazz singer, 20+ albums since 1992, well-regarded in Penguin Guide, but I've only lightly sampled her work, with nothing since her 2001 Very Best Of (which now is most of her career). B+(*) [sp] Nuse Tyrant: Juxtaposed Echoes (2024, M25): Rapper, from San Diego, working with producers Trust One and Clypto. B+(**) [sp] Adonis Rose Trio + One: For All We Know (2022 [2024], Storyville): Drummer, from New Orleans, director of New Orleans Jazz Orchestra, has several albums, both with them and smaller groups. Trio here with Ryan Hanseler (piano) and Lex Warshawsky (drums), but also featuring singer Gabrielle Cavassa. [Note: Two album cover variations: One with "+ One" and four names; one without the singer. Label Bandcamp page makes no mention of singer, nor does the cover pic at Spotify, but it does have the vocal tracks. So it seems probable that both variants are actually the same album.] B+(**) [sp] Sophie: Sophie (2024, Transgressive): English electronica producer, released a compilation of early tracks in 2015, a full album in 2018, and was close to finishing a second album when she fell to her death in 2021. This is that second album, with finishing touches by brother Benny Long. Runs long, but gets better toward the end. B+(**) [sp] Spinifex: Undrilling the Hole (2024, TryTone): Amsterdam-based avant-fusion group, ninth album since 2011, all compositions by Tobias Klein (alto sax), with Bart Maris (trumpet), John Dikeman (tenor sax), Jasper Stadthouders (guitar), Gonçalo Almeida (bass guitar), and Philipp Moser (drums). B+(***) [cd] Tonus: Analog Deviation (2023 [2024], A New Wave of Jazz Axis): Trio of Dirk Serries (guitar), Benedict Taylor (violin/broken fiddle), and Martina Verhoeven (piano), tends to scattered abstractions. B+(*) [cd] Transition Unit: Fade Value (2023 [2024], A New Wave of Jazz Axis): Trio of Amsterdam-based Portuguese alto/tenor saxophonist José Lencastre, pianist Rodrigo Pinheiro, and guitarist Dirk Serries. Free jazz, close to the edge. B+(***) [cd] Twin Talk: Live (2023 [2024], Shifting Paradigm): Trio of Dustin Laurenzi (tenor sax), Katie Ernst (bass/voice), and Andrew Green (drums), third album since 2015. B+(**) [sp] Tyler, the Creator: Chromakopia (2024, Columbia): Rapper Tyler Okonma, from Los Angeles, the biggest success out of the Odd Future collective, eighth studio album since 2009, all gold except for his self-released debut. I didn't care for his early albums, but he's gotten more solid. B+(***) [sp] Martina Verhoeven Quintet: Indicator Light (Live at Paradox 2023) (2023 [2024], A New Wave of Jazz Axis): Belgian pianist, Discogs credits her with 14 albums, most multi-artist collabs, most of those with her husband, guitarist Dirk Serries -- present here, along with Gonçalo Almeida (bass), Onno Govaert (drums), and Colin Webster (alto sax), who dominates with fire and fury, which the rest fill out remarkably. A- [cd] Cole Williams: How We Care for Humanity (2024, Four Corner): Soul-jazz singer-songwriter, plays bass guitar and percussion, born in Brooklyn (mother Jamaican) but based in New Orleans, EP in 2007, fifth album since 2011. Title song is practically a manifesto. B+(**) [sp] Recent reissues, compilations, and vault discoveries: Emily Remler: Cookin' at the Queens: Live in Las Vegas 1984 & 1988 (1984-88 [2024], Resonance, 2CD): Jazz guitarist (1957-90), recorded six albums for Concord (including a duo led by Larry Coryell, plus one more) in her brief career, which in 1991 were reduced to two Retrospective volumes. This is the first new music that has appeared since her death, and is certain to rekindle interest in her post-Montgomery synthesis. A- [cd] [11-29] McCoy Tyner/Joe Henderson: Forces of Nature: Live at Slugs' (1966 [2024]. Blue Note): Crackling live set, with Henry Grimes (bass) and Jack DeJohnette (drums), the pianist just out of John Coltrane's quartet, with the tenor saxophonist in the middle of a legendary series of Blue Note albums -- Tyner's first (and best) Blue Note, The Real McCoy, was still a year away. B+(***) [sp] Old music: Elucid: I Told Bessie (2022, Backwoodz Studioz): Rapper Chaz Hall, works with Billy Woods in Armand Hammer and other more obscure groups, Discogs credits him with 12 of his own albums since 2007. Even denser and more inscrutable than the new one. B+(***) [sp] Unpacking: Found in the mail last week:
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