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An occasional blog about populist politics and popular music, not necessarily at the same time. LinksLocal Links Social Media My Other Websites Music Politics Others Networking Music DatabaseArtist Search: Website SearchGoogle: Recent Reading
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Music Week [350 - 359]Monday, May 13, 2019 Music Week
Music: current count 31498 [31469] rated (+29), 249 [248] unrated (+1). Weird how these weekly totals keep landing on 29 (6th time so far this year). Should have been less, given that I drove to the Tulsa area on Wednesday, returning Friday evening. Took my travel cases for the car, nothing remotely new in them. Packed the Chromebook, but inadvertently left it at home. Supposedly I can check email and web on phone, plus a million apps including Napster, but I've never got the hang of that. My second cousin down there swears she does everything with Siri, and I could see how that might be better than trying to type on a clumsy and error-prone touch screen. As a confirmed Apple-phobe, that isn't even an option I'd consider, but I gather Samsung has something along those lines (bixby?). I suppose I should look into that. Meanwhile, I seem to be the only person I know who can go 3-4 days between charges, so I take comfort in that. I wanted to visit my cousin Duan, second son of my mother's oldest sister, Lola. I hadn't been down there since his older brother, Harold, passed several years ago, and he's up to 92 now. He's lived in/around Bristow as long as I can remember -- we went to visit Aunt Lola every couple months when I was young, and by then Harold and Duan had their families, my second cousins just a couple years younger than I was, so we were fairly close. Harold and Duan were drafted into WWII, and Duan got called back for the Korean War. That seems to have qualified him for living in the Veterans Center in Claremore, where he moved a few months ago. Probably a good place for him at this stage, but not one I'd ever look forward to (not a prospect with my 4F). Can't say as we had good talks, but was good to see him. I saw live music twice in Oklahoma, although nothing I can recommend. The first was a free concert at the Veterans Center, with a c&w singer who called himself Cowboy, and who toured with a dwarf pony in tow -- something the vets seemed to appreciate. He mostly played Merle Haggard songs (and nothing as obvious as "Okie From Muskogee"; more like "Silver Wings"). One bizarre moment: he had a little girl bring him up a disguise designed to make him look like Elvis Presley, then launched into a medley of three r&b songs ("Lawdy Miss Clawdy," "See See Rider," don't recall the third), suggesting not only that even today black music was only acceptable if dressed up as white. He then played a fourth Elvis song, something late and not black, and didn't bother with the disguise for that. Blackface has gone out of fashion, but whiteface still works in Oklahoma. (There were a few black residents at the Center, but they were a tiny minority, and I don't recall any at the show.) Second live music experience was attending a recital at the Coweta High School of their various band ensembles, starting with 6th grade. All three of my second-cousin's granddaughters played there, among at least a hundred others. No strings, but lots of flutes and clarinets -- I counted 12 and 18 in the high school band -- a few saxophones, the odd oboe or bassoon, a fair amount of brass, and a pretty substantial investment in percussion (including a featured percussion ensemble). Best was a pair of Cuban tunes. More typical were the Andrew Lloyd Weber medleys. Lasted over two hours, which was exhausting for all (huge crowd, by the way). They made passing reference to also having a jazz ensemble, but nothing I heard fit that bill. Given that hole in my week, the only way I got to 29 was by streaming oldies. I started by looking for Betty Carter's album with Ray Charles. Napster didn't have it, or for that matter much of anything else after Charles left Atlantic for ABC. I mostly know his Atlantics through the 1991 Rhino 3-CD box, The Birth of Soul (my grade: A), but since the individual albums were available, I worked through them, yielding most of this week's pick hits. That also got me Ray Charles Presents David 'Fathead' Newman, and I followed that up with a few more of Newman's records (especially his early HighNotes). I didn't go very deep there, as I've never found him to be especially remarkable. After I got back from Oklahoma, I played the new Greg Abate record, so I took a look at his back catalog. He's a mainstream saxophonist, more rooted in bebop than swing, and I especially liked his 2014 album Motif, so I was more hopeful there. I skipped a few things like his samba album, but got a fairly good sense of where he's come from. Several very nice albums, the best being one with Alan Barnes. The next logical step would be to see what else I can find by Barnes. My database lists six of his albums, all Penguin Guide ***(*)-rated, but I haven't heard any of them yet. Surprised I've missed him, although I have rated records he shared but I've filed under other names: Tony Coe, Scott Hamilton, Warren Vaché. Revisited the latest Coathangers album this week, after Robert Christgau gave it an A-. As I recall, Michael Tatum also likes the album. I gave it a B+(***) on one or two plays back in March, and found that my review didn't need much tweaking. I played his other pick, Priests' The Seduction of Kansas, after the break, so next week for it and Camp Cope's How to Socialise & Make Friends -- both good, high B+ records. New records reviewed this week: Greg Abate with the Tim Ray Trio: Gratitude: Stage Door Live @ The Z (2019, Whaling City Sound): Saxophonist, grew up in Rhode Island, plays alto and tenor, adds baritone and flute here, well schooled in bebop. Ray is a pianist, his trio with bass and drums, featured on Abate's recent albums. Mostly originals, including a Phil Woods tribute, with three covers: one each from Roland Kirk and Joe Henderson, plus a nice feature for the pianist: "Jitterbug Waltz." B+(***) [cd] Rebecca DuMaine and the Dave Miller Combo: Chez Nous (2018 [2019], Summit): Standards singer, started in New York singing and acting, now based in San Francisco, has several albums, this one backed by Miller's piano trio plus Brad Buethe on guitar. Touches all the usual bases, from Jobim ("So Danco Samba") and the Beatles ("Yesterday"), with two songs in French, all tastefully done. B+(**) [cd] Peter Jensen & DR Big Band: Stand on Your Feet and Fight: Voices of the Danish West Indies (2018 [2019], ILK): Denmark was a relatively minor player in the transatlantic slave trade, possessing three islands in the Caribbean, populating and exploiting them with 100,000 slaves, and eventually selling them off to the United States to become the US Virgin Islands (St. Croix, St. John, and St. Thomas). The music here is a lament, contemplating this history, and recalling it through the spoken word of its survivors (recordings made between 1978 and 1985, recalling rebellions in 1878 and 1915). B+(*) [cd] Ellynne Rey: The Birdsong Project (2019, self-released): Standards singer, second album, band includes Joel Frahm on tenor sax. Casting about for songs featuring birds, she struggles with "Skylark," "The Peacocks," "Song to a Seagull" (J. Mitchell), only hitting her stride near the end -- "Flamingo," "Blackbird," and that ultimate Bird song, "Ornithology." B [cd] Gwilym Simcock: Near and Now (2018 [2019], ACT): British pianist, half-dozen albums since 2007, this his second solo effort. No shortage of harmonies here, yet this doesn't do much for me. B Aki Takase Japanic: Thema Prima (2018 [2019], BMC): Pianist, born in Japan but long based in Germany. A lot going on here, with adventurous free jazz, wild flings, scattered electronics, sound effects, even some hip-hop. A major factor is turntablist Takase's son Vincent Graf von Schlippenbach (dba DJ Illvibe), but the band also includes Daniel Erdmann (sax), Johannes Fink (bass), and Dag Magnus Narvesen (drums). B+(***) The United States Air Force Band: The Jazz Heritage Series: 2019 Radio Broadcasts (2019, self-released, 4CD): Radio shots, hour-long discs with a sound test to start, super-annoying plugs for the Air Force, musicians all prefaced by rank. Three are build around featured guests, including snippets of anodyne interviews. Cyrille Aimée actually sounded pretty good, especially coming on after the group's Tech. Sgt. chick singer. Kenny Barron was a good sport, and Branford Marsalis was on his best behavior. I passed out during the fourth disc. They play perfectly ordinary swing-to-bop, which would be easily forgettable except for the evil of their mission. C- [cd] Wayne Wallace Latin Jazz Quintet: The Rhythm of Invention (2019, Patois): Trombonist, from San Francisco, gravitated toward Latin jazz and has specialized lately. Quintet adds piano, bass, drums, and congas, but doesn't stop there, as the album lists 20 guest musicians, usually 2-4 cuts each, mostly horns and strings, plus a bit of spoken word. B+(*) [cd] Old music: Greg Abate Quartet: Bop City: Live at Birdland (1991, Candid): Plays alto, tenor, sopranino sax, and flute, but pictured with the alto. He released an album in 1981, but his career basically starts here, his original title cut pledging allegiance to bebop, although he doesn't do anything more obvious than a piece called "Basting the Bird." With James Williams (piano), Rufus Reid (bass), and Kenny Washington (drums). Nice tone, shown to best effect on an atypical cover of "These Foolish Things." B+(***) Greg Abate: Straight Ahead (1992 [1993], Candid): As advertised, a quintet with "featuring" names on the front cover because they're bankable: Claudio Roditi, Hilton Ruiz, George Mraz, Kenny Washington. B+(**) Greg Abate Quintet: Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde (1995, Candid): Featuring Richie Cole (alto sax), the leader's main tool, but that encourages him to switch off to everything from baritone to soprano plus flute. With Chris Neville (piano), Paul Del Nero (bass), and Artie Cabral (drums). Live, somewhere. B+(*) Greg Abate Quintet: Bop Lives! (1996, Blue Chip Jazz): Just alto sax this time, his group expanded with the addition of Claudi Roditi (5/9 cuts, trumpet on 3, flugelhorn on 2), backed by Kenny Barron (piano), Rufus Reid (bass), and Ben Riley (drums). B+(**) Greg Abate: Evolution (2002, 1201 Music): A chance to show off all his kit: four saxes (tenor on the cover, no flute this time), all originals, backed by piano-bass-drums (James Williams, Harvie S, Billy Hart). B+(***) Greg Abate/Alan Barnes: Birds of a Feather (2007 [2008], Woodville): Two saxophonists, a quintet recorded on the latter's label, with John Donaldson (piano), Andy Cleyndeft (bass), and Spike Wells (drums), a strong rhythm team. Reminds me of those Ammons-Stitt blow-outs. A- Ray Charles: Ray Charles (1953-56 [1957], Atlantic): First album, first on Atlantic, anyway: a 14-cut LP, the first side shows off his distinctive sound, that blend of blues and jive that would soon make him one of rock and roll's most distinctive hit makers. How soon? Well, side two starts with "Hallelujah I Love Her So" and "Mess Around," and ends with "I Got a Woman." A Ray Charles: The Great Ray Charles (1956 [1957], Atlantic): Where his first and third Atlantic albums were cobbled together from singles, this second album was recorded as such, with eight longer tracks (3:40-5:54, total 37:37), all instrumentals, the idea perhaps to establish a jazz identity as well as r&b. He gets a distinctive sound on piano, but the arrangements are nothing special, and the musicians come and go. B+(**) Ray Charles: The Genius After Hours (1956-57 [1961], Atlantic): Outtakes from the sessions for The Great Ray Charles, organized into a quickie album when the Genius left the label. Feels more intimate, as the big band stuff got moved out first. B+(**) Ray Charles: Yes Indeed! (1952-58 [1958], Atlantic): Third album, compiling various earlier singles, some memorable, all true to his form. A- Ray Charles: What'd I Say (1952-59 [1959], Atlantic): Title song, nominally two parts split on the single, run together for 6:26 here, is Charles' greatest vamp piece. The 3:54 "Rockhouse" also runs two parts, with everything else short, 10 titles totalling 30:08. A Ray Charles: The Genius of Ray Charles (1959, Atlantic): At this point he's starting to figure that everything he touches turns to genius, and he's half right. He picks a mixed bag of standards, but the arrangements are more crucial: Quincy Jones' big band is stellar on the first side, but Ralph Burns' string orchestra is a drag. B+(**) Ray Charles: Ray Charles In Person (1959 [1960], Atlantic): Seven-cut, 29:19 live set, recorded in Atlanta. No complaints, far as that goes. B+(*) Ray Charles: Ray Charles Live (1958-59 [1987], Atlantic): Double LP compilation from 1973, combining Charles two live albums from the Atlantic period -- 1958's Ray Charles at Newport and 1960's Ray Charles in Person (at Herndon Statium in Atlanta) -- reordered with an extra track on the CD reissue, still just 71:55. B+(***) Ray Charles: The Genius Sings the Blues (1952-60 [1961], Atlantic): A rumage through the tapes to eke out an extra album as he left the label. The theme is a natural one, although this does remind you that before he became a genius, he started out as a pretty fair Charles Brown clone. B+(***) David "Fathead" Newman: Fathead: Ray Charles Presents David 'Fathead' Newman (1958 [1960], Atlantic): Saxophonist (tenor on 5 cuts, alto on 3), first album in a long career, mostly pleasant soul/groove albums, best known for his work with Charles -- pianist here, along with Hank Crawford (bari sax), Marcus Belgrave (trumpet), bass, and drums. B+(*) David Newman: Fire! At the Village Vanguard (1988 [1989], Atlantic): From two nights, dropped the nickname, mostly plays tenor sax but opts for the flute for "Filthy McNasty," backed by Kirk Lightsey (piano), Steve Nelson (vibes), bass, and drums, with Hank Crawford joining on alto sax for 4 (of 8) cuts, Stanley Turrentine on tenor for 3 -- not much fire early on, but Turrentine brings it. B+(**) David "Fathead" Newman: Chillin' (1998 [1999], HighNote): Ray Charles' saxophonist recorded very regularly on his own all the way up to his death in 2009 -- fifty years, about that many albums. His home stretch starts with this first album for Joe Fields' label. With John Hicks on piano, Bryan Carrott on vibes, bass and drums, the leader with a little flute, soprano, and alto as well as his tenor sax. Gentle, often lovely, especially "My Favorite Things." Cadino Newman sings the last two. B+(*) David "Fathead" Newman: Keep the Spirits Singing (2000 [2001], HighNote): Mostly sax quartet with John Hicks on piano, with a little flute thrown in. But three tracks add trombone and percussion, and Steve Turre nearly runs away with the record on those. B+(*) David "Fathead" Newman: The Gift (2002 [2003], High Note): Pretty typical album, with the tenor saxophonist showing off his flute and other saxes, backed by John Hicks (piano) and Bryan Carrott (vibes) as well as bass (Buster Williams) and drums (Winard Harper). B+(*) David "Fathead" Newman: Song for the New Man (2004, HighNote): He seems to have found his voice here, even on the Herbie Mann tribute (long at 8:58). Trombonist Curtis Fuller (5/9 cuts) fits in better, and pianist John Hicks remains strong throughout. B+(***) Grade (or other) changes: The Coathangers: The Devil You Know (2019, Suicide Squeeze): Punkish girl group from Atlanta, a going concern since 2007, made me wonder whether they're going soft, but "F the NRA" allayed those fears, and the next song ("Memories") is even better. As for the slow ones, further listening reveals how together they are. [was B+(***)] A- Unpacking: Found in the mail last week:
Ask a question, or send a comment. Monday, May 6, 2019 Music Week
Music: current count 31469 [31440] rated (+29), 248 [255] unrated (-7). Had a low energy period after posting April Streamnotes last Monday, so I'm not surprised that the rated count dropped. If anything, I'm surprised it's as high as it is, but that was mostly from streaming back catalog of artists recently reviewed. I speculated last week that Walt Weiskopf's Worldwide is his best yet, but I had missed most of his 1990s albums, so I had to hedge. There are still a couple things I haven't heard, but nothing old came close to the new one -- best of the albums below is probably Siren (1999). When I gave Betty Carter's The Music Never Stops an A- a few weeks back, I noted lots of holes in my database. Scratching my head for something to listen to, I remembered that, and plugged a few of them (while being unable to find others). The new Teodross Avery album also sent me back. No great finds from any of those excursions. I also tried looking up the album Carter and Ray Charles did together in 1961, but couldn't find it. I noticed then I had an unrated Charles record, and wondered whether I could build a playlist to duplicate it (as opposed to having to dig up my physical copy). Turns out there's damn few of Charles' ABC records on Napster, but I still got 17/20 songs from Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music, while the other three were easy to find on YouTube. Not quite an equivalent listening experience, but close enough, I figured (especially given that I recalled hearing nearly everything). I'll do a few more Ray Charles albums next week, starting with the early Atlantics. On the other hand, this week's two new A- records are ones I hadn't read a thing about before they showed up. After months of second guessing other folks' picks, I feel like I've done my job. I'll be posting a new XgauSez overnight (link always points to the latest Q&A). Teodross Avery: After the Rain: A Night for Coltrane (2019, Tompkins Square): Tenor saxophonist, seemed like a big deal when he debuted on GRP in 1994 but has hardly been heard from since -- tours with Lauryn Hill and Amy Winehouse, some studio work, a Ph.D. and a teaching gig. Not sure when this live quartet set was recorded, but he holds forth on Coltrane, really lighting up a few classics. B+(***) The Campfire Flies: Sparks Like Litle Stars (2019, OverPop Music): I probably would have filed this as a mid-B+ with a sigle play had it not been for voice-of-the-Cucumbers Deena Shoshkes sending me the CD. She sounded as appealing as ever, but I could have done without the predominant male vocals (members of groups I've never bothered with: Speed the Plough, the Thousand Pities). I guess that's democracy, with all six members singing, most writing and playing multiple instruments. Gradually the male songs emerged more clearly, with several (especially John Baumgartner's "Deep Water") reminding me of the Go-Betweens. And Deena just kept getting better. A- [cd] Mark Dresser Seven: Ain't Nothing but a Cyber Coup & You (2018 [2019], Clean Feed): Bassist, major figure since the 1980s, with a soft-toned septet -- flute (Nicole Mitchell), violin (Keir Gogwilt), clarinet (Marty Ehrlich, also bass clarinet and alto sax), trombone (Michael Dessen), piano (Joshua White), and drums (Jim Black). B+(**) [cd] Satoko Fujii: Solo Piano: Stone (2018 [2019], Libra): Japanese avant-pianist, celebrated turning 60 last year by releasing an album each month, back to a more normal pace this year, with her second album through four months. Solo piano, from two sets at Samurai Hotel in New York. Quieter than normal, comtemplating the "beautiful music" her grandmother claimed to hear after she went deaf. B+(**) [cd] The Invisible Party: Shumankind (2017 [2018], Chant): Guitarist Jon Lipscomb, based in Malmo, Sweden and/or Brooklyn (same page claims both), has appeared in groups like Super Hi-Fi and Swedish Fix, plays punk-noise jazz here, backed by bass (Kurt Kotheimer) and drums (Dave Treut). Most bracing guitar-bass-drums trio I've heard in some time (and, yes, I've heard Harriet Tubman). Everyone agrees this came out in September 2018, but nobody listed it last year, and I first heard about it when it popped up in my mail last week. A- Jon Lipscomb Quartet: Fodder (2016 [2018], self-released): Avant-guitarist, also has a volume of Solo Guitar Improvisations as well as several group efforts. This seems like a warm up for Invisible Party's Shumankind, with tenor saxophonist Sam Weinberg sharing the spotlight, but not making as much of it. B+(**) [bc] Rent Romus' Life's Blood Ensemble: Side Three: New Work (2018 [2019], Edgetone): Alto saxophonist, leads an octet counting guest Vinny Golia, sometimes through a tricky postbop slalom, sometimes blasting through with sheer energy. B+(***) [cd] The Richard Shulman Trio: Waltzing out of Town (2019, RichHeart Music): Pianist, "since 1984, dedicated his music to the expression of love and the awakening of inner joy," with an upbeat and pleasantly catchy trio. B+(*) [cd] Recent reissues, compilations, and vault discoveries: Kinloch Nelson: Partly on Time: Recordings 1968-1970 (1968-70 [2019], Tompkins Square): Guitarist from Rochester, NY; studied classical and jazz (with Gene Bertoncini), but this comes closer to "American primitive" folk. B+(*) [bc] Old music: The Teodross Avery Quartet: In Other Words (1994, GRP): Tenor saxophonist (also soprano), debut album, no more than 21 when this was released on a major label, wrote 9 (of 11) songs, rhythm section no better known at the time, but Roy Hargrove got a couple of guest spots. Fashionably mainstream, a hot start, handles the ballad well. B+(**) Teodross Avery & the 5th Power: New Day, New Groove (1998 [2001], 5th Power): After a second GRP album (New Generation), the saxophonist decided to do a funk/groove album, with raps by Common, Ransom,and Ursula Rucker. Probably figured this was his ticket to mass appeal, but didn't work out that way. Long interview at the end, over a minor vamp. B+(*) Teodross Avery: Bridging the Gap: Hop-Hop Jazz (2008, BTG Music): I'm not unsympathetic to the ambition of jazz/hip-hop fusion, but this comes up short on execution, on both sides. Inadvertent humor: Roy Ayers comes on to praise Avery by admitting to being stuck in the gap Avery's bridging. Still, this has some moments, mostly because the man can play. B- Betty Carter/Ray Bryant: Meet Betty Carter and Ray Bryant (1955-56 [1996], Columbia): Lillie Mae Jones, from Detroit, made her debut here, with half an LP backed by pianist Bryant's trio, plus Jerome Richardson on flute (3 tracks). The flip side was just Bryant's trio, with Wendell Marshall (bass) and Philly Joe Jones (drums). Two different things, but the CD reissue tilts toward Carter, leading off with her backed by Gigi Gryce's big band (four cuts, Hank Jones on piano). B+(*) Betty Carter: The Modern Sound of Betty Carter (1960, ABC): Big band, arranged and conducted by Richard Wess. The music strikes me as modernistic, a not especially interesting impersonation meant to spruce up a passing form. You can say the same for Carter's scat, the more impressive technical feat. B+(*) Betty Carter: Inside Betty Carter (1964-65 [1993], Capitol Jazz): A one-shot album for United Artists, produced by Alan Douglas, backed by Harold Mabern (piano), Bob Cranshaw (bass), and Roy McCurdy (drums). Mostly ballads, nothing fancy. Reissue adds a 1965 session with Kenny Burrell on guitar, unknowns on piano-bass-drums. B+(*) Betty Carter: Finally, Betty Carter (1969 [1975], Roulette): Live set, lots of scat, backed by piano trio -- Norman Simmons, Lisle Atkinson, Al Harewood -- including a couple of medleys. B+(*) Betty Carter: At the Village Vanguard (1970 [1993], Verve): Backed by same piano trio, pushes the envelope a bit harder. B+(**) Betty Carter: The Betty Carter Album (1976 [1988], Verve): Self-released at the time, reissued after she signed to Verve. Backed by piano trio (Danny Mixon or Onaja Allan Gumbs). Probably more to it, but slipped past me easily. B Ray Charles: Greatest Country and Western Hits (1962-66 [1988], DCC): Out of print, one of the first wave of Charles CDs (quickly superseded by the also-out-of-print Rhinos), but listed as unrated in my database, so it must be around here somewhere. Wasn't too hard to pick out a playlist, given that 17 (of 20) songs come from Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music, where he came up with his shtick -- country tunes with string orchestration (or less often big band) and a chorus. That sounded like genius at the time, but could easily flip to corny. The three later singles are all Buck Owens songs, right up his alley. A- Jon Lipscomb: Solo Guitar Improvisations Vol. 1 (2016, self-released): Guitarist, recorded these five tracks (39:53) in Sweden. Noise at first, then turns it down and plays with the rhythm, developing some interesting ideas. B+(*) [bc] Walt Weiskopf: Night Lights (1995, Double Time): Tenor saxophonist, a few records in, quartet with piano (Joel Weiskopf), bass (Drew Gress), and drums (Steve Davis). Mostly standards, three originals, nothing fancy, but strong and dynamic saxophone. B+(**) Walt Weiskopf: Song for My Mother (1995 [1996], Criss Cross): Nonet, credited on the back cover but not on the front, which just lists the musicians under the leader's much larger name. Expansion from four to nine is all horns: two brass (Joe Magnarelli on trumpet and Conrad Herwig on trombone), two more saxes (Jim Snidero on alto, Scott Robinson on baritone and bass clarinet), and flute (Anders Bostrom, et al.). Still, the flutes are hardly noticeable, while the leader's tenor sax towers over everyone. B+(***) Walt Weiskopf: Sleepless Nights (1996 [1998], Criss Cross): Sextet, adding alto sax (Andy Fusco) and trombone (Conrad Herwig) to spread out the horns. Originals (plus one standard), sketch pieces stretched out, a platform for some superb tenor sax. B+(***) Walt Weiskopf: Anytown (1998, Criss Cross): Tenor sax, back by piano trio (Renee Rosnes, Doug Weiss, Tony Reedus) plus very energetic vibes (Joe Locke). Hard postbop. B+(**) Walt Weiskopf: Siren (1999, Criss Cross): Another nonet album, same lineup as on Song for My Mother except at bass (Doug Weiss replaces Peter Washington). The solos are better distributed, the ensemble even more energetic, and the leader plays his ass off. I do question leaving the blues cover to the flutes. B+(***) Walt Weiskopf: Man of Many Colors (2001 [2002], Criss Cross): Quartet, moving on to a new generation of players (emerging then, famous now): Brad Mehldau (piano), John Patitucci (bass), Clarence Penn (drums). Two covers ("Haunted Heart" and "People"), originals which show off the group's impressive chops. B+(***) Walt Weiskopf: Sight to Sound (2003 [2004], Criss Cross): Sextet, new horns (Andy Fusco on alto, John Mosca trombone), familiar rhythm section (Joel Weiskopf, Doug Weiss, Billy Drummond). B+(**) Walt Weiskopf: Open Road (2014 [2015], Posi-Tone): Second album for producer Marc Free's label, a return to form in a standard quartet setting, with Peter Zak (piano), Mike Karn (bass), and Steve Fidyk (drums). Two covers, ten originals, burns at both ends. B+(***) Walt Weiskopf: Fountain of Youth (2016 [2017], Posi-Tone): Adds Behn Gillece (vibraphone) to the previous quartet, picking up the pace and adding some sparkle, not ultimately making much difference. Still an impressive tenor saxophonist. B+(**) Unpacking: Found in the mail last week:
Ask a question, or send a comment. Monday, April 29, 2019 Music Week
Music: current count 31440 [31400] rated (+40), 255 [256] unrated (-1). Last Monday of the month, so time to unveil April Streamnotes, including this week's subset below. Five Mondays this month, so the totals are up handsomely from the two previous four-Monday months. Weekly rated count is up a bit, but that's partly because I found five records I failed to record grades for recently. Some of those bookkeeping errors probably caused me to log 29-album weeks (four so far this year) instead of 30, long my standard for a productive week. Worth noting that all three of this week's new non-jazz A-list albums here also placed high on Phil Overeem's latest list (numbers 4, 6, and 20). For what little it's worth, I wrote those before seeing Overeem's list, but not before Dan Weiss praised them on Facebook (although I think I first heard of Billie Eilish from Christgau). Those tips help make up for the frustration of declining awareness I've been feeling. Although I still keep a music tracking file, I've stopped making any systematic effort to find and list prospects, leaving me with little concept of what to search out next. As a result, I veer off on arbitrary tangents, as when I found a piece called A Guide to Drexciya's Futuristic Electro. I really liked Drexciya's Journey of the Deep Sea Dweller, Vol. I back in 2012, so that seemed worth pursuing. But it certainly fell far short of a plan. Finally, a link that makes more sense to list here than in yesterday's Weekend Roundup: Rachel Syme: Vince Aletti's Obsessive Collection of Seminal Fashion Magazinse. Vince was one of the first people I met when I moved to New York City in 1977, so it's good to see him again, even older, as we all are. New records reviewed this week: Kevin Abstract: Arizona Baby (2019, Question Everything/RCA): Rapper Clifford Ian Simpson, has a couple albums under this alias, but more recently has been involved in the group Brockhampton. This is short (32:21), released in three spurts before being consolidated into an album. Loose, some catchy bits, more I didn't quite get. B+(**) Juan Álamo & Marimjazzia: Ruta Panoramica (2016 [2019], Summit): Marimba player, from Puerto Rico, teaches at University of North Carolina, directing the Percussion Ensemble there. Latin jazz, lots of percussion, several cuts with vocals by Christina Alamo Medina. B+(**) [cd] Anderson .Paak: Ventura (2019, Aftermath/12 Tone Music): California rapper/singer, Brandon Paak Anderson, fourth album, continues in quick succession his crawl up the coast from Venice through Malibu and Oxnard. Some nice pieces here, but feels a bit like leftovers from Oxnard. B+(***) Brittany Anjou: Enamigo Reciprokataj (2015-16 [2019], Origin): Pianist, based in New York, originally from Seattle. Debut album, two trio sets, with different bassists/drummers. Background includes touring with Bikini Kill and singing in an experimental metal band. Understands that upbeat keeps it moving. B+(**) [cd] Seamus Blake: Guardians of the Heart Machine (2017 [2019], Whirlwind): Tenor saxophonist, strong mainstream player, born in London, grew up in Canada, based in New York, twenty albums since 1994. Solid quartet with piano (Tony Tixier), bass, and drums. Then he sings one. B+(***) Club D'Elf: Night Sparkles (Live) (2011 [2019], Face Pelt): Title per cover, although some sources expand to "(Live at the Lizard Lounge, Cambridge, MA)." Group dates back to their 2000 debut, As Above: Live at the Lizard Lounge, with a 2005 album from the same venue. More of their trademark world-groove jams, with guests David Tronzo (slide guitar) and Moussa Traore (djembe). B+(***) Control Top: Covert Contracts (2019, Get Better): Post-punk trio from Philadelphia, female singer (Ali Carter) on bass, plus guitar (Al Creeton) and drums (Alex Lichtenauer), first album: hard, fast, short (29:28, but 11 songs so I don't count it an EP), "cathartic" is a word often used to describe them. Can't make out many words, but with rants against "capitalist patriarchy, . . . indictments of wrongdoing and abuse of power, odes to empathy and ego death," I wouldn't refuse a lyric sheet. A- Cooper Moore/Stephen Gauci: Studio Sessions Vol. 1 (2019, Gaucimusic): Piano/tenor sax duets, eight numbered improvs, free and far out. The pianist's name is usually hyphenated, hence my sorting. Focus on the piano here. That's what the saxophonist is doing. B+(***) Ronnie Cuber: Straight Street (2010 [2019], SteepleChase): Baritone saxophonist, approaching 70 when he assembled this quartet -- George Colligan (piano), Cameron Brown (bass), Joe Farnsworth (drums) -- about as mainstream as you can get, long (71:19) takes of standards ("All the Things You Are," "Summertime") and bop-era classics (three Coltranes, Gillespie's "Groovin' High," pieces by Scott LaFaro and Philly Joe Jones). B+(***) Billy Eilish: When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? (2019, Darkroom/Interscope): Teenage (17) singer-songwriter from Los Angeles, last name O'Connell, home schooled, parents in show biz, older brother started writing songs before her. First album, but her debut was a 26:00 EP released in 2017, containing a single she recorded at 14 and turned into a video hit. Nothing here suggests she's so young. Counted as electropop, the songs stick with you but the hooks are so casual you scarcely notice them. A- Anat Fort Trio: Colour (2019, Sunnyside): Israeli pianist, based in New York since 1996, has a handful of trio albums, this with Gary Wang (bass) and Roland Schneider (drums). B+(**) Four: There You Go Thinking Again (2018 [2019], Jazz Hang): Saxophone quartet -- Mark Watkins (soprano), Ray Smith (alto), Sandon Mayhew (tenor), Jon Gudmundson (baritone) -- at least one previous album (although with a different alto player). Trick here is that they've doubled down by dubbing in five more saxophone quartets (two cuts each). B [cd] Bill Frisell/Thomas Morgan: Epistrophy (2016 [2019], ECM): Guitar and bass duets, playing standards ranging from "Red River Valley" to two Monks and Paul Motian's "Mumbo Jumbo." Pretty minimal. B+(*) Stephen Gauci/Sandy Ewan/Adam Lane/Kevin Shea: Live at the Bushwick Series (2019, Gaucimusic): Tenor saxophone, with guitar for extra squeal to go with the squawk, plus bass and drums. Three improvs, 38:10. Vigorous, little harsh for my taste. B+(*) [bc] Lizzo: Cuz I Love You (2019, Nice Life/Atlantic): Melissa Jefferson, third album, raps, sings, wails, whines, cracks wise. Says she pledges to be "Aretha Franklin for the 2018 generation." Doesn't have the voice, but cranks up the drama, and the music is punched up to the max. She makes an outsized impression, only fading a bit at the end. A- Lisa Maxwell's Jazz Orchestra: Shiny! (2019, Uncle Marvin Music): Her bio includes a lot of soundtrack work as well as playing saxophone for Guns 'n' Roses and Spinal Tap. This is her big band debut, dedicated to the late trumpeter Lew Soloff, mostly New York players, the best known with fusion/crossover credits. Splashy. B+(*) [cd] Bennett Paster: Indivisible (2018 [2019], self-released): Keyboard player, grew up in New Mexico, studied in Boston, based in New York, has a few previous records. Backed by bass and drums, guitar (Al Street) on most cuts, tenor sax (Kenny Brooks) on half, plus scattered congas and percussion. Nice, lively mix, with some Latin tinge. B+(*) [cd] Andrew Rathbun: Character Study (2017 [2018], SteepleChase): Tenor saxophonist, from Canada, moved to New York, came up in 2000 on Fresh Sound New Talent, mainstream player, gets some strong support from Tim Hagans (trumpet) and a top-notch rhythm section (Gary Versace on piano, Jay Anderson, and Bill Stewart). B+(**) Eric Reed: Everybody Gets the Blues (2019, Smoke Sessions): Mainstream pianist, couple dozen albums since 1991, his first dedicated to Art Blakey, this one kicking off with "Cedar Waltzin'" (for Walton). With Tim Green (alto sax), Mike Gurrola (bass) and McClenty Hunter (drums). Blues may be the ground, but this is too bright and bouncy to get bogged down. B+(**) Steph Richards: Take the Neon Lights (2019, Birdwatcher): Trumpet player; from Calgary, Canada; based in Brooklyn; has recorded with Vinny Golia and Henry Threadgill. Second album (first was credited to Stephanie Richards), backed by piano trio (James Carney, Sam Minaie, Andrew Munsey). B+(***) Dave Scott: In Search of Hipness (2018 [2019], SteepleChase): Trumpet player, based in New York (teaches at Western Connecticut State), not to be confused with Dave Len Scott (another trumpet player), sixth album since 1995. Sextet with violin (Sarah Bernstein), guitar (Nate Radley), piano (Jacob Sacks), bass, and drums. "Hip" strikes me as too dated a word for such fancy postbop. B+(*) Swindle: No More Normal (2019, Brownswood): British grime/dubstep producer Cameron Palmer, with some ties to the new jazz scene, but this never finds a real vibe, and strikes me as overblown. B- Trapper Keaper: Meets Tim Berne & Aurora Nealand (2019, Ears & Eyes/Caligola): New Orleans "space-funk" duo, William Thompson IV (mostly keyboards) and Marcello Benetti (drums), one previous album, meet up here with two alto saxophonists (Nealand also plays accordion). One's tempted to credit Berne, but there's a lot going on. B+(***) [cd] Cory Weeds Quintet: Live at Frankie's Jazz Club (2019, Cellar Live): Alto saxophonist, studied at UNT and Capilano U, owns Cellar Jazz Club in Vancouver and their label, fourteen albums since 2008 -- haven't heard any before, but Everything's Coming Up Weeds is a good title. Standard bebop quintet with Terell Stafford (trumpet), Harold Mabern (piano), bass, and drums. Live sound's a little thin. B+(*) Walt Weiskopf European Quartet: Worldwide (2019, Orenda): Tenor saxophonist, first recorded in 1989, one of a cluster of richly-toned mainstream players from the 1990s, although I can't say as I followed him closely -- mostly a name that followed Benny Wallace like a shadow. Until I track down his 1990s albums, I can't really attest that this is his best ever, but both fast and slow it's a sax lovers delight. The Europeans are Carl Winther (piano), Andreas Lang (bass), and Anders Mogensen (drums). A- [cd] Recent reissues, compilations, and vault discoveries: Afro-Blue Persuasion: Live at Haight Levels: Volume One (1967 [2019], Tramp): Previously unreleased Afro-Cuban jazz from San Francisco, a group led by vibraphonist Ulysses Crockett, with piano (John Miller), tenor sax/oboe/flute (Robert Harvey), bass (Robert Bing Nathan), drums (Robert Belinsky), and "guests" Paul Jackson (bass) and Harold Haynes (congas). Not super Cuban, with tunes like "Straight No Chaser" and a fast-tracked "The Girl From Ipanema." B+(**) Afro-Blue Persuasion: Live at Haight Levels: Volume Two (1967 [2019], Tramp): More, both volumes could have squeezed onto a single CD but the main release focus is vinyl. Starts with "Cuban Fantasy" and ends with "A Night in Tunisia." B+(**) Elecktrokids: Elektroworld (1995 [2019], Clone Classic Cuts): Billing: "based in Flint, Michigan, USA, the four young sons of an electrician welded together their debut album." No names, but one or both members of Drexciya are implicated in this Krautrock move, where the few lyrics are repeated at length, a strategy that works better for the beats. B+(**) [bc] Mark Turner/Gary Foster: Mark Turner Meets Gary Foster (2003 [2019], Capri, 2CD): Foster's is a name I haven't heard in a while. Born in 1936, mostly plays alto sax, debut album in 1968, a few more through 1984, less often up to a 2006 duo with Putter Smith (bass), most when he was featured on someone's album. Turner is 29 years younger, had a smashing debut in 1994 and major label presence for a decade, until a saw mishap set him back. He's been busy lately, but his string of A-list albums predates this, a warm and friendly two-sax quartet, with Smith and Joe LaBarbera (drums). B+(***) [cd] Old music: Bill Cunliffe/Gary Foster: It's About Love (2003, Torii): Piano-alto sax quartet, with Jeff D'Angelo (bass) and Tim Pleasant (drums), mostly ballads, lush tending toward gorgeous, lovely showcase for the sax voice. B+(***) Drexciya: Journey of the Deep Sea Dweller III (1992-97 [2013], Clone Classic Cuts): Detroit techno duo, James Stinson and Gerald Donald, constructed a whole mythology "of underwater dwellers descended from pregnant slave women thrown overboard during the trans-Atlantic deportation. Starting with their 1992 Deep Sea Dweller EP, they kept at it for a decade (Stinson died in 2002), then languished until this Dutch label started collecting their early work on four CDs. I reviewed I and II when they came out, but didn't notice later comps. This is nearly as good (maybe a bit less consistent) as the first. A- [bc] Drexciya: Journey of the Deep Sea Dweller IV (1992-97 [2013], Clone Classic Cuts): Mopping up, including five "Unknown Journey" cuts. Some introduce a newly developed warble which adds a dimension to their sound, but doesn't seem as perfectly paced. B+(***) [bc] Drexciya: Neptune's Lair (1999, Tresor): After enough short releases to fill the four Clone Classic Cuts CDs, the Detroit techno duo's first full-fledged album. B+(***) Drexciya: Grava 4 (2002, Clone): Third (and last) album. Attractive beats, but fades a bit. B+(**) Billie Eilish: Don't Smile at Me (2017, Darkroom/Interscope, EP): Eight track, 26:00 debut, "a sleeper hit," cracked the charts a month and a half after its release, going on to earn nearly a million "album-equivalent units" and "more than 1.2 billion on-demand audio streams" -- not that I noticed, at least until her follow-up album appeared. Singles are more pop, more easily distinguished from the filler. B+(***) Unpacking: Found in the mail last week:
Ask a question, or send a comment. Monday, April 22, 2019 Music Week
Music: current count 31400 [31371] rated (+29), 256 [252] unrated (+4). Seems like pretty much everything is a struggle these days. My most common complaint is that I'm getting sick and tired of not being able to do things right. A typical example was trying to repair a screen door lock. A nylon washer disappeared, and has proven impossible to replace. I bought some things I thought I might be able to use, then lost them. Bought some more, and turned out they were too thick, and hole was too small. I tried drilling out the hole, and destroyed the washer. Finally reassembled the door handle without the washer. The set screw is hard to get a grip on. It will no doubt fall apart again in a matter of days, at best a couple weeks. I have a bunch of other things that are falling apart, many because I didn't do a good enough job building them in the first place. On the other hand, I have gotten a few things done. The new pantry shelf unit is painted and bolted in place, although we haven't really put it to use yet. That's waiting a second pantry improvement. I built a rather neat storage unit, then screwed up hanging the door so it never closed correctly (or at least easily). It finally dawned on me that if I could shave a quarter inch off the bottom surface, it should close without having to change the hinges. All that's left to do there is to rehang the door, and see whether the theory worked. Tomorrow. At least I finally got my computers moved, making my workspace much more comfortable. Still haven't done the next step, which is to set up virtual web servers on the secondary machine, so I can start redesigning the Robert Christgau and Carola Dibbell websites. I should at least know what I'm doing there. Meanwhile, another routine week of music discoveries. Hard part for me is deciding what to search out. This seems like a typical week with two weeks of Christgau picks, further search down Phil Overeem's list, and the first Michael Tatum Downloader's Diary in quite a while. Unfortunately, I found myself coming up short with their well-considered picks. Instead, I went with the new Chemical Brothers album (I think someone on the Expert Witness Facebook group raved about it, but don't recall who), and a 1979 jazz album reissue that probably showed up in a Bandcamp Daily list (which I started using a couple weeks back when I couldn't play Napster). Also, two rare regrades to from B+(***) to A-, originally reviewed by streaming but given a few more changes after CDs arrived. People shouldn't get the idea that all they have to do to get higher grades is to send me CDs, but they do help in cases where I've held a grade back due to some minor reservations. April Streamnotes should be released with next Music Week, on April 29. Currently have 113 records in the draft file, so I'll probably wind up with 140-150. New records reviewed this week: Art Ensemble of Chicago: We Are on the Edge: A 50th Anniversary Celebration (2018 [2019], Pi, 2CD): Formed as a quintet in 1969, out to make "great black music," recorded intensely at first, regularly until the founders started to die out: they tried replacing Lester Bowie (trumpet) in 1999, but didn't do much after Malachi Favors (bass) passed in 2004. Now they are down to two: Roscoe Mitchell (reeds) and Famadou Don Moye (percussion). Joseph Jarman died in 2019 after this was recorded, but doesn't play on it. On the other hand, the Chicago avant-garde turned out en masse here: some vocals I don't like, Moor Mother rap I do, too much strings and flute, but with transcendent stretches, enough to register who they are and what they're about. B+(**) The Chemical Brothers: No Geography (2019, Virgin EMI): When I organized my database c. 2000 I filed all the electronica albums under "techno," which is evidently a more limited (shall we say technical?) term. But back then I was thinking of artists like this UK duo, with three fairly major albums 1995-99. They've slowed down, with just four even spaced albums since 2005. But this one sounds much like the early ones, with one foot planted in disco, the other pushing metal hard to the floor. A- Martin Frawley: Undone at 31 (2019, Merge): Australian singer-songwriter, solo after two albums with the Twerps. B+(***) Ahmed Ag Kaedy: Akaline Kidal (2019, Sahel Sounds): Tuareg from northern Mali, just guitar and vocal, a steady, easy roll, gentle blues minus the downside. B+(**) Salif Keita: Un Autre Blanc (2018 [2019], Naive): A quite remarkable singer from Mali, born to royalty, cast out for his albinismo, gained fame as "the golden voice of Africa," first with his group Les Ambassadeurs then as a solo act from 1987. Past 70 now, with one of his better albums, the rhythm not quite as effortless as I'd like. B+(***) Khalid: Suncity (2018, RCA, EP): Surname Robinson, first album showed his mastery of his topic, American Teen, now moving somewhat more cautiously into adulthood. Seven tracks including an intro skit and an interlude, 21:09. B+(*) Khalid: Free Spirit (2019, RCA): Impressive second album, attractive, catchy in spots, pleasant throughout, but runs a bit longer than my interest holds out. B+(***) Larry Koonse: New Jazz Standards Vol. 4 (2019, Summit): Guitarist, born in San Diego, based in Los Angeles, father was another jazz guitarist, Dave Koonse, and they have a couple of duo albums (one in 1978 when Larry was a teenager, another in 2003). Not much directly under Koonse's name, but lots of side credits -- seems like every jazz album recorded in LA over the last two decades. He leads a quartet here, with Josh Nelson (piano), Tom Harrington (bass), and Joe LaBarbera (drums), but the real auteur doesn't play: Carl Saunders, who's compiled 100 of his compositions into the book New Jazz Standards, and recruited the leaders of he previous volumes in this series: Sam Most, Scott Whitfield, and Roger Kellaway. As a big band trumpeter, Saunders knows what he's doing. But aren't standards supposed to be recognized first? B [cd] Joachim Kühn: Melodic Ornette Coleman: Piano Works XIII (2018 [2019], ACT): German pianist, many albums since 1969, including a live duo in 1996 with Coleman. This is solo, Coleman tunes plus one original tribute. Makes a fair case for Coleman as a melodist, but that always seemed rather tangential to his genius. B+(*) Russ Lossing: Changes (2018 [2019], SteepleChase); Pianist, from Ohio, based in New York since 1986, at least 15 albums, mostly trios (many unconventional), mostly original material, tends to find his own idiosyncratic way (much like his long-time drummer and mentor, Paul Motian). This is fairly conventional, a trio with Michael Formanek and Gerald Cleaver, mostly standards (3 Monk, 2 Ellington, opens with "Bye, Bye Blackbird"). B+(***) Russ Lossing: Motian Music (2019, Sunnyside): The late drummer Paul Motian led kind of a dual life. On the one hand, he played in a remarkable series of piano trios, starting with Bill Evans and including Keith Jarrett, Paul Bley, Marilyn Crispell, Enrico Pieranunzi, Martial Solal, Geri Allen, and Lossing. On the other, he rarely used piano on his own records (a favorite trio was with Joe Lovano and Bill Frisell). This, a trio with Masa Kamaguchi (bass) and Billy Mintz (drums), is Lossing's second album of Motian compositions. It effectively merges the two paths, but the results, like Motian, are somewhat inscrutable. B+(**) Reba McEntire: Stronger Than the Truth (2019, Big Machine): Country singer, from Oklahoma, in her sixties now, debut album in 1977, this is her 33rd in 43 years. Neotrad sound, strong drawl, some sad songs, some upbeat, a single ("Freedom") with the potential to be abused something awful. B+(*) Sam Ospovat: Ride Angles (2018 [2019], Skirl): Drummer, originally from Lincoln, Nebraska; based in Bay Area, has at least one previous record. Trio with Matt Mitchell (most impressive on piano) and Kim Cass (bass), plus scattered guests -- Brandon Seabrook (guitar), Nick Lyons (alto sax), and Lorin Benedict (scat vocals) -- each adding an interesting twist. B+(**) [cd] Hama Sankare: Ballébé: Calling All Africans (2018, Clermont Music): From Mali, plays a style called calabash, guitar has some drone and voice some moan giving him a desert blues vibe. B+(***) Hama Sankare: Niafunke (2019, Clermont Music): Second album. Christgau prefers the first but they strike me as pretty interchangeable. B+(***) Silk Road Assassins: State of Ruin (2019, Planet Mu): UK electronica trio, from Bath, monikers Tom E Vercetti, LovedrOid, Chemist. Vacillates between industrial and grime, picking up my ears with the latter. B+(*) [bc] Marcos Silva: Brasil: From Head to Toe (2019, Green Egg): Keyboard player, born in Rio de Janeiro, based in Bay Area, which has become a major center for Brazilian music in the US. Band includes Gary Meek on sax and flute. Mostly a pleasant groove album, soaring a bit. B [cd] Solange: When I Get Home (2019, Saint/Columbia): Knowles, long overshadowed by her sister Beyoncé, got a lot of attention for 2016's A Seat at the Table, follows that up here. I find both albums subdued and inscrutable, this one perhaps even more so. Cover art very similar, with her looking dazed and sad. B+(*) Spellling: Mazy Fly (2018 [2019], Sacred Bones): R&b singer-songwriter Tia Cabral, second album, "experimental" in the sense that she doesn't fit the mold, or any other I can think of. B+(**) Sunflower Bean: King of the Dudes (2019, Mom + Pop, EP): Indie rock trio from Long Island, Julia Cumming the singer/bassist, with two albums and three EPs -- this one 4 snappy cuts, 12:03. B+(**) Recent reissues, compilations, and vault discoveries: Infinite Spirit Music: Live Without Fear (1979 [2019], Jazzman): One-shot Chicago group, best known member is percussionist and singer Kahil El'Zabar, although Ka T' Etta Aton also sings, and there are two more percussionists, plus Henry Huff (most impressive on sax), Soji Abedayo (piano), and Michaka Uba (bass). I'm not a big fan of the vocals (although the title hits home), but the music transcends such concerns. Vol. 27 in Jazzman's Holy Grail Series. Makes me wonder what else I've missed. A- [bc] Live at Raul's (1979 [2019], Steady Boy): Ten songs from five punk/garage bands I'd never heard of -- The Explosives, Standing Waves, Terminal Mind, The Next, The Skunks -- recorded live in Austin, TX, released at the time. Reminds one what a shock to the system punk was back then. Also that Austin was still a backwater. B+(*) Onda De Amor: Synthesized Brazilian Hits That Never Were (1984-94) (1984-94 [2018], Soundway): Crate-digging, no one here I recognize, and nothing that really stand out, but every cut has energy and panache, and they all flow together nicely. B+(**) [bc] Weaponise Your Sound (2019, Optimo Music): British electronica comp, on "Diet Clinic's sublabel," "all proceeds go to London based charity, Focus E15, which demands social housing, not social cleansing." No one I've ever heard of. Not all electronic, veers a bit into exotica, all worth hearing. B+(**) [bc] Old music: Salif Keita: The Mansa of Mali: A Retrospective (1978-94 [1994], Mango): Mostly from three Mango albums, with one long song from much earlier and three more songs from soundtracks. Probably the place to start, though it trails off a bit toward the end. B+(***) Russ Lossing: Dreamer (2000, Double Time): Pianist's first album, a trio with Ed Schuller (bass) and Paul Motian (drums). Seven originals, two Monks, one piece from Andrew Hill. B+(**) Russ Lossing/Ed Schuller/Paul Motian: As It Grows (2002 [2004], Hatology): Same piano-bass-drums trio, a couple years down the road, with Lossing writing nearly everything. B+(**) Russ Lossing: All Things Arise (2005 [2006], Hatology): Solo piano. Opens with a 4-part, 27:00 suite, featuring a fair amount of drama, then tacks on six more pieces: one original, two Ellingtons, Sonny Rollins, Ornette Coleman, "Alabama Song." B+(**) Timosaurus: I Love You More Than Yesterday (2011, self-released): Avant sax-guitar-drums trio: Matt Nelson, Andrew Conklin, and Sam Ospovat. Free jazz squall up front, energetic but rough. Deconstructs later on, isolating the sounds while still retaining interest. B+(**) [bc] Grade (or other) changes: Kuzu: Hiljaisuus (2017 [2019], Astral Spirits/Aerophonic): Chicago trio: Dave Rempis (alto/tenor/baritone sax), Tashi Dorji (guitar), and Tyler Damon (percussion). This is very harsh free jazz, similar to when the Thing hooks up with a rock guitarist who just wants to freak out, but better (if you can stand it). I wrote that back after streaming last fall, then got a CD in the mail in February, causing various bookkeeping issues: the release in September 2018 was vinyl and digital, so is the February 2019 CD a reissue, or should I treat the real new release as 2019? I procrastinated, but when I finally did give it a spin, I was blown away. I used to hate this kind of free jazz squall, then got to where I could stand it, and once in a while even thrill to it -- this one of those rare cases. As for the bookkeeping, this gets a double entry -- I'll leave it in the 2018 lists at the lower grade, but include it in 2019's A-list as a new record. (Some comparable cases: I still figure on treating Cardi B's Invasion of Privacy as a 2018 release even though its CD didn't come out until Feb. 22, as I, and pretty much everyone else, heard it in 2018. On the other hand, I missed the 2018 digital release of Eric Dolphy's Musical Prophet, only hearing it after the CDs dropped on January 25, so I'm treating it as 2019.) A- [cd] Matthew Shipp Trio: Signature (2018 [2019], ESP-Disk): Piano trio with Michael Bisio (bass) and Taylor Baker (drums). Seemed like a typically solid performance when I streamed it, but I took more time with it after the CD arrived, and it gradually fell into place -- less raw power than his best previous trios, but he keeps building. [was B+(***)] A- [cd] Unpacking: Found in the mail last week:
Ask a question, or send a comment. Monday, April 15, 2019 Music Week
Music: current count 31371 [31344] rated (+27), 252 [251] unrated (+1). May just be seasonal allergies, but feeling too lousy to even take a stab at writing an introduction. I still have XgauSez to edit and post before I go to bed tonight, so need to get onto that while I can. A couple of notes, though. I've been talking about moving computers around for a month or more. I finally got that done this week. Best thing so far is that I have two relatively uncluttered desks to work on, instead of one hopelessly messy one. Also I moved the speakers above the desk, where they sound better and I can access the controls. (Also, now both computers have speakers. Subwoofers are still under the desk, where they should be, and that space is less cluttered than before. No website work yet, but I should get to that soon. Delighted to see Michael Tatum's A Downloader's Diary (49) finally posted. I checked out a couple of his recommendations below (also found a new live Pet Shop Boys he didn't mention). Also continuing to pick albums off from Phil Overeem's 25% through the briar patch list. Finally, I finally did manage to cast a Downbeat Critics Poll ballot, a day past the deadline, but seems likely to be counted (not that I could ever tell from the results). I didn't do a very good job of collecting notes this time, but here is what I have. New records reviewed this week: Charlotte Adigéry: Zandoli (2019, Deewee, EP): Belgian singer, roots in French Caribbean, electronic dance grooves, second EP (5 tracks, 22:56). B+(**) Etienne Charles: Carnival: The Sound of a People Vol. 1 (2019, Culture Shock Music): Trumpet player, from Trinidad, studied in Florida and at Juilliard, teaches at Michigan State, seventh album since 2006. Plays up his Afro-Caribbean roots, and parties down. B+(**) Ben Lamar Gay: Confetti in the Sky Like Fireworks [This Is Bate Bola OST] (2018 [2019], International Anthem): Soundtrack to a short film that appeared in 2018, so I'm guessing that's the date (could be earlier). Mostly electronics, mostly atmospheric, aside from a bit at the end I zoned out before. B Ariana Grande: Thank U, Next (2019, Republic): Pop star, fifth album coming rather fast after her well-reviewed (except by me) Sweetener. This suggests to me that she's stabilizing as a top-tier pro, rather than (as I thought at the time) declining into a hack. Will keep an eye on her. B+(**) William Hooker: Cycle of Restoration (2018 [2019], FPE): Avant drummer, discography goes back to 1975, trio with Mark Kirschenmann (trumpet) and Joel Peterson (drums), sounds like some uncredited electronics mixed in. One improv set live in Detroit, starts "serene" so takes a while to get interesting ("Panchromatics 1" and "2"). B+(*) Amber Mark: Conexão (2018, Virgin EMI, EP): Pop/r&b singer-songwriter, has some self-released singles before graduating to this 4-song, 17:32 EP. Despite title, songs in English. I'm not finding any bio. A promising outing. B+(**) Wynton Marsalis: Bolden: Music From the Original Soundtrack (2019, Blue Engine): Dan Pritzker directed the movie, released May 3, starring Gary Carr as Buddy Bolden (1877-1931, but unrecorded and locked up after 1907), the first of the legendary New Orleans cornet players, and Reno Wilson his better known successor, Louis Armstrong. Marsalis was the obvious choice to score this, using his Jazz at Lincoln Center crew and guest vocalists: Catherine Russell, Brianna Thomas, and most often Wilson, who does his best to sing like Pops and isn't really up to it. B+(***) [cd] Xose Miguélez: Ontology (2018 [2019], Origin): Tenor saxophonist, from Galicia in Spain, the panhandle due north of Portugal, an autonomous region of Spain with its own language and folk culture -- something Miguélez specializes in. With guitar, bass, drums, and vibes on a couple cuts, an extra saxophonist (Matt Otto) on a few more. Ends with a 1981 field recording, but all along seemed a bit off the beaten path. B+(**) [cd] Billy Mohler: Focus! (2019, Make): Bassist, based in Los Angeles, Bandcamp page talks about "returns his Focus to jazz after a successful career in rock, pop and R&B production and songwriting." This may be his first album, a pianoless free jazz quartet, with Chris Speed (tenor sax/clarinet), Shane Endsley (trumpet), and Nate Wood (drums). Starts with a bit of bass solo, then the band cuts loose. Slows down toward the end, but still holds your interest. A- [cd] OGJB Quartet [Oliver Lake/Graham Haynes/Joe Fonda/Barry Altschul]: Bamako (2016 [2019], TUM): Alto sax, cornet, bass and drums. Haynes the youngest (b. 1960), the least avant, most African-oriented, but manages to fit in. Lake speaks on the Haynes' title piece. Mostly interesting mish-mash, except when Lake gets up a full head of steam and runs away with everything. B+(***) [cd] Nicki Parrott: From New York to Paris (2019, Arbors): Bassist from Australia, based in New York, sang a bit at first, and was so appealing she moved on to whole albums, mostly standards from the swing era. Plenty of New York and Paris songs to choose from -- my favorite is the one in French, "La Mer." Gil Goldstein's accordion adds that Gallic touch, with John DeMartino (piano), Alvin Atkinson (drums), and Harry Allen on tenor sax. B+(**) Jeremy Pelt: Jeremy Pelt the Artist (2018 [2019], HighNote): Trumpet player, close to twenty albums since 2001, leads this off with his layered five-part "Rodin Suite." Two keyboard players (Victor Gould on piano), guitar, the vibraphone/marimba stands out (Chien Chien Lu). Balance of album inches toward hard bop. B+(*) Pet Shop Boys: Agenda (2019, X2, EP): Four songs, short, punchy hits (13:08), mostly topical ("On social media," "What are we going to do about the rich?," "Give stupidity a chance"). B+(**) Pet Shop Boys: Inner Sanctum (2018 [2019], X2): Live at the Royal Opera Hall, released as a DVD although I'm just going by the audio. I don't think the duo gains anything in the concert hall, although the crowd noise draws (even a singalong on "West End Girls") you into the experience, and they have no trouble drawing twenty-plus terrific songs -- sometimes two or three to a cut -- from their deep discography. Ends with a reprise of "The Pop Kids" -- their latest, a pure throwback to their heyday, although songs like "It's a Sin" and "Go West" tower even higher. A- Joshua Redman Quartet: Come What May (2018 [2019], Nonesuch): Second-generation tenor saxophonist, was an instant star back in 1992 so seems like he's been around forever, but he's still under 50. Standard quartet: Aaron Goldberg (piano), Reuben Rogers (bass), Gregory Hutchinson (drums). Solid set, sounds like he's got his own sound back, some spark too. B+(***) Ruby Rushton: Ironside (2018 [2019], 22a): British jazz group, led by Ed Cawthorne (aka Tenderlonious; flute, soprano sax, synth, wah pedal, percussion), with Aidan Shepherd (keyboards) also writing a couple of songs, plus Nick Walters (trumpet) and Tim Carnegie (drums). Has some ambition, edge and drive, but nothing really sticks with me. B Jim Snidero: Waves of Calm (2019, Savant): Mainstream alto saxophonist, couple dozen albums since 1984, last album celebrated Cannonball Adderley, here goes for "deep reflection and restrained maturity," occasioned by "his father's ongoing struggle with Parkinson's disease." Lovely album, with help by Jeremy Pelt (trumpet), Orrin Evans (piano), Nat Reeves (bass), and Jonathan Barber (drums). B+(***) Dave Stryker: Eight Track III (2019, Strikezone): Guitarist, been around, soul jazz groove with organ (Jared Gold), vibraphone (Stefon Harris), drums (McClenty Hunter), and congas on a few cuts. Covers include Steely Dan and a lot of Motown. B+(**) [cd] James Suggs: You're Gonna Hear From Me (2018, Arbors): Trumpet player, from Pennsylvania, teaches at University of South Florida, seems to be his first album, lined up some impressive backup: Houston Person (tenor sax), Lafayette Harris (piano), Peter Washington (bass), and Lewis Nash (drums). B+(**) Fumi Tomita: The Elephant Vanishes (2018 [2019], OA2): Bassist, based in New York for 15 years, teaches at U. Mass in Amherst, evidently his first record, subtitled "Jazz Interpretations of the Short Stories of Haruki Murakami." Easy-flowing postbop, with Jason Rigby (sax), Mike Baggetta (guitar), Art Hirahara (piano), and drums. B [cd] Warren Vaché: Songs Our Fathers Taught Us (2019, Arbors): Cornet player, retro swing when he started out in the late '70s, plays standards here from "My Melancholy Baby" and "Slow Boat to China" to "Birks Works." Guitarist Jacob Fischer is a steady force here, carrying most of the songs. Also with Neal Miner (bass) and Steve Williams (drums). B+(***) Dann Zinn: Day of Reckoning (2018 [2019], Origin): Saxophonist (tenor/soprano), also plays wood flute, teaches in Bay Area, fifth album since 2003 (or 1996?), backed by piano trio (Taylor Eigsti), upbeat, in commanding form throughout. B+(***) [cd] Recent reissues, compilations, and vault discoveries: Louis Armstrong: Sparks, Nevada 1964! (1964 [2018], Dot Time): Late in his career -- he didn't record much after 1966, and died in 1971 -- but this catches him on top of the world, with a smash single ("Hello Dolly"), a crack (if no longer All Star) band (Billy Kyle and Arvell Shaw are still in). His voice has an extra load of gravel, but he's still remarkably nimble, especially as he pushes his hit to 7:05, and his trumpet is as brilliant as ever. Still, he takes a break, giving Shaw a long solo on "How High the Moon," then turning the microphone over to Jewel Brown for two cuts. But she's terrific, and he returns for the closing crowd pleaser: "When the Saints Go Marching In." A- Imamu Amiri Baraka: It's Nation Time: African Visionary Music (1972 [2018], Motown): Poet, playwright, novelist, essayist, wrote an important book on music (Blues People), made his name as Leroi Jones then changed it in 1965, appeared on a record that year with New York Art Quartet. This builds on his 1970 book It's Nation Time, a potent mix of black power politics and avant-jazz, notably with Gary Bartz (alto sax), various keyboards and guitar, scattered horns, Reggie Workman (bass), and lots of percussion -- intense, angry, frazzled. B+(***) Duke Ellington: In Coventry, 1966 (1966 [2018], Storyville): Solo piano for the 9:13 openener, "New World A-Comin'," then joined by the orchestra. Set in Coventry Cathedral, he decided to go sacred, most melodramatically with 20:39 of "In the Beginning God" -- lifted midway with a bit of gospel hoedown, before he gets way too serious again. B Ben Lamar Gay: 500 Chains (2013-14 [2018], International Anthem): Chicago-based musician, sings/speaks, plays cornet, probably more, recorded seven unreleased albums since 2010 before his "greatest hits" debut, Downtown Castles Can Never Block the Sun. This is the first of the seven "source albums" to appear. Hard to wrap my head around the spoken parts, but spots (especially with the horn) impress (actually a bit more than the "best of"; he's a project). B+(***) Ben Lamar Gay: Grapes (2013-14 [2018], International Anthem): Very experimental, closer to rock or soul than to jazz, which isn't to say it's predictable or easy. B+(*) Ben Lamar Gay/Edinho Gerber: Benjamin E Edinho (2011-13 [2018], International Anthem, EP): Adds a tropicalia vibe with Brazilian guitar master, from a couple stretches when the duo co-resided in Rio de Janeiro and Chicago. Eight cuts, 28:27. B+(*) Joanne Grauer: Introducing Lorraine Feather (1977 [1978], MPS): Pianist, based in Los Ageles, eponymous debut in 1974, only a few albums after this sophomore effort. Trio on the A-side, three B-side tracks introduce the singer and also mark an early appearance for tenor saxophonist Ernie Watts. B+(*) Kankyo Ongaku: Japanese Ambient, Environmental and New Age Music 1980-1990 (1980-90 [2019], Light in the Attic): Beware the version differences: the full 3-LP package has 25 tracks, the 2-CD a bit less at 23, but the digital, which is the only one I've heard, stops at 10 (41:47). This doesn't sound like much at first: a bit of quiet piano, a shift to synth and more electronics, the occasional light rhythm track. Nice and calming, not meditative (at least not exactly). Grows on you, or maybe just gets comfy. A- Unpacking: Found in the mail last week:
Ask a question, or send a comment. Monday, April 8, 2019 Music Week
Music: current count 31344 [31312] rated (+32), 251 [249] unrated (+2). Back in business. I figured all it would take to get Napster working again was a reboot -- it broke following a software update that didn't require one but involved a new Flash module, so I suspected that threw things out of sync. Still, I didn't want to do that for other reaasons, but was forced to when the computer freaked out and gave me a swizzle patterned screen. That suggested something far worse, but the reboot fixed that too. Working Napster gave me a chance to catch up with the last couple weeks of Robert Christgau picks -- Stella Donnelly/Sharon Van Etten and Pedro the Lion/Jason Ringenberg -- where only the B+ record didn't disappoint. (Actually, I couldn't find Ringenberg's Stand Tall on Napster, but was able to fish a Soundcloud link from my email trash, so thanks to the publicist.) Guess I'm still missing the Ariana Grande/Amber Mark week -- I had the former's Sweetener way down at B, a grade split matching Mitski's Be the Cowboy, but haven't heard the more recent one. Took a dive into George Strait after panning his new one, mostly because I noticed an unheard Christgau A- in the database (Something Special), and it panned out. I had his first Greatest Hits (1985) at A-, so it made sense to check out its source albums (just three of them). I'm not sure that grade holds up, but didn't recheck it. Still, after dismissing most of his songs as unmemorable, I've wound up with "You Look So Good in Love" stuck in my mind all week. Other records suggested by various sources, most prolifically Phil Overeem. The tip on Angel-Ho came from breathless hype in The Nation ("Angel-Ho is the future of pop music"). I dug up Petra Van Nuis after she wrote to me (so sometimes that works). Strait and Mandy Barnett just showed up in Napster's featured lists. Making fair progress on most projects, although not enough on moving the computer. (Will do that after I post this, I promise.) Biggest one is a new piece of badly-needed pantry shelving, which needs one more coat of paint before I drag it in and bolt it to the wall. I have a couple more projects in that space, ready to roll as soon as the first one is operational. Still, more projects seem to present themselves all the time. Dug up a couple plastic drawers full of CDs today, and my wife argued that I should get rid of them (something about the hoarding being psychotic). I had a plan a couple years back to start donating CDs to a local library, but never followed through on it -- partly because I was working on the Jazz Guide, maybe because they kept naming various buldings after the Kochs. The reason for having a substantial library is to look things up, but I'm fast losing my ability to do so, not to mention my prospects of ever writing anything worthwhile on the subject. Still, the project I feel more pressing need for is to come up with a system so I can quickly identify where all my tools (and hardware) are. I'm forever thrashing, trying to find things I know I have somewhere, sometimes even having to buy more tools to replace those I've lost (most recently, a set of hole saws). In fact, thrashing seems to be the word for the week, maybe even the season. New records reviewed this week: Angel-Ho: Death Becomes Her (2019, Hyperdub): South African electronica producer Angel Antonio Valerio, trans, veers between hip-hop and electro-noise, beat-heavy but not that simple. B+(*) Art "Turk" Burton: Ancestral Spirits (2019, T N' T Music): Percussioist (conga and bongo drums) from Chicago, rooted in Latin jazz but also involved in AACM, playing in Muhal Richard Abrams' big band and Nicole Mitchell's Black Earth Ensemble. Gathers up three more percussionists here, Eddie Beard on piano and organ, Ari Brown and Edwin Daugherty on saxes, and singer/narrator Maggie Brown. Opens with a nod to Mongo Santamaria, followed by "A Night in Tunisia" and "Killer Joe," and later adds memorable takes of "Summertim" and "Freedom Jazz Dance." Latin groove throughout, although the saxes sometimes get out of hand. A- [cd] Romain Collin: Tiny Lights: Genesis (2019, XM): French pianist, studied at Berklee, debut album in 2007, joined here by Matthew Stevens (guitar), Obed Calvaire (drums), and the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra, with string arrangements by Kazuma Jinnouchi. Starts fusion, a hard groove album, gets fancier when they slow it down. Hype sheet promises two more volumes shortly, Blood and Gold. B+(**) [cd] The Comet Is Coming: Trust in the Lifeforce of the Deep Mystery (2019, Impulse!): London-based band, names listed as King Shabaka (Shabaka Hutchings, tenor sax), Danalogue the Conqueror (Dan Leavers, keyboards), and Betamax Killer (Max Hallett, drums). Second album. Inspired by spiritual jazz artists like Alice Coltrane and extraterrestrials (similar but not quite the same thing) such as Sun Ra. B+(**) Jordon Dixon: On! (2019, self-released): Tenor saxophonist, born in Baton Rouge, based in DC, second album, backed by piano-bass-drums (plus trumpet on one cut). Mainstream, original pieces, lovely tone, soulful. B+(***) [cd] Stella Donnelly: Beware of the Dogs (2019, Secretly Canadian): Singer-songwriter from Perth, Australia, offers what Christgau calls "a catalogue of assholes" -- males, "boys will be boys" -- although I'm also struck by the allergies and bearers of infectious diseases. B+(***) Steve Earle & the Dukes: Guy (2019, New West): Sings the Guy Clark songbook, marginally better than the originals but not significantly different or even distinctive. Could broaden Clark's audience a bit. B+(***) Fleurine: Brazilian Dream (2018 [2019], Pure Imagination): Dutch jazz singer-songwriter, last name Verloop, fifth album since 1995, all self-penned Brazilian tunes here, plays some guitar, with a mostly Brazilian band -- Vitor Gonçalves, Rogerio Boccato, and Chico Pinheiro the best known -- augmented by Brad Mehldau and Chris Potter, strings on one cut, horns on another. Dreamy, indeed. B+(**) George Freeman: George the Bomb! (2018 [2019], Blujazz/Southport): Jazz guitarist, born 1927 so he's edged over 90, leans heavy on funk and blues here, with the Southport house band, with vocals shared by Billy Branch and Joanie Pallatto. Couple of standout food songs: "Where's the Cornbread?" and "Home Grown Tomatoes." B+(**) [cd] Polly Gibbons: All I Can Do (2019, Resonance): Jazz singer qua blues belter, third album, wrote 2 (of 12) songs, the best surprise from Prince. Backed with piano, organ and guitar (Paul Bollenbeck). B [cd] Girls on Grass: Dirty Power (2019, self-released): Brooklyn alt/indie band, led by singer-songwriter Barbara Endes (also plays guitar), with girl drummer Nancy Polstein and two blokes. Second album. One lyric jumped out at me: "Capitalism ruins everything that's worth doing." Also something about "Commander in Thief." B+(**) Pablo Lanouguere Quintet: Eclectico (2019, self-released): Bassist, from Argentina, based in New York, plays electric as well as upright, first album, original compositions that feature Nick Danielson on viola, backed by guitar (Federico Diaz), piano (Emilio Teubal), and drums (Franco Pinna). Struck me as avant-classical, so took me a while. B+(**) [cd] Jenny Lewis: On the Line (2019, Warner Bros.): Singer-songwriter, fourth studio album (not counting her tenure with Rilo Kiley or various other ad hoc projects). She has good pop sense, but I'm not picking up much here. B+(*) Helado Negro: This Is How You Smile (2019, RVNG Intl): Singer-songwriter Roberto Carlos Lange, born in Florida, parents from Ecuador, half-dozen albums since 2009. Woozy tempo with shifting shapes, reminds me a bit of Arto Lindsay at his most Brazilian, but even more deliberately -- so much I doubt I really caught much of it. B+(*) New Orleans Jazz Orchestra: Songs: The Music of Allen Toussaint (2018 [2019], Storyville): Directed by drummer Adonis Rose, a big band, several guest vocalists -- Dee Dee Bridgewater, Phillip Manuel, Gerald French -- nine songs, as advertised. B+(**) [cd] Pedro the Lion: Phoenix (2019, Polyvinyl): Indie rock band formed in Seattle in 1995, broke up after their fourth album in 2004, singer-songwriter David Bazan going on to a checkered solo career. Bazan is an interesting guy with things to say, but his music never did much for me. The band beefs it up. B+(**) Jason Ringenberg: Stand Tall (2019, Courageous Chicken): Country rocker from Illinois, called his first band Jason & the Scorchers -- their 1983 EP Fervor earned the name -- tried a solo album in 1992, occasionally recorded as Farmer Jason, this his first since a Christmas album in 2014. In 2017, he got a gig as artist-in-residence at Sequoia National Park, and wrote a couple of songs about the tall trees there, as well as the title instrumental. Added a Ramones tribute, and a few titles like "John the Baptist Was a Real Humdinger," "Hobo Bill's Last Ride," and "Many Happy Hangovers to You." Sixty now, and still scorchin'. A- [sp] Royal Trux: White Stuff (2019, Fat Possum): Garage rock band from DC, formed 1988 by Neil Hagerty (ex-Pussy Galore) and Jennifer Herrema, released ten albums by 2002, regrouped here, as part of a deal to reissue their old records. Reports are they've already broken up again, beause Hagerty refuses to tour. I haven't heard their old stuff, and probably won't, but seems likely they have a cult following somewhere. B+(**) Sir Babygirl: Crush on Me (2019, Father/Daughter, EP): Kelsie Hogue, started in hardcore bands, solo debut is a 9-track (but if you scratch the reprises and outro more like six songs), 26:24 mini. Christgau: "So fake they're funny and so shiny they squeak." B+(***) George Strait: Honky Tonk Time Machine (2019, MCA Nashville): Dependable, predictable: his first two albums were called Strait Country and Strait From the Heart, but he was smart enough not to return to that well, moving on to One Step at a Time and Always Never the Same in the late 1990s, and more recently Here for a Good Time and Cold Beer Conversations. This is his 30th album, a little more explicit in honky tonk references, probably because the songs speak less. B Terraza Big Band: One Day Wonder (2017 [2019], Outside In Music): Co-led by Michael Thomas (alto sax) and Edward Perez (bass), who composed most of the pieces, arranged the rest. Standard sections, mostly New York names I recognize, plus guitar and (3/9 cuts) extra percussion (Samuel Torres). B+(*) [cd] Sharon Van Etten: Remind Me Tomorrow (2019, Jagjaguwar): Singer-songwriter from New Jersey, fifth album, finds an engaging groove and haunts it. B+(*) Petra Van Nuis & Dennis Luxion: Because We're Night People (2018, String Damper): Voice and piano duo from Chicago. Fifth album for the singer (-songwriter?), including a couple of previous duos with guitarist (husband) Andy Brown. The pianist played with Chet Baker in the 1980s, and with vocalist Diane Delin -- Discogs credits him with one album each, but his own website lists 6 and 4, as well as a dozen more albums with various leaders. B+(*) Dave Zinno Unisphere: Stories Told (2018 [2019], Whaling City Sound): Bassist, third album, all under this group rubric, a hard bop quintet with Mike Tucker (tenor sax), Eric 'Benny' Bloom (trumpet/flugelhorn), Tim Ray (piano), and Rafael Barata (drums). Bright and upbeat, except for the cover of "Michelle," which (Like most Beatles songs) is a tarpit for jazz musicians. B+(*) [cd] Recent reissues, compilations, and vault discoveries: Burnt Sugar/The Arkestra Chamber: Twentieth Anniversary Mixtapes: Groiddest Schnizzits: Volume Two (2001-17 [2019], Trugroid/Avantgroidd): Back in 1999 rock critic Greg Tate decided to try his hand at cosmic jazz, rounding up friends and acquaintances, his own credit most often "conduction" -- the Butch Morris term for a conductor trying to direct improvisers. Tate's a word guy, so he recruited singers. I'm not, so I've always had trouble following that aspect. For their 20th, they came out with three discs of remixes -- this is the only one I've found so far (otherwise I'd be tempted to review them as a set). B+(***) Old music: Mandy Barnett: I Can't Stop Loving You: The Songs of Don Gibson (2013, Rounder): She built her career in Patsy Cline tributes, and has the voice for the job. Turns her attention here to the writer of Cline's signature song, "Sweet Dreams," which she nails perfectly. Elsewhere I miss Gibson's own self-effacing swing, not that I mind her torching his laments -- she has the voice. B+(***) The Comet Is Coming: Channel the Spirits (2016, The Leaf Label): First album, more groove and harder grind, but not quite all the way through. B+(***) George Strait: Strait Country (1981, MCA): First album, ten songs none running more than 3:06 (27:51 total), mostly draws songs from Dean Dillon and Frank Dycus, relationship songs that understand it's complicated: "Every Time You Throw Dirt on Her (You Lose a Little Ground)," "She's Playing Hell Trying to Get Me to Heaven," "Her Goodbye Hit Me in the Heart." B+(**) George Strait: Strait From the Heart (1982, MCA): Second album, marginally longer (28:45), recorded his first original ("I Can't See Texas From Here"), better than "Marina del Rey" let alone "Lover in Disguise." B George Strait: Right or Wrong (1983, MCA): Another short one, but his voice is maturing, and his roots are spreading. After three albums the label decided they had enough to release a Greatest Hits, and I thought it was pretty good. But I won't complain about the filler here, except to note that he didn't write any of it. B+(***) George Strait: Does Fort Worth Ever Cross Your Mind (1984, MCA): No fluff, his shortest album yet (25:55), the honky tonk songs done elegantly and/or plaintively, which is to say with a bit less inspiration than one would wish for. B+(**) George Strait: Something Special (1985, MCA): Hits his stride here, even if he doesn't break a sweat trying. Better songs are the key, nothing especially classic, but tapping ten different writers/teams suggests he's looked high and low. And he's so relaxed singing them he delivers his longest album to date (32:49). A- George Strait: The Best of George Strait [20th Century Masters: The Millennium Collection] (1983-93 [2002], MCA Nashville): The standard Strait compilation these days is probably 50 Number Ones (2004), but rather than wallow in all that I thought I'd first check this short one (12 songs, 39:01), as I missed it last time I tried going deep on the series. But aside from one 1983 hit ("You Look So Good in Love") this sticks to a fairly narrow time slice, 1987-93. Given his career (even just to date), I doubt I'd pick more than 3-4 of these. B+(**) George Strait: 50 Number Ones (1982-2004 [2004], MCA Nashville, 2CD): He released one album nearly every year from 1981 through 2009 (skipping 1995, 2002, and 2007), usually with 3-4 singles from each, so steady production adds up. He has four albums and no hit singles since 2009, but Wikipedia credits him with the most number one Billboard US country singles ever (45, disputing ten songs here) and the second-most top-tens (86, behind Eddy Arnold's 92). One new song here, making 51 total (and yes, it was released as a single and went number one). His always sounds fine, never rubs you the wrong way -- his consistency is truly remarkable, but I doubt he's turned out a stone cold classic, here or elsewhere. B+(***) Unpacking: Found in the mail last week:
Ask a question, or send a comment. Monday, April 1, 2019 Music Week
Music: current count 31312 [31297] rated (+15), 249 [253] unrated (-4). Rated count way down, about half of what I consider a solid week. When I dropped to 29 last week, I described that as a "lazy week." Could say that again, but the real reason for the drop off is that the Flash plugin on my computer is fucked up, making it impossible to use Napster (or, for that matter, Spotify). That left me with playing CDs (9) and using Bandcamp (6), and I didn't really have much to choose from or look for on either. Unplayed CD queue is currently only 7 deep, and I don't just randomly play unknowns on Bandcamp. On the other hand, the Bandcamps generally got two spins, and the CDs more than that (I'd guess Larry Fuller got 7-8 plays -- not that I needed more than 2, but it made for pretty pleasant background music). All that lead to a couple anomalies. Only one A- is the lowest weekly total in quite some time, and I'm actually not real solid on it -- I've never been much of a Betty Carter fan, and should probably go back and check some of her earlier releases (and re-check The Audience With Betty Carter, which I have at B- even though it wears a Penguin Guide crown). It could be that I promoted it at the last minute because I came up with nothing else. The other anomaly is the high percentage of B+(***) grades (8/15). Certainly the multiple replays helped out. At this point, I'm pretty sure the jazz records (especially the CDs) have plateaued, but three of the Bandcamps might merit further investigation: Mekons, Quelle Chris, and Mdou Moctar. I think I have those three pegged right, but they're close, and it's worth noting that I have the immediately previous albums by all three at A- (It Is Twice Blessed, Everything's Fine, and Blue Stage Sessions). Priorities for the coming week will be to reconstruct my crashed tax file, finish (paint) a new pantry shelf, and finally get my computers rearranged and reconnected (hopefully fixing the Napster problem, and allowing me to get onto some website work). Also have my DownBeat Critics Poll invite, so that will be another (pretty much wasted) chunk of time. One website task I did manage to get done last week was to build a book page for Robert Christgau's new essay collection, Book Reports: A Music Critic on His First Love, Which Was Reading, due out from Duke University Press on April 12. Info and various links on that page. Still to be done is the nasty task of embargoing most of the pieces that appear in the book, so this is your last change (for several years) to squirrel away free copies of most of the book. New records reviewed this week: Laura Antonioli: The Constant Passage of Time (2018 [2019], Origin): Singer, writes some (lyrics, I think), cut a record with George Cables in 1985, restarted around 2004, working with Richie Beirach, and picked up the pace after her 2014 Joni Mitchell tribute. Two Mitchell pieces here -- she has the voice and manner down pat -- along with Sheryl Crow and Neil Young. With Sheldon Brown on sax and clarinet, Dave McNab on guitar, Matt Clark on piano, plus bass and drums. B+(**) [cd] Michaël Attias: Ëchos La Nuit (2018 [2019], Out of Your Head): Alto saxophonist, parents Moroccan, born in Israel, grew up in Paris and Minneapolis, based in New York, albums since 2002, fewer than I expected. This one is solo improv, somehow imvolving a piano ("the sympathetic resonance of the piano strings set into vibration by the sound of the saxophone"). Slow, contemplative, or maybe just cautiously deliberate. B+(**) [cd] Blu & Oh No: A Long Red Hot Los Angeles Summer Night (2019, Native Sounds): Rapper Johnson Barnes, active since 2007, and rapper/producer Michael Woodrow Jackson (since 2004), reinforcing each other, building tension and urgency of their Los Angeles fable. B+(**) [bc] Chord Four: California Avant Garde (2016 [2019], self-released): Pianoless free jazz quartet, based in Los Angeles, the horn players Andrew Conrad (tenor sax/clarinet/bass clarinet) and Brandon Sherman (trumpet/flugelhorn), backed by bass (Emilio Terranova) and drums (Colin Woodford). Eponymous album in 2010. This seems to be their fourth. Smart, intricate, doesn't grate, could even be characterized as understated. B+(***) [cd] Larry Fuller: Overjoyed (2018 [2019], Capri): Pianist, from Toledo, Ohio, recorded a trio album in 1998 with Ray Brown and Jeff Hamilton but more often appeared as the pianist in their piano trios. Released a trio album I liked under his own name in 2014, and follows that up here, with Hassan Shakur and Lewis Nash. Two originals, more standards that catch your ear, the title cut from Stevie Wonder. B+(***) [cd] Ross Hammond & Sameer Gupta: Mystery Well (2018, Prescott): Guitar and tabla duo. Guitarist has been prolific over a decade, including a previous duo album with Gupta. Doesn't have the twang of a sitar, but fits in nicely. B+(***) [bc] Remy Le Boeuf: Light as a Word (2017 [2019], Outside In Music): Alto saxophonist, from Santa Cruz, California, based in Brooklyn, first album under his own name following three with brother Pascal as the Le Boeuf Brothers. Sextet with Walter Smith III (tenor sax), Aaron Parks (piano), guitar, bass, and drums. Postbop, a little slick but goes somewhere. B+(**) [cd] Mekons: Deserted (2019, Bloodshot): Venerably Anglo (now Chicago?) cowpunk group reunited for another roundup, starts out sounding strong (and angry), hits a skid spot midway, and and I tend to lose interest after that, not that I don't hear things that make me wonder if more plays might bring it around. B+(***) [bc] Mdou Moctar: Ilana: The Creator (2019, Sahle Sounds): Tuareg from Niger, plays guitar, sings, got me thinking that if Ali Farka Tuareg was the John Lee Hooker of the Sahara, he just might be the Jimi Hendrix. Then he tails off a bit, the old groove and trance getting the upper hand. B+(***) [bc] Ivo Perelman/Mat Maneri/Nate Wooley: Strings 3 (2018 [2019], Leo): Continues the prolific tenor saxophonist's series from last year, all albums (so far) featuring Maneri on viola -- the first with two violins, the second with cello. This one adds some trumpet dischord to the core ugliness, although in the end you could learn something from the messiness of freedom. B+(*) [cd] Ivo Perelman/Mat Maneri/Nate Wooley/Matthew Shipp: Strings 4 (2018 [2019], Leo): Add the pianist and it all becomes much more coherent, even if he never seems to be conspicuous. B+(***) [cd] Quelle Chris: Guns (2019, Mello Music Group): Rapper Gavin Tennille, underground division, pretty good duo album last year with Jean Grae (cameo here), like the beats here, I'm a little slow on the words. Choice cut: "Obamacare." B+(***) [bc] SOL Development: The SOL of Black Folk (2019, self-released): Oakland hip-hop collective, acronym stands for Source of Light, title reflects on W.E.B. DuBois's best-known book. So much talent the styles clash, but "Nobody" puts it all together, and I'd probably find more if I put in the time. B+(**) [bc] Tiger Hatchery: Breathing in the Walls (2017 [2018], ESP-Disk): Avant-sax trio, with Mike Forbes, Andrew Scott Young (bass), and Ben Billington (drums), group together since 2010 (Forbes has a 2009 album with Young and Weasel Walter). Rugged, striking, relatively short (30:18). B+(***) [cd] Recent reissues, compilations, and vault discoveries: Betty Carter: The Music Never Stops (1992 [2019], Blue Engine): Jazz singer, dubbed Bebop Betty when she started out in the mid-1950s, deep voice, nimble scat, her work on Verve from 1980 up to her death in 1998 is especially revered -- albeit not by me: I've been impressed by her bands, but never cared much for the vocals. I should probably reacquaint myself, as she shows remarkable poise and range here, in a previously unreleased Jazz at Lincoln Center tape. Some small group cuts, more big band, some strings arranged by Geri Allen: I doubt any of those are really up to her standards, but they work well enough. A- [cd] Unpacking: Found in the mail last week:
Ask a question, or send a comment. Monday, March 25, 2019 Music Week
Music: current count 31297 [31275] rated (+22), 253 [251] unrated (+2). I expected a "lazy week," so my lowest rated count this year shouldn't be a surprise. Was real low until the weekend, when I settled down to write up a lengthy Weekend Roundup. Even then, I ran into a problem when Napster stopped playing (could search and select records, but couldn't fetch any music). Probably the Flash plugin got hosed, and could get restarted by rebooting, but I had too much stuff up in the air to bother). Played some CDs -- the week's three two A- and one B+(***) records. Beyond that, I mostly searched on Bandcamp (9 this week, vs. 5 on Napster). I didn't get around to moving the computer last week, even though I had planned to do it right after last week's Music Week. I'm going to swear off predicting when I'm going to get that done. Weather should be relatively nice next week, and I have a couple of woodworking projects on tap, so that may be more fun. Took a couple of days last week making a rather spectacular dinner. Menu, as best I recall:
I used a lot of eggs and cream. I originally wanted to do veal marengo [Greenspan], but the one grocery store that routinely stocks veal chops had none (no veal at all, no lamb, seafood counter already shut down. I've made that chicken recipe a number of times, so was able to amend my shopping list from memory. Might even have been an improvement on the veal, although that's another marvelous dish. I had to make the fudge sauce and assemble the profiteroles after dinner, and couldn't serve them all at once, but our guests coped. This is the last Monday in March, so my Streamnotes (March 2019) file is complete. New records reviewed this week: Cyrille Aimée: Live (2018, Mack Avenue): French jazz singer, ninth album since 2009, writes some, mostly covers, mostly in English, touching on Michael Jackson and Stephen Sondheim. Backed by two guitars, bass, and drums. B+(**) Cyrille Aimée: Move On: A Sondheim Adventure (2019, Mack Avenue): Never a fan of musical theater, I have little sense of Sondheim other than the vague whiff of his fame -- enough to think that by now his songs would have eased into the standards repertoire, even though there's scant evidence of it. Sure, the French jazz singer has dabbled before, and here dives in whole hog. Still, two plays and nothing memorable. B Chat Noir: Hyperuranion (2018 [2019], RareNoise): Italian group, Michele Cavallari (keyboards) and Luca Fogagnolo (bass) founding members from 2006, half-dozen albums, now a quartet with Daniel Calvi (guitar) and Moritz Baumgartner (drums). Instrumental semi-pop, doesn't do much as jazz but that's where they're pitching it. B [cdr] Stephan Crump/Ingrid Laubrock/Cory Smythe: Channels (2017 [2019], Intakt): Bass, tenor/soprano sax, piano trio, listed alphabetically and jointly credited, but strikes me as the bassist's show, setting and breaking up time in a way that gives Laubrock a lot of leeway. A- [cd] Ex Hex: It's Real (2019, Merge): Punk trio, led by Mary Timony, who's been doing this sort of thing since her 1994-97 band Helium, using Ex Hex as a solo album title in 2005, and adopting it as her band name in 2014. Second group album, straight and hard and more than a little catchy. B+(**) Paolo Fresu/Richard Galliano/Jan Lundgren: Mare Nostrum III (2018 [2019], ACT): Trumpet/accordion/piano, third album for this trio, like its predecessors, a tidy little chamber jazz act. B+(**) ICP Orchestra: Live at the Royal Room: First Set: 6 May 2015 (2015 [2018], ICP): Dutch avant tentet, founded 1967 by pianist-composer Misha Mengelberg, drummer Han Bennink, along with a who's who of future (and in some cases, like Willem Breuker, now past) stars. Mengelberg retired before this tour, replaced by Guus Janssen but they're still playing three of his old pieces. In Seattle, getting warmed up. B+(*) [bc] ICP Orchestra: Live at the Royal Room: Second Set: 6 May 2015 (2015 [2018], ICP): Getting warmer, the improvs often reminding me of circus music. B+(**) [bc] Anthony Joseph: People of the Sun (2018, Heavenly Sweetness): Singer-songwriter, poet, novelist, born in Trinidad, moved to UK in 1989, has several albums. Big beat, lot of groove and flash, but did run on. B+(*) [bc] Liebman Rudolph & Drake: Chi (2018 [2019], RareNoise): Saxophonist David Liebman, tenor and soprano plus he plays some surprisingly impressive piano, with two percussionists: Adam Rudolph, who draws ideas and instruments from all over the world, and Hamid Drake, whose frame drums are wonderfully distinctive. It's their record, even when Liebman tries to run away with it. A- [cdr] Dan McCarthy: Epoch (2019, Origin): Vibraphonist, from Canada, based in New York, several previous albums. This is a string-heavy quartet with Mark Feldman (violin), Ben Monder (guitar), and Steve Swallow (electric bass), with Feldman carrying most of the weight. I've never much cared for Feldman before, but he's consistently sharp here, as well as gorgeous. B+(***) [cd] Levon Mikaelian Trio: Untainted (2019, self-released): Pianist, from Yerevan, Armenia, moved to US after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Has at least one previous. This is a trio with Jon Steele (bass) and Kelton Norris (drums). One original, rest based on traditional folk songs. Runs long (69:30), very listenable. B+(**) [cd] Sean Noonan Pavees Dance: Tan Man's Hat (2018 [2019], RareNoise): Drummer, self-described "Irish griot," launched this group in 2014, has gone through several guitarists to get to Ava Mendoza here, with Jamaaladeen Tacuma on electric bass and Alex Marcelo on keyboards. Still, major collaborator is ex-Can vocalist Malcolm Mooney. My first reaction was "aims for Beefheart, misses Zappa." Missing Zappa isn't necessarily a dis, but the slippery slop is pretty hit and miss. B [cdr] Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah: Ancestral Recall (2019, Ropeadope): Trumpet player from New Orleans, debut in 2005, Africanized his name in 2012, released a well-regarded trilogy in 2016. This follow up builds on his popularity by throwing everything at it: his own synths, guest flute and alto sax, lots of African percussion, lots of voices. Best when the clutter clears and his trumpet breaks out like the sun on a cloudy day. B+(*) [bc] Dexter Story: Bahir (2019, Soundway): Multi-instrumentalist from Los Angeles, studied at UC Berkeley, member of Build an Ark and the Life Force Trio, two previous albums (plus remixes), cites East African influences ("Ethiopian jazz, Tuareg grooves, ekista dance rhythms, Afro-funk, Somalian soul, and conteporary jazz influences"), with various featured guests (like Ethiopian singer Hamelmal Abate). B+(*) [bc] Urbanity: Urbanity (2018 [2019], Alfi): Smooth jazz duo, Albare (Albert Dadon, guitars) and Phil Turcio (keyboards/programming), second album, each has an album or two on their own. They split the writing credits, aside from one cover -- a very genteel "Desperado." A guest vocal, of course, and a bit of tenor sax (Tim Ries). Not exactly bland, but pretty damn blasé. B [cd] Recent reissues, compilations, and vault discoveries: Sun Ra and His Spirit of Jazz Cosmos Arkestra: WUHY Radio, Philadelphia, 1978 (1978 [2019], Enterplanetary Koncepts): Radio shot, bits of interviews and other distractions from the often remarkable music. B+(*) [bc] Townes Van Zandt: Sky Blue (1973 [2019], Fat Possum): Folkie singer-songwriter from Texas, released six albums 1968-72, just three more before he died at 52 in 1997, some kind of legend in his niche, but never a star, and the two records I managed to check out didn't impress me much. Eleven previously unreleased tunes, eight of them originals, all just acoustic guitar and voice, B+(*) [bc] Old music: Aceyalone: All Balls Don't Bounce (1995, Capitol): Rapper Eddie Hayes, first album, cover looks familiar but no grade in my database. B+(**) [bc] Aceyalone: A Book of Human Language (1998, Project Blowed): Second album, just before the first one I noticed -- the excellent Accepted Eclectic. Cover credit: "Accompanied by Mumbles." Beats, I presume, B+(**) [bc] Carol Leigh: Go Back Where You Stayed Last Night (1984 [1996], GHB): Trad jazz singer, starting with Turk Murphy and Bob Scobey, mostly recorded with the Salty Dogs and in a duo with James Dapogny, but has a few albums under her own name. Credits on this one include Ernie Carson (cornet), John Otto (clarinet), Knocky Parker (piano), Shorty Johnson (tuba), and Hal Smith (drums). CD adds parts of another album with a different group. Mostly blues, echoes from the 1920s. B+(**) Carol Leigh/Dumouster Stompers: Back Water Blues (1993 [2016], GHB): Another trad jazz group, recorded five albums (as far as I can tell) 1993-2005, originally on the French Black & Blue label, with the singer getting top billing here. Cover says "Dedicated to Montauban." B Unpacking: Found in the mail last week:
Ask a question, or send a comment. Sunday, March 17, 2019 Music Week
Music: current count 31275 [31246] rated (+29), 251 [252] unrated (-1). Rated count down, probably by a lot mid-week, but I spent a lot of time on the computer hacking out Book Roundup then Weekend Roundup, and made up ground late. I checked and found that this was the third week in the last two months with exactly 29 records. Would have been more except that this has been another banner A-list week. Two came out of my jazz queue -- David Berkman, not out until April 5, and Tomeka Reid/Filippo Monico -- and they qualify as news. Three were tipped off by Phil Overeem (Little Simz, Dave, and Robert Forster -- although the first two took a revisit before I became convinced). One (Todd Snider) was written up by Robert Christgau (along with Leyla McCalls's Capitalist Blues and Our Native Daughters' Songs of Our Native Daughters, both A- here in previous weeks). I was tipped off to the final one (Matt Brewer) by a Chris Monsen tweet. Various other sources led me to lower-rated records, but somehow the best tips keep coming from friends. I've put off my office/computer reorganization, but should buckle down and get it done this week (tomorrow I hope, after I get this post up and get some fresh light to work with. Still some things unclear about how it's all going to get put back together. Getting some decent weather after several rough months. (The "bomb cyclone" was kind of a dud here, although it lived up to its billing a hundred miles north of here, even more so between there and Denver.) Maybe I'll take some time and work on the yard and/or my nephew's house. Also still stuck with a lot of stress over myriad health issues -- but generally looks like a lazy week coming up. New records reviewed this week: 2 Chainz: Rap or Go to the League (2019, Gamebread/Def Jam): Rapper Tauheed Epps, from Georgia, checkered career but his five albums have sold well, charting no lower than 4. Songs about dealing drugs and playing college basketball and playing taxes, all rooted in real life. B+(**) 4WD [Nils Landgren/Michael Wollny/Lars Danielsson/Wolfgang Haffner]: 4 Wheel Drive (2018 [2019], ACT): I go back and forth on how to parse the cover, but label's website credits this to the trombonist and dismisses "4WD" -- possibly just a graphic? Piano-bass-drums for the others, with Landgren singing a pop repertoire including Phil Collins, Paul McCartney, Billy Joel, and Sting -- all gag-worthy. B- Abhi the Nomad: Marbled (2018, Tommy Boy): Rapper, know very little about him other than that he moved around a lot (including India, Hong Kong, Beijing, Fiji Islands), winding up in California, then Austin. Easy flow, promising but tails off a bit. B+(***) Allison Au Quartet: Wander Wonder (2018 [2019], self-released): Canadian alto saxophonist, won a Juno award, third quartet album, backed by piano-bass-drums, sometimes electric. B+(**) The David Berkman Sextet: Six of One (2018 [2019], Palmetto): Pianist, made a big impression back in the 1990s but hasn't been very prolific lately. Nominally a "three-woodwind sextet (plus guests)" but skimpy on actual credits beyond solos, for which I count four "woodwind" players: Dayna Stephens, Billy Drewes, Adam Kolker, and Tim Armacost. Complexly layered, elegant, often quite lovely. A- [cd] Matt Brewer: Ganymede (2018 [2019], Criss Cross): Bassist, from Oklahoma City, moved to New York in 2001, third album, 30-40 side credits. Trio with Mark Shim (tenor sax) and Damon Reid (drums). Wrote 4 (of 10) pieces, one by Shim, covers mostly from modern jazz musicians. A remarkably solid setting for all. A- Chai: Punk (2019, Burger): Japanese girl band, J-pop or dance punk, second album, first was called Pink. Closer to bubblegum than to punk, but the latter introduces just enough noise and chaos into the mix to keep earworms from forming. B+(*) The Coathangers: The Devil You Know (2019, Suicide Squeeze): Punkish girl group from Atlanta, a going concern since 2007, started to make me wonder whether they're going soft, but "F the NRA" allayed those fears, and the next song ("Memories") is even better. B+(***) Theon Cross: Fyah (2017-18 [2019], Gearbox): British tuba player, first album although he's been on several well-regarded albums of late (notably Sons of Kemet); group here (6 of 8 cuts) includes Nubya Garcia (tenor sax) and Moses Boyd (drums), keeps up a pretty steady beat with a lot of bottom. B+(*) Dave: Psychodrama (2019, Neighbourhood): British rapper David Orobosa Omoregie, born in London, parents Nigerian, first album after two EPs and a bunch of singles. Concept heavy, working his way through psych sessions, finding his way and gaining confidence and comfort, although not without some psychodrama. A- Joey DeFrancesco: In the Key of the Universe (2019, Mack Avenue): Organ player, like his father but better known, probably the best known practitioner of the instrument these days, with a lot of records since 1989. Also plays other keyboards, and trumpet on two tracks. Still, this doesn't sound like his usual soul jazz grind, especially when saxophonist Troy Roberts makes way for Pharoah Sanders on three cuts in the middle (Roberts plays bass on two of them). With Billy Hart on drums and Sammy Figueroa on percussion. I'm a bit lost here, but it's great to hear Sanders in any context, even here. B+(**) Carolyun Fitzhugh: Living in Peace (2018 [2019], Iyouwe): Jazz singer, from Chicago, write about half of her songs, has a previous album. Does duets with Freddy Cole and Nancy Assis, draws on some name players, including Amina Figarova (piano), Rudy Royston (drums), Rez Abbasi (guitar), and Wayne Escoffery (tenor sax). B [cd] Robert Forster: Inferno (2019, Tapete): Australlian singer-songwriter, formerly in the Go-Betweens, had several solo albums in the 1990s, regrouped the band, then was left to resume his solo career when Grant McLennan died. Forster never seemed to have McLennan's knack for indelible melodies, but his songs are intelligent and humane, and he sticks with them until they work -- at least if listeners meet him midway. A- Girlpool: What Chaos Is Imaginary (2019, Anti-): Alt/indie group, principally Cleo Tucker (guitar) and Harmony Tividad (bass), both vocals, plus (at least) a drummer. Third album, melts together. B Larry Grenadier: The Gleaners (2016 [2019], ECM): Bassist, at least 80 side credits since 1988 (Brad Mehldau Trio, also Charles Lloyd, Paul Motian, Joshua Redman, Mark Turner), Discogs has him on the headline of 18 albums, but first-listed only once before. He can't duck this one: it's solo, which is a pretty limited framework for a bassist -- even a very good one. B+(*) Vijay Iyer/Craig Taborn: The Transitory Poems (2018 [2019], ECM): Piano duets, two of the leading jazz pianists of their generation (b. 1970-71), everything jointly credited except for a bit at the end by Geri Allen. Live at Liszt Academy, Budapest. I'm not finding this quite as engaging as Taborn's recent duets with Kris Davis, but there is a lot to chew on here. B+(**) Julian Lage: Love Hurts (2018 [2019], Mack Avenue): One of the most popular young jazz guitarist around, at 31 presents an album cover of burnt matches. raising the questino of whether he's burnt out. Actually, I'd say this is the most pleasing album he's done, a trio with Jorge Roeder and David King, one original (simply called "Lullaby"); covers from Ornette Coleman, Jimmy Giuffre, and Keith Jarrett; and best of all, two late '50s slices of pop opera, the title cut and Roy Orbison's "Crying." B+(***) Little Simz: Grey Area (2019, Age 101): British rapper Simbi Ajikawo, born in London, parents from Nigeria, third album. A- Nivhek: After Its Own Death/Walking in a Spiral Towards the House (2019, Yellow Electric): New project from Liz Harris, of Grouper. The longer first piece is built mostly from voice, but dissolves into ambience -- more attractively on the second piece. B+(*) Tomeka Reid/Filippo Monico: The Mouser (2018 [2019], Relative Pitch): Cello and drums duet, latter also credited with "objects." Reid is based in Chicago, has co-headlined albums with various notables there, including Nicole Mitchell, Mike Reed, and Dave Rempis, plus has a very good Quartet album. Monico is from Italy, has been around longer but rarely in the limelight. This has its moments of scrachy minimalism, but they hold together remarkably well. A- [cd] Sigrid: Sucker Punch (2019, Island): Norwegian pop star Sigrid Solbakk Raabe, first album after two EPs, mostly dance beats, which help although her voice doesn't slip when she slows it down. B+(**) Todd Snider: Cash Cabin Sessions, Vol. 3 (2019, Aimless): After several outings with his rock band Hard Working Americans, back to folk mode, guitar and harmonica more minimal than ever (although he's got a couple of name guests in the background), puts his words out front, and he's pretty pissed. Title refers to the recording studio, originally a shack used by John R. Cash. A- Carol Sudhalter Quartet: Live at Saint Peter's Church (2018 [2019], Alfa Projects): Baritone saxophonist, also plays flute, cut a record in 1985, more regularly 1997-2011. Quartet here backed by piano-bass-drums, mostly plays early bop standards -- one original blues, a Jobim, a very nice "Gee Baby Ain't I Good to You." Needless to say, I prefer the bari. B+(**) [cd] Paul Tynan: Quartet (2016 [2019], Origin): Trumpet player, recent records have been co-credited to Aaron Lington and their Bicoastal Collective. Backed with piano-bass-drums, this puts the focus on his trumpet, which shines. B+(*) [cd] Claudia Villela: Encantada Live (2018 [2019], Taina Music): Brazilian singer, born and raised in Rio De Janeiro but based in Santa Cruz, California since the mid-1980s. I don't get much from her voice, but was impressed by the rhythm in "Cumeno Com Cuentro." B+(*) [cd] Sheck Wes: Mudboy (2018, Cactus Jack/GOOD/Interscope): Rapper Khadimou Rassoul Cheikh Fall, born in New York, parents Senegalese, spent much of his childhood in Milwaukee before returning to new York. First album. B+(***) Nate Wooley: Columbia Icefield (2017 [2019], Northern Spy): Prolific avant-trumpet player, adds electronics here, backed by Mary Halvorson (guitar), Susan Alcorn (pedal steel), and Ryan Sawyer (drums/voice). Three longish (13:50-20:04) pieces, inspired by one of Canada's more famous (for now) glaciers. Like the icefield, moves slow, and melts fast. B+(*) Recent reissues, compilations, and vault discoveries: James Booker: Vol. 1: At Onkel Pö's Carnegie Hall, Hamburg 1976 (1976 [2019], Jazzline): New Orleans piano master, knew classical as well as the home town favorites. Cut his first single in 1954 (age 14), but didn't get an album released until Junco Partner in 1976, his breakthrough which led to several tours of Europe, including this set, before his death in 1983 (age 43). Solo, sings along, earns his reputation, but doesn't add much to it. B+(**) Kid Creole & the Coconuts: Live in Paris 1985 (1985 [2019], Rainman): Probably my favorite pop group of the early 1980s -- I gave their five 1980-85 records { A-, A+, A, A-, A- }, but only two comparable albums since then -- but no live album until 1990, so this concert tape (originally released as a DVD in 2006) is ideally placed, with 16 great songs. Still, the live sound does them no favoes, and the payoff of extra energy only arrives at the end ("Endicott"). B+(*) Unpacking: Found in the mail last week:
Ask a question, or send a comment. Monday, March 11, 2019 Music Week
Music: current count 31246 [31207] rated (+39), 252 [257] unrated (-5). Surprised the rated count is so high, as the week went by in a daze -- often literally, as the latest correction for my failing eyesight disorts my rectangular view of the world into a slightly tilted trapezoid. I feel lucky not to have fallen down, but have had numerous mishaps where I reach for something (say, an elevator button) and miss. Not sure whether I should go back and complain, or count my blessings that details have gotten a lot sharper. Still, one bummer is that the eyes and/or glasses have contributed to a reading slump. Also, I had a moment of terror mid-week, when my computer screen went black. Problem seems to be a relatively new LG monitor lost power, but I haven't fully checked that out. I swapped in an older Samsung monitor, which worked, but isn't quite a sharp. I went out and bought a new HP 25-inch monitor, but don't have it plugged in yet. I've had a plan for some time now to rearrange my work area, so this disruption complicated things -- and in my dazed mental state slowed me down even further. I keep letting little things get in the way. For instance, I decided that it would be better to cut a hole in the side of the desk to route wires through, then couldn't find my hole saws. After spending a couple days looking everywhere, I broke down and bought a new set -- but haven't gotten around to using them yet. I seriously intend to do so after I get this posted. One thing the new arrangement will let me do is use two computers again. I'll use the second computer for some much procrastinated website development. One thing I need to do for the Christgau and other websites is convert the character set from ISO-8859-1 (Latin-1) to UTF-8. It's hard to work with two different character sets on the same computer. And I don't want to commit myself to changing everything over at once, so this seems like a sensible migration path. I have everything I need to do this now. Still not looking forward to painful crawling around the floor to get it all hooked up. More details on the tech advisory mail list as I get it all working. As for this week's music, I worked my way down to the bottom of Phil Overeem's end-of-February 2019 list, leaving four records unheard: three I couldn't find (DKV/Joe McPhee, All the Young Droogs, and the Clifford Thornton Memorial Quartet) plus the Bob Mould record I have yet to look for). Meanwhile, Overeem has moved on with a March list I haven't gotten to (although two records there -- by James Brandon Lewis and Rosie Flores -- are listed below, having gotten to them on my own). This week's regrades were Robert Christgau's EW picks this week. I had played them previously, liked the music, didn't get much out of the words, so I thought they merited an extra listen. Like the music even more, still didn't get much out of the words (Malibu Ken is reportedly funny, which I usually get even if I don't get it all; I'd say Serengeti is funnier). Also caught up with Christgau's previous week alt-rap picks, which I liked a bit less. Maybe too avant, the exact opposite of the old school People Under the Stairs, easily my favorite hip-hop album this week. Only B+(***) record below I might have cut short is the Branford Marsalis, which sounds a lot like his good ones -- easily his best since 2012's Four MFs Playin' Tunes, which was more pointedly titled. Old music by Chick Corea and Stanley Turrentine was suggested by Napster -- evidently a couple of those are new digital reissues. Trying my hand at stuffed peppers (with lamb, currants, pine nuts, and feta cheese), a dish I've never done before. It never seemed suitably fancy for a main course, yet too big for a side dish, especially in a typical feast with so many sides no one would want a whole pepper. On the other hand, might be perfect for a single-dish dinner for two. New records reviewed this week: Bali Baby: Resurrection (2018, Twin, EP): Atlanta rapper, out lesbian, released a short album I liked a lot (Baylor Swift, 8 cuts, 27:11) earlier in 2018, follows that up with an even shorter one (9 cuts, 19:33), still choppy but more cryptic. B+(**) Bali Baby: Bubbles Bali (2019, Billmania Media): Her choppy beats and skimpy tunes are some sort of punk analog, but with 12 cuts running 33:09 I think we can call this a full album. Still cryptic, but a couple songs caught my ear. B+(**) Better Oblivion Community Center: Better Oblivion Community Center (2019, Dead Oceans): Tuneful, somewhat catchy Joint venture between singer-songwriters Phoebe Bridgers and Conor Oberst. B+(*) Randy Brecker & NDR Bigband: Rocks (2017 [2019], Piloo): Trumpet player, actually a pretty great one, although he was overshadowed by his brother in their Brothers Band, where they made a bunch of popular but lousy records together. He's made some stink on his own, too, and this half qualifies, but breaks through here and there. Guest saxophonists David Sanborn and Ada Rovatti help. B [cd] Czarface/Ghostface Killah: Czarface Meets Ghostface (2019, Silver Age): The former a "supergroup" formed in 2013 when Wu-Tang member Inspectah Deck joined 7L & Esoteric, producing a series of comic book-themed albums -- the best last year's Czarface Meets Metal Face with MF Doom. This title seems inevitable, but Ghostface can't help but be serious. B+(**) Angel Bat Dawid: The Oracle (2019, International Anthem): Chicago singer-songwriter, plays clarinet, all other instruments on this debut album (limited edition cassette). Seems to qualify as "spiritual jazz," not something I can particularly relate to. B+(*) [bc] Dreezy: Big Dreez (2019, Interscope): Chicago rapper Seandrea Sledge, dropped an album in 2016, this considered a mixtape, the difference unclear to me. B+(**) FAVX: Welfare (2018, Miel de Moscas/Burger, EP): Postpunk group, from Madrid, Spain, six songs (in English), 19:22: can't tell much beyond loud, brash, hooky. B+(**) [bc] Michael Foster/Katherine Young/Michael Zerang: Bind the Hand(s) That Feed (2018, Relative Pitch): Saxophonist (soprano/tenor), based in Brooklyn, Discogs lists 14 albums since 2013, all but one with co-credits, but he's escaped my attention before. Young plans bassoon and electronics, mostly the latter here, and Zerang is a drummer. Not much unless you listen closely, and even then you wonder why bother? B+(*) Guillermo Gregorio & Brandon Lopez: 12 Episodes (2017 [2019], Relative Pitch): Clarinet player (alto sax elsewhere), born in Argentina, past 70, based in Chicago, home of the young bassist, who rounds out these abstract duets. B+(**) [cd] Hama: Houmeissa (2019, Sahel Sounds): Mouhamadou Moussa, from Niger, plays keyboards or builds his music on a laptop (as seems to be the case here). Result is closer to electronica than to Saharan blues or rock. Some vocals, but mostly just for shading. B+(*) Izumi Kimura/Barry Guy/Gerry Hemingway: Illuminated Silence (2018 [2019], Fundacja Sluchaj): Japanese pianist, based in Ireland, has a previous album (subtitled Piano Music From Japan and Ireland), draws some major names for this trio here. B+(**) [bc] Brian Krock: Liddle (2018 [2019], Outside In Music): Alto saxophonist (also clarinet and bass clarinet here), first album under his own name after last year's Big Heart Machine big band. Five or six musicians, with Matt Mitchel (piano) and Olli Hirvonen (guitar). Slippery postbop, hard to pin down. B+(**) [cd] Lapis Trio: The Travelers (2017 [2019], Shifting Paradigm): Chicago group, principally guitarist Casey Nielson, also Dan Thatcher (bass) and Tim Mulvenna (drums). Light, attractive postbop groove. B+(*) [cd] James Brandon Lewis: An Unruly Manifesto (2018 [2019], Relative Pitch): Tenor saxophonist, chops so impressive he got a major label contract out of the gate, made two great albums for them before parting ways -- perhaps they figured he was too far out, but he's only gotten farther out since (especially in the poet-led ensemble Heroes Are Gang Leaders). Quintet here with Jaimie Branch (trumpet), Anthony Pirog (guitar), Luke Stewart (bass), and Warren Trae Crudup III (drums), for some kind of rocking freebop. A- [dl] David Liebman/Jeff Coffin/Victor Wooten/Chester Thompson/Chris Walters/James DaSilva: On the Corner Live! The Music of Miles Davis (2015 [2019], Ear Up): Saxophonist Coffin was the actual leader here, but artist names listed as "featuring," and Liebman -- who played with Davis on the 1972 album honored here -- does the introductions. The others play electric bass, drums, keyboards, and guitar, so the only trumpet is on the cover. B+(**) Branford Marsalis Quartet: The Secret Between the Shadow and the Soul (2018 [2019], Okeh): Saxophonist -- figure tenor plus a token bit of soprano -- with Joey Calderazzo (piano), Eric Revis (bass), and Justin Faulkner (drums). Two songs each for Calderazzo and Revis, one for the leader, covers of Andrew Hill and Keith Jarrett. Nothing surprising, but a very solid return to form. B+(***) Mdou Moctar: Blue Stage Session (2018 [2019], Third Man): Major guitarist from the famed Tuareg hamlet of Agadez in Niger, deep into the Saharan Desert. I've been impressed by his work before, but wonder sometimes how much one needs. Still, hard to fault this live set recorded on tour in Detroit. In fact, it may be the one to recommend first. A- Jessica Pavone: In the Action (2018 [2019], Relative Pitch): Plays viola, associated mostly with Mary Halvorson, solo here, also credited with effects -- explains the patch of electronic static late on. Not an instrument I enjoy, but she holds my attention, mostly on edge. B+(**) [cd] People Under the Stairs: Sincerely, the P (2019, Piecelock 70): Los Angeles hip-hop duo, Christopher Portugal (Thes One) and Michael Turner (Double K), formed in 1997, decided to call it quits with this final album. First I've heard of them, but I feel right at home. After all, their beats would have been recognized as old style even when they started. And while they're not as old as I am, their maturity sounds earned. A- Powder: Powder in Space (DJ Mix) (2019, Beats in Space): Japanese DJ/producer Moko Shibata, remixing various artists (including one of his own cuts, no one else I particularly recognize). Mostly nice beats with minor variations. B+(**) Psymun: All Killer No Filler (2018, self-released, EP): Minneapolis DJ Simon Christenson, three albums and various shorter releases, this one 5 tracks, 21:04, "just the latest things I've been working on." High point a bit of rap with Chester Watson. B+(*) [bc] Idris Rahman/Leon Brichard/Tom Skinner: Wildflower (2017, self-released): Sax, bass, and drums, the first two also in the group Ill Considered, the change of drummers making this a bit more conventional. Rahman also plays flute, both on the opener and its reprise at the end. Notes cite spiritual jazz, including Yusef Lateef. B+(**) Alfredo Rodriguez/Pedrito Martinez: Duologue (2019, Mack Avenue): Cuban expats, piano and percussion, a duo but both sing so they're mostly accompanists. Not great singers, but you don't miss not having a full band. B+(***) Rüfüs Du Sol: Solace (2018, Reprise): Australian alt-dance group, I figure them as electropop rather than electronica, similar to Chromeo but less amusing. B+(*) Catherine Russell: Alone Together (2019, Dot Time): Got a late start with her first album at 50. This makes 7 since 2006, standards, musical director guitarist Matt Munisteri, Mark Shane on piano, a good retro horn sextion on 7/11 tracks (Jon-Erik Kellso, John Allred, Evan Arntzen). Fine, but not as striking as her recent albums. B+(**) Dua Saleh: Nur (2019, Against Giants, EP): From Sudan, rapper based in St. Paul, Minnesota, 5 cut (21:06) EP produced by Psymun, a Minneapolis beatmaker with ten or so releases since 2012. Sounds promising, then slips from consciousness. B+(**) The Specials: Encore (2019, Island): British ska band, founded 1977, heyday 1980-81, split up in 1984, had a brief reunion in 1993, then a stretch that produced four albums 1996-2001. In 2007 they regrouped for some concerts, and have played off and on ever since, but hadn't recorded an album until this one. Not bad, as these things go. Deluxe Edition adds a live disc I didn't bother with. B+(*) Lyn Stanley: London Calling: A Toast to Julie London (2018 [2019], A.T. Music): Standards singer, from Tacoma, sixth album since 2013, does a fair approximation of London doing classic songbook material you've heard dozens (or hundreds) of times before. B+(*) [cd] Tallawit Timbouctou: Hali Diallo (2011 [2018], Sahel Sounds): Traditional Saharan group from northern Mali, Aghaly Ag Amoumine sings and plays tehardine, accompanied by a second tehardin (bass) and calabash (percussion). Recommended if you think the better known Saharan bands are just a little too polished. This is pretty raw. B+(***) [bc] David Torn/Tim Berne/Ches Smith: Sun of Goldfinger (2015-18 [2019], ECM): Guitarist, recorded a couple of albums for ECM 1985-87, more on obscure labels until his return in 2007. In the meantime started producing Berne (alto sax), who followed him to ECM with his Snake Oil group, including drummer Smith. Three 22-24 minute pieces, two by the trio, the middle one an expanded group with piano (Craig Taborn), guitars, and strings (Scorchio Quartet) thickening the atmosphere. The final cut is called "Soften the Blow," but it only gets harder and more furious. B+(***) Typical Sisters: Hungry Ghost (2017 [2019], Outside In Music): Guitar-bass-drums trio: Gregory Uhlmann, Clark Sommers, and Matt Carroll. Title seems to reference insatiable consumerism, but the message is more like chill out. B+(**) [cd] Trevor Watts/Stephen Grew: Let It Be: Live in Liverpool (2018 [2019], Fundacja Sluchaj): Duo alto/soprano sax and piano, the former one of the founders of the British avant-garde, the latter's discography kicking off in 2014. Lively, but a bit arch. B+(*) [bc] Recent reissues, compilations, and vault discoveries: Travailler, C'est Trop Dur: The Lyrical Legacy of Caesar Vincent ([2018], Swallow, 2CD): Vincent (1882-1970) was a subsistence farmer who wrote a few Cajun songs. Harry Oster recorded him in 1953, offering three in his 1957 A Sampler of Louisiana Folksongs. Somehow Vincent became the honoree of 2018's Festivals Acadiens et Créoles. No dates on these 20 recordings, which include a couple with Vincent but also feature recent artists (Steve Riley, Zachary Richard, etc.). B+(*) Old music: Chick Corea: The Complete "Is" Sessions (1969 [2002], Blue Note, 2CD): Expands his 1969 album Is with alternate takes, from a period when the pianist was close to the avant fringe -- there is a fair aount of that here, especially with Bennie Maupin (tenor sax), but Hubert Laws (flute) has other ideas, with Woody Shaw (trumpet) in the middle. Rhythm section was young and fast on their way to becoming major players: Dave Holland (bass) and Jack DeJohnette (drums). B+(**) Chick Corea: The Song of Singing (1970 [1989], Blue Note): Piano trio, with Dave Holland (bass) and Barry Altschul (drums), from a period when the same group plus Anthony Braxton were recording as Circle, and Corea and Holland were playing with Miles Davis. B+(***) Chick Corea: Verve Jazz Masters 3 (1972-78 [1993], Verve): Early CD-era compilation of a critical period in the pianist's career, when he moved from his early postbop and avant interests to grab a piece of the fusion jackpot and lay claim to his Spanish roots. Mostly electric keyboards, scattered horns and/or strings, a couple of vocals (Gayle Moran). Works as a lively cross-section, although he winds up much less interesting than he started. B+(*) Joe McPhee & Ingebrigt Håker Flaten: Bricktop (2015 [2016], Trost): Avant tenor sax/bass duo. B+(**) [bc] Stanley Turrentine: Comin' Your Way (1961 [1987], Blue Note): Tenor saxophonist, at home in soul jazz, later on a marvelous ballad player. Just getting started here, a quintet with brother Tommy Turrentine on trumpet, Horace Parlan on piano, plus bass and drums. B+(*) Grade (or other) changes:
Unpacking: Found in the mail last week:
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