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An occasional blog about populist politics and popular music, not necessarily at the same time. LinksLocal Links My Other Websites Music Politics Others Networking Music DatabaseArtist Search: Website SearchGoogle: Recent Reading
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Tuesday, October 22, 2024 Music Week
October archive (in progress). Music: Current count 43065 [43039] rated (+26), 46 [41] unrated (+5). Published another abbreviated Speaking of Which yesterday. Came to 212 links, 12063 words, but I added some more stuff this morning, and may add even more before this is posted. My computer time (listening and writing) was limited last week, mostly by a home repair project that drags on and on, with little hope of winding up soon. Well, maybe a little hope: the collapsed ceiling is repaired, old wallpaper removed, walls patched up, the bedroom walls primed, half of the closet paneling put up, and we just got back from buying finish paint. If I can muster the time, the paint and paneling should be doable in 2-3 days, but I haven't been able to get many good working shifts in, and I've repeatedly been snagged by Murphy's law. Plus, I have another project this week, which is being pushed ahead by a deadline, plus the thought that it might be a lot more fun to do. That's my annual birthday dinner, scheduled for Friday, with at present nothing more than a concept: my first ever stab at making Burmese cuisine. I've often picked out exotic locales for past birthday dinners, and in my peak years managed to make twenty-some dishes. But I've never picked one I had so little experience with and knew so little about. My experience is one take-out meal in New York at least 12 years ago. The reason I can date it is because I bought a Burmese cookbook shortly after, but it didn't have the dish that most delighted me from the restaurant, and nothing else really caught my eye, so I've never cooked anything from it. The concept came from seeing that cookbook on the shelf, and thinking maybe I should finally do something with it. I may have made a dish or two from broader area cookbooks -- Charmaine Solomon's The Complete Asian Cookbook introduced me to all hot spots from India through Indonesia and China to Japan -- and I've gone deep on Indian (although not necessarily Bengali), Thai, and Chinese, which border old Burma (now Myanmar), so I expect to be working within those parameters. But as of Tuesday afternoon, I still don't have a menu, much less any shopping or prep done. My only move so far has been to buy a second Burmese cookbook, plus one that's more generically southeast Asian. (I haven't generally been listing cookbooks in my "recent reading" roll, but added my old Burma: Rivers of Flavor last week, so I figured I might as well spotlight the new books as well.) Generic southeast Asian may well be what I wind up with -- especially given that the local grocers are mostly Vietnamese, plus a couple Indian. I'm torn between working on the room and on the menu next, but either option seems more enticing that diddling further on this post. Should be enough here for any decent week. New records reviewed this week: Nick Adema: Urban Chaos (2023 [2024], ZenneZ): Trombonist from Canada, based in Amsterdam, has a previous 2022 album as Adema Manouikas Octet but effectively his debut, mostly a quartet with piano/electric bass/drums, but includes a patch of string quartet, some guest guitar and horns, most prominently Noah Preminger (tenor sax) on 7 (of 12) tracks, and one vocal -- a surplus of ideas, held together with some fine trombone. B+(***) [cd] JD Allen: The Dark, the Light, the Grey and the Colorful (2024, Savant): Tenor saxophonist, many impressive albums since 1998, mostly trios with bass (here Gregg August and/or Ian Kenselaar) and drums (Nic Cacioppo). Seems rather restrained. B+(**) [sp] Andy Baker: From Here, From There (2018 [2024], Calligram): Trombonist, originally from London but based in Chicago, has side credits going back to National Youth Jazz Orchestra in 1996 but this seems to be his first album as leader. With Russ Johnson (trumpet), Clark Sommers (bass), and Dana Hall (drums). B+(**) [cd] Basic: This Is Basic (2024, No Quarter): Trio of Chris Forsyth (guitar), Nick Millevoi (baritone guitar & drum machine), and Mikel Patrick Avery (percussion & electronics). Forsyth has albums going back to 1998, seems to be more rooted in rock than in jazz (where I have a previous album filed), cites Manzanera, Fripp, and Frith in his notes, as well as Robert Quine, who's 1984 duo album with Fred Maher is taken as the name of this group. No vocals, all jagged rhythms too insistent to decay into drone. B+(***) [sp] Big Freedia With the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra: Live at the Orpheum Theater (2023 [2024], Queen Diva): New Orleans rapper Freddie Ross Jr., influenced by drag queens, released a single in 1999 and a mixtape in 2003, counts two studio albums, gets full orchestra backing for this live party. B+(***) [sp] Anne Burnell & Mark Burnell: This Could Be the Start of Something Big (2024, Spectrum Music): Both sing, Mark plays piano, some originals mixed in with the standards, backed by bass and drums, plus sax (Pat Mallinger) on six tracks, guitar (Fareed Haque) on five (four others). B [cd] Chris Corsano/Joe Baiza/Mike Watt: Corsano Baiza Watt Trio (2023 [2024], Yucca Alta): Drums, guitar, bass, only the group name on the cover. Discogs credits the drummer with 81 albums since 2002, mostly shared headlines, plus at least as many side-credits (going back to 1996). The others came out of rock groups: Baiza from Saccharine Trust, Watt (much more famously) from Minutemen. B+(*) [bc] Doug Ferony With His Swingin Big Band: Alright Okay You Win (2024, Ferony Enterprizes Music): Singer, handful of albums going back to 1994, leads a big band (as advertised) through fourteen standards, all done better in the past, most by Frank Sinatra. B [cd] Ingebrigt Håker Flaten/(Exit) Knarr: Breezy (2024, Sonic Transmissions): Norwegian bassist, very active since 1994 -- Discogs credits him on 260 albums, second album with this group, which includes trumpet, two saxophonists, piano, and drums, with spots of guitar or synth. B+(**) [sp] Floating Points: Cascade (2024, Ninja Tune): British electronica producer Sam Shepherd, fifth album since 2015, threw everyone a curve last time when he mixed in Pharoah Sanders and the London Symphony Orchestra. I'd say this is a return to form, but it's much better than that: a relentless stream of dance beats that keeps you moving through thick and thin. A- [sp] Darius Jones: Legend of e'Boi (The Hypervigilant Eye) (2024, AUM Fidelity): Alto saxophonist, burst onto the scene with a 2009 album called Man'ish Boy (A Raw & Beautiful Thing), to which this is at least nominally a "Chapter VII" (of a planned nine). This is a trio, with Chris Lightcap (bass) and Gerald Cleaver (drums), bristling with energy, but paced with well-measured spots of reflective calm. A- [cd] Doug MacDonald and the Coachella Valley Trio: Live at the Rancho Mirage Library (2024, DMAC Music): Jazz guitarist, many albums, finds a nice groove in a set backed by bass and drums, with special guest Big Black on djembe. B+(**) [cd] Mark Masters Ensemble: Sui Generis (2023 [2024], Capri): Big band arranger, has a regular stream of albums since 1984, dubs this "a jazz concerto for chamber orchestra," featuring trumpet player Tim Hagans. B+(**) [cd] Gurf Morlix: In Love at Zero Degrees (2024, Rootball): Alt-country singer-songwriter, originally from Buffalo, moved to Texas in 1975, best known for his associations with Blaze Foley and Lucinda Williams, and maybe as a producer, but has a steady series of own albums since 2000. This one is toned down, but steady and solid. B+(**) [sp] Eric Person: Rhythm Edge (2024, Distinction): Saxophonist (soprano, alto, tenor, flute), ten or so albums since 1993, notable side credits with Ronald Shannon Jackson, Chico Hamilton and Dave Holland, and a fling with World Saxophone Quartet. He's joined here by Ingrid Jensen (trumpet), Robin Eubanks (trombone), and a fusion-oriented rhythm section that includes organ, piano/keyboards, guitar, bass, and drums, and offers no edge that I can discern, although when uncluttered he remains a very respectable saxophonist. B [cd] Jason Robinson: Ancestral Numbers II (2023 [2024], Playscape): Might as well recycle my review of the previous album, released back in May: Saxophonist (tenor/soprano here, also alto flute), albums since 1998, composed everything here, thinking about his ancestors. Quintet with Michael Dessen (trombone), Joshua White (piano), Drew Gress (bass), and Ches Smith (drums). Interesting throughout, and this time connected even quicker. A- [cd] Snotty Nose Rez Kids: Red Future (2024, Savage Mob): First Nations rappers from Canada, sixth album since 2017. B+(***) [sp] Moses Sumney: Sophcore (2024, Tuntum, EP): Born in California, "grew up on a goat farm in Accra [Ghana]," moved to Los Angeles after high school, has two albums, several EPs -- this one six songs, 20:37. B+(*) [sp] Ohad Talmor/Chris Tordini/Eric McPherson: Back to the Land (2023 [2024], Intakt, 2CD): French tenor saxophonist, mostly associated with Lee Konitz, also plays bass clarinet and some electronics here, second credit tier line plays bass and drums, but there are seven more names in smaller print, most pretty notable ones at that, and then at the bottom of the cover you see "Ornette Coleman" -- the new pieces are mostly variations on old Coleman pieces, with some mention of Dewey Redman. B+(***) [sp] Fred Thomas: Window in the Rhythm (2024, Polyvinyl): Indie rock singer-songwriter from Michigan, started in 1994 math rock band Chore, then joined His Name Is Alive, before his solo debut in 2002, with a dozen more up to this one. Sometimes hits an interesting vibe, but I can't quite peg it, or maybe just can't be bothered. B+(*) [sp] Tropical Fuck Storm: Tropical Fuck Storm's Inflatable Graveyard (2024, Three Lobed): Australian art-punk band, formed by two members of the Drones (Gareth Liddiard and Fiona Kitschin), two others, with three studio albums since 2018, back here with a live double. Seems a bit much. B+(*) [sp] Jack Wood & Nichaud Fitzgibbon: Movie Magic: Great Songs From the Movies (2024, Jazz Hang): Wood was billed as "a classic crooner," based in southern California, released a "best of" (with no recording dates) early in the year which proved surprisingly engaging, and featured the Australian Fitzgibbon as a guest. She's definitely his better half, which helps on this collection of classic movie schmaltz, backed tastefully by a long list of musician credits, from a half-dozen studios, also undated. B+(**) [cd] Jamie xx: In Waves (2024, Young): British electropop producer James Smith, name from his group (The xx) with Oliver Sim and Romy Madley (three albums 2009-17), second solo album after a 2015 side-project. Dance beats illuminate the world. A- [sp] Dann Zinn: Two Roads (2024, Ridgeway): Tenor saxophonist, based in Bay Area, sixth album, postbop quintet with Rachel Z (piano), Jeff Denson (bass), Omar Hakim (drums), and Brian Rice (percussion). B+(**) [cd] Recent reissues, compilations, and vault discoveries: William Basinski: September 23rd (1982 [2024], Temporary Residence): Classically-trained electronic composer, many albums since 2001 but reaches back into his early archives for this 40:11 ambient-meets-drone piece. B+(*) [bc] Old music: Adema Manoukas Octet: New Roots (2021 [2022], self-released): Canadian group, met at University of Toronto, led by composer/arrangers Nick Adema (trombone) and Alex Manoukas (baritone sax), with trumpet, two more saxophones, and unidentified rhythm. B+(***) [bc] Sister Rosetta Tharpe: The Swinging Gospel Queen 1939-1947 (1937-47 [1998], Blues Collection): Gospel singer (1915-73), at least due to her subject matter, but she strums a mean guitar, and with half the voice and no backup singers she could pass for a folksinger, and a rocking one at that. I was surprised to find no graded albums in my database (despite seven albums, including a 4-CD Properbox, on the "shopping" list) -- "Up Above My Head I Hear Music in the Air" is one of my most persistent earworms -- so when I noticed a new Acrobat collection (The Singles Collection As & Bs 1939-1950), I was first tempted to buy it, then considered the Christgau-recommended The Absolutely Essential 3CD Collection, but came to my senses and checked out what I could stream. This one may be out of print, but comes from their generally reliable "Historic Recordings" series, with twenty songs, including my earworm and many more contenders (like "Everybody's Gonna Have a Wonderful Time Up Here"). Also named on the cover: Lucky Millinder, Sammy Price, Marie Knight. A- [sp] Sister Rosetta Tharpe: Live in 1960 (1960 [1991], ORG Music): A solo set, so just her voice and guitar with the voice worked extra hard, a dozen songs, mostly standards but not necessarily hers ("Precious Lord," "Down by the Riverside," "Peace in the Valley"). B+(**) [sp] Sister Rosetta Tharpe: Sister on Tour (1961, Verve): Another live set, from New York, with a hard-swinging band, identified only as "arranged and conducted by Teacho Wiltshire." B+(***) [sp] Unpacking: Found in the mail last week:
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