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Music Week [0 - 9]

Tuesday, November 18, 2025

November archive (in progress).

Music: Current count 45155 [45120] rated (+35), 12 [16] unrated (-4).

So much stuff up in the air right now I'll need a moment to map it out. One thing that's taking a lot of my time is work on or related to the house. We had a hail storm blow through town in early September, which did some significant and much trivial damage. It was followed by swarms of insurance adjusters and roofing companies squabbling over which was which, and who's on the hook for how much of it. The insurance company decided we had $25k of damage, but they only had to pay $10k to cover it. One roofing company contended that the damage was really $45k, but they offered to do something for $16k. Two more companies submitted slightly lower bids, figuring that the insurance was done and just trying to soak up the cash. More came sniffing around, and for one reason or another made themselves scarce: was it me they didn't want to deal with, or the house? One never knows for sure, but my old paranoia has been kicking in.

So was my own peculiar view on what is important and what isn't. We spent a lot of time talking about attic ventilation, but I've had a 25-year itch to do something else with the attic space — not to finish it, but at least to make it accessible, and possibly useful as storage space. Also the carport, which has a patio on top, with rails around the perimeter that aren't quite straight. So I've come up with two construction projects that dovetail into roof work but I'll have to do myself: one is to lay down some more decking in the attic, raised above a lot of blown-in insulation; the other is to square away the patio railing. I have a guy lined up to help me with those two projects. I also finally decided on a roofer. Now I need to get my projects done approximately the same time the roofer shows up. That's a challenge, but I've been putting a lot of thought into it, and hopefully soon some actual work.

Then there's a dozen more home projects of various size and urgency. No point listing them here, but just know that there are many, most trivial and a few not, mostly things I can put off doing but some turn into emergencies rather quickly. Right now I interrupt this paragraph to drag trash and recycle bins to the curb. By the time I returned, I had to attend to a few more chores. This everyday life is always like that. Not leaving me much time to write about it as I had intended.

But by far the biggest time sink in my life this past week has been the 20th Annual Francis Davis Jazz Critics Poll. I sent out a mass email to prospective voters on Nov. 12, basically affirming that we are live and open for business. While that email list is easy for me to send to, it presents problems for many recipients. What I've found works better (but still, I can't tell but don't doubt, imperfectly) is to run my invitation letter through a mail merge program and generate a batch of letters that I can then send out one-by-one. The program that spits out the letters works fine. My SMTP service doesn't, so I have to not only hit "edit" and "send" for each letter, I have to space those out so my service vendor doesn't think I'm spamming the world. I wanted to hold off on doing all that until I had time to review the invite list and do some further research to qualify more voters. I didn't get any of that done, at least in time to meet my self-imposed November 15 deadline. So I ran with what I had, and generated 287 invites. I deleted 2 of them, and held back another half-dozen (thinking I'd like to add more personal notes to them), and started sending the rest, a couple hours into November 16. I finished about 20 hours later. So that's done. I got one bounce, which I resent to an alternate address. Since then, I've gotten a small amount of mail back: 4-5 ballots, a dozen-plus promises to vote, and 3-4 notices of no intention to vote.

I mentioned that in addition to the jazzpoll email list, I have a jpadmin list for people who are interested in helping out with various tasks — the bare minimum is listening to me rant, a sounding board I do very much appreciate. I've added one name to that list. I've only sent them one update since last week, but another one will be forthcoming after I get this posted. I also mentioned that I wanted to set up another list to update publicists and media about the poll. I call that jpmedia, and have initialized it with 30+ names/addresses, but haven't sent anything out yet. My main question for both of those lists will be to solicit suggestions as to who else we should invite. But we made enough progress with international contacts last year to give me a good feeling about this list. So I should probably hold back the panic.

From this point up to the December 21 deadline, I can possibly slack off a bit, and just let the ballot accumulate. (Without checking, I have 2 counted and 4 more in my inbox. I should get those returned tomorrow.) Still, I have things I can do along the way: fix any problems with the website; vet and invite a few more voters; think about the ArtsFuse article package; see if I can come up with ways to get more publicity for the poll; work on redesigning the old website, as well as filling in missing pieces (some of which Francis Davis sent me a year ago). I'll write more about these things in weeks to come.

With all this happening, along with my general slowdown, there is little chance I'll do any significant writing the rest of this year. The core ideas, of course, are still floating around my head. What happens next is anyone's guess. Meanwhile, I'll probably kill what little spare time I can find — mostly blah spots when I'm not feeling up to serious work but can still do something rote and brainless — adding data to my EOY aggregate file. I have to date only added one EOY list, and I doubt I'll be able to keep up, but I'd be surprised if I don't put some effort into it. I also expect I'll whip up my usual EOY lists for jazz (not updated since shortly after the mid-year poll) and non-jazz (just set up, with no real contents yet, although I was very surprised to find the A-list non-jazz outnumbering jazz 85-73, both of which are abnormally long for this point in the year).

I didn't get this up on Monday, so I'm resuming here on Tuesday (no new records, although there are some drafts in the monthly archive, linked at the top). I had some more things to mention, and just ran out of steam.

First, I need to release a Loose Tabs later this week. I've been collecting stuff as we go on — not a lot, and not very consistently — and it's piled up to the point where some stories are beginning to decompose and maybe even reek. (The first section is on the election, followed by the shutdown. I wrote a bit about both in my Nov. 12 Notes on Everyday Life newsletter. I also wrote about Dick Cheney and Jack DeJohnette there. Now I need to add Todd Snider. In the meantime, see Robert Christgau's Big Lookback.) I'll try to knock that out later this week. I doubt I can do justice to Snider. I've never been much good with lyrics, but he has many memorable ones. One that sticks in my mind is "in America we like our bad guys dead." That sums up a lot of what's wrong with this country. (That's from "Tension," which goes on to note that "Republicans/ that's what scares people these days/ that, and uh, Democrats.")

A big chunk of this week's A-list came from Christgau's Consumer Guide: November, 2025. That came out the same day as my NOEL post, so I included a checklist of what I had heard previously and what I hadn't (and in some cases wasn't even aware of — the Todd Snider and Gurf Morlix albums were in that category, as well as one of two African albums; the other I heard on a Phil Overeem tip, one of many nearly every week). Given that this week's report was cut short two days by my delay last week, I'm surprised that the rated count hit 30. But with ballots and EOY lists coming in, 'tis the season for moving fast and disregarding subtlety, confident that the major things you missed during the year will knock you over anyway.

This got me wondering how my attention this year stacks up against last year. This year, my tracking file shows I have 1159 albums rated so far. In 2024 that number was 1524, but as that includes albums rated after last year's freeze date (Mar. 31, 2025), it should be reduced by at least the number of late ratings in the 2024 file (79, so 1445). This year's total is 80.2% of last year's total. We are currently 320 days into 2025, so 87.6% through the year, which suggests that I'm down 7.4% from last year, but a more realistic gauge of the year would be February through January, as typically 80% or more of January reviews are of previous year records. (That's a swag, but wouldn't be too hard to check here. To be totally accurate, you'd also have to factor in reviews of 2024 albums in February and March, before the March 31 freeze date.) Shifting January (31 days) into the previous year means we're 289 days into 2025, so 79.1% done. That means I'm on very close to the same trajectory as in 2024: extending the current rate of 1159 albums over 289 days to a full year would bring me to 1465 albums, which would be +20 from 2024. I imagine there is some kind of function that could turn that number into a probability that I match last year's total, but lacking that, all I can do is guess, something like 85%. Nine months ago I would have guessed much less, something like 15%. So, like a Todd Snider concert, doubt this year's run of reviews is much more than an improbable "distracrtion from our impending doom." His death is a sobering reminder of how suddenly 85% can collapse to zero.

New records reviewed this week:

Ata Kak: Batakari (2025, Awesome Tapes From Africa): Real name Yaw Atta-Owusu, left his native Ghana in 1985 for Germany (and later Canada), recorded one and only album in 1994, Obaa Sima, which remained obscure even there until Brian Shimkovitz picked up a copy and, when he turned his blog into a label, reissued it in 2015. This appears to be a new album, making it his second, the initial hip-hop/highlife mix skewing towards boom-bap and dance grooves. Six songs, 26:19. B+(***) [sp]

Bloomers: Cyclism (2022-23 [2025], Relative Pitch): Free/chamber jazz trio with trumpet (Anne Efternøler) and two clarinets (Maria Dybbroe, also on alto sax, and Carolyn Goodwin, also bass clarinet). Songs titles are place and dates, "each dedicated to an important historical event in the struggle for women's freedom" — including the 1818 birthdate of Amelia Bloomer, "whose name became synonymous with the liberational cycling garment for women in the 1800s." B+(***) [sp]

Christer Bothén: Christer Bothén Donso N'goni (2022-23 [2025], Black Truffle): Swedish musician, in his 80s, most often plays clarinets but has taken an interest in African instruments, and only plays donso n'goni on this record. B+(**) [bc]

Juan Chiavassa: Fourth Generation (2024 [2025], Whirlwind): Drummer, from Argentina, first album as leader, recorded this in New York, hard to really treat it as a debut album given that his group consists of John Patitucci (bass), George Garzone (tenor sax), and Leo Genovese (piano/rhodes), with featured credits for Mike Stern (guitar) and Pedrito Martinez (congas), maybe just on the "bonus track." Hard to mistake the saxophonist. B+(***) [cd]

The Cosmic Tones Research Trio: The Cosmic Tones Research Trio (2025, Mississippi): Group from Portland, second album, includes: Roman Norfleet (alto/soprano sax, alto clarinet, flute, vocals, percussion); Harlan Silverman (cello, flute, modular synth, bass, vocals, percussion); Kennedy Verrett (piano/rhodes, duduk, vocals). B+(*) [sp]

Eddie Daniels: To Milton With Love (2025, Resonance): Clarinet and saxophone player, in his 80s, debut 1966, quickly developed an interest in Brazilian music, which he's pursued recently with tributes to Egberto Gismonti and Ivan Lins. Here he recreates Milton Nascimento's 1969 CTI album, Courage, with Anthony Wilson (guitar), Josh Nelson (piano), Kevin Axt (bass), Ray Brinker (drums), and the Lyris String Quartet. B+(**) [sp]

Amir ElSaffar: New Quartet Live at Pierre Boulez Saal (2023 [2025], Maqām): Iraqi-American trumpet player, born in Chicago, albums since 2007, often with an Arabic tinge. Member names are on cover: Tomas Fujiwara (drums), Tania Giannouli (microtonal piano), and Ole Mathisen (tenor sax). B+(***) [sp]

Steve Gunn: Daylight Daylight (2025, No Quarter): Singer-songwriter, from Pennsylvania, based in Brooklyn, has a couple dozen albums since 2007, including a recent jazz album with Beings. This one is slow, pretty and very self-contained. B+(**) [sp]

Lafayette Harris Jr.: All in Good Time (2025, Savant): Pianist, from Philadelphia, first album in 1993 on Muse, last couple on Savant, this with bass and drums plus "special guests" Houston Person (tenor sax) and Jeremy Pelt (trumpet). B+(**) [sp]

The Kasambwe Brothers: The Kasambwe Brothers (2025, MASS MoCA): Very little info here, but what I gather is that they're three brothers originally from Malawi (or maybe Mombassa, or maybe that's where they first recorded), that they've been playing for almost 40 years (since 1987), but that they've only just "made their first trip to the United States to take part in a residency at MASS MoCA during which they will record their first full-length album at Studio 9 and perform in the Hunter Center!" This is presumably that album, using homemade instruments, playing music that sounds old and timeless. A- [sp]

Dave Liebman/Billy Hart/Adam Rudolph: Beingness (2023 [2025], Meta/Defkaz): From two live sets at the Stone, Liebman plays soprano sax and wood flutes, with Hart on his drum set and Rudolph on hand drums, piano, thumb pianos, keyboards, gongs, dakha de bello, with live electronic processing. B+(**) [os]

Russ Lossing: Proximity Alert (2025, Blaser Music): Pianist, from Ohio, debut 1990, has close to 20 albums, this a trio with Mark Helias (bass) and Eric McPherson (drums), playing his own original pieces. Fine pianist, strong group. B+(**) [sp]

Gurf Morlix: Bristlecone (2025, Rootball): Alt-country singer-songwriter, associated with Blaze Foley early on, then with Lucinda Williams, moving on to his own albums from 2000 on. I didn't pick up the political overtones Christgau has applauded until I double-checked, but by then I was already struck by solid this feels. A- [sp]

Maren Morris: Dreamsicle (2025, Columbia): Country singer-songwriter, from Texas, three obscure albums 2005-11 before she went gold/platinum on Columbia in 2016. With Jack Antonoff producing (among many others), this moves more into mainstream pop, or maybe I'm just responding to the hooks. "Deluxe Edition" includes an extra single, "Be a Bitch." B+(***) [sp]

Van Morrison: Remembering Now (2025, Exile/Virgin): Legend, since 1967 has never gone more than 2 years between albums, creative peak was in the early 1970s, extending to 1982 with Into the Music and Beautiful Vision, but he's so singular and magical all he has to do is remind you of his old self. Of course, he's been less reliable lately, although 2016's Keep Me Singing and even more so 2012's Born to Sing are outstanding. This 47th studio album has more than a few moments of wonder. B+(**) [sp]

Willie Nelson: Workin' Man: Willie Sings Merle (2025, Legacy): At 92, he can still sing other folks' songs better than they did, even familiar ones from such unimpeachable sources as Haggard. My only reservation is that his interpretive effort was zero, even on a song like "Okie from Muskogee," which even Merle had trouble singing with a straight face. Pure chops, and not just the singer but the band. At this point I'm not even sure Lefty Frizzell would be an overreach. Still, I wish he'd do James Talley. How can he pass up a title like Are They Gonna Make Us Outlaws Again? A- [sp]

Red River Dialect: Basic Country Mustard (2024 [2025], Hinterground): English neo-folk band, David Morris the singer-songwriter-guitarist, eighth album since 2005. Mostly intimate, but backed with a full band, which fits needs. B+(***) [sp]

Ted Rosenthal Trio: Classics Reimagined: Impromp2 (2024 [2025], TMR): Pianist, debut 1990, made an appearance in the Maybeck Hall solo series, looking at his side credits, Randy Sandke and Ken Peplowski are prominent. I grew up with an intense distaste for classical music, which he quickly disarms with a Chopin that reminds me of boogie woogie, and ends with a Chopin waltz, touching on Beethoven and Brahms, Mussorgsky and Rachmaninoff, Satie and Elgar and Dvorak. The trio has bass (Noriko Ueda) and drums (Quincy Davis or Tim Horner), plus guest spots for Peplowski (clarinet) and Sara Caswell (violin). Only the violin riles up my allergies, and just barely. B+(**) [cd]

Saint Pierre: Luck and Gravity (2025, Mutchcrud Music): Husband and wife team Julia & Danny St. Pierre, from Texas via California, seems to be their first album, press refers to Saint Pierre Band but album cover omits "Band," although they certainly have one, very straightforward rock with big gestures. Almost good enough to overcome my general disinterest in a style that reminds me first of the Eagles (but brighter and chirpier, probably because they aren't assholes). B+(***) [sp]

Amanda Shires: Nobody's Girl (2025, ATO): Singer-songwriter from Texas, plays violin, ninth album since 2005, plus collaborations with Rob Picott, Bobbie Nelson, Jason Isbell, and the Highwomen, and side credits that include John Prine, Todd Snider, and Luke Combs. While I've seen arguments that she was ex-husband Isbell's better half, I don't have much of an impression of her. I still don't, but this sounds quite accomplished, the arrangements impeccable, strings included, the voice winning and words (when I notice) a plus. A- [sp]

Todd Snider: High, Lonesome and Then Some (2025, Aimless): Folk singer-songwriter, started with Songs for the Daily Planet in 1994, passed through a period on John Prine's label — I saw him once, opening for Prine — into a string of superb albums at least up through 2012. Since then he's been erratic, aside from a live album where his shtick is as brilliant as his songs, but even when he's cryptic and/or harsh, he's worth listening to. A- [sp]

Spinifex: Maxximus (2025, Trytone): "European international modern fusion quintet based in the Netherlands," a dozen albums since 2011, the "core band" directed by Tobias Klein (alto sax), with John Dikeman (tenor sax), Jasper Stadhouders (guitar), Gonçal Almeida (bass), and Philipp Moser (drums), with extra depth here: trumpet (Bret Maris), vibes (Evi Filippou), cello (Elisabeth Coudoux), and violin (Jessica Pavone). Extra length, too, with 6 pieces running over 71 minutes. B+(***) [cd]

Tortoise: Touch (2025, International Anthem): Chicago group, originally just bass (Doug McCombs) and drums (John Herndon), conceived of themselves as "post-rock," adding Dan Bitney and John McEntire for their 1994 debut, with a series of guitarist before settling on Jeff Parker in 1998. Eighth studio album, this one coming after a 9-year break. Instrumental, well practiced grooves. B+(**) [sp]

Beatie Wolfe & Brian Eno: Luminal (2025, Verve): Wolfe is a "conceptual artist, composer, producer, activist" from London, much of which seems to appear as museum set pieces. She has three 2013-17 albums, and this year three collaborative albums with Eno: this one appeared at the same time as Lateral, which was credited first to Eno, and the later Liminal, which seems to be some kind of remix or merger or synthesis. Vocals are presumably hers. B+(**) [sp]

Brian Eno & Beatie Wolfe: Lateral (2025, Verve/Opal): Came out the same day as Luminal, no vocals, both with keyboards, although Eno also is credited with guitar. Better than average ambient, but nothing new about that. B+(*) [sp]

Beatie Wolfe & Brian Eno: Liminal (2025, Verve/Opal): Third duo album this year, appeared several months after the first two, billed as some sort of synthesis of the two previous efforts but titles are new, and Wolfe's vocals get her lead credit again. Seems slower and darker than Luminal, but that's sort of the attraction. B+(**) [sp]

Recent reissues, compilations, and vault discoveries:

Nahawa Doumbia: Vol. II (1982 [2024], Awesome Tapes From Africa): Singer from southern Mali, released three records on AS in 1981-82, plus later ones on Syllart (reissued by Stern's Africa). This label reissued Vol. 3 in 2011, Vol. 1 in 2019, and here the fill the gap. Not obvious why they waited. B+(***) [sp]

Ø: Sysivalo (2014-17 [2025], Sähkö): Unfinished work by Finnish electronica producer Mika Vainio (1963-2017), mostly short drone and/or blip pieces that add up to over an hour. B [sp]

Jean Schwarz: Unreleased & Rarities (1972-2002) (1972-2002 [2025], Transversales Disques): French ethnomusicologist, composer, electronic music pioneer, with a couple dozen albums in this period. This is the first I've heard from him, although he has on occasion intersected with jazz musicians (notably Michel Portal and Don Cherry). A bit scattered, but some interesting pieces. Probably worth a deeper dive. B+(***) [bc]

Zig-Zag Band: Chigiyo Music Kings 1987-1998 (1987-98 [2025], Analog Africa): "Trailblazers of Zimbabwe's Chigiyo Sound," which I've seen described as "a vibrant fusion of reggae, traditional rhythms, brass arrangements and mbira-inspired guitar," with "raw, soulful Shona vocals." Discogs lists three 1989-92 albums by this group. This finds its groove, and keeps the energy up. A- [sp]

Old music:

Don Cherry/Jean Schwarz: Roundtrip (1977): Live at Théâtre Réccamier, Paris (1977 [2023], Transversales Disques): Trumpet player, started with Ornette Coleman and Albert Ayler, moved to Denmark and expanded his horizons to and beyond Africa. Schwarz is a French avant-fringe composer, has a coupele dozen albums since 1974. He is credited here with: tape, synthesizer, treatments, on a live set that also features Michel Portal (bass clarinet/sax/bandoneon), Jean François Jenny Clark (bass), Naná Vasconcelos (percussion), with Cherry on pocket trumpet, ngoni, whistles, and vocals. B+(***) [bc]

Tortoise: Millions Now Living Will Never Die (1995 [1996], Thrill Jockey): Post-rock band from Chicago, second album (not counting the remix of their 1994 debut), named by The Wire as their record of the year, dumped on by Robert Christgau with a scornful B-. Core group of four (Dan Bitney, John Herndon, Douglas McCombs, John McEntire) plus new guitarist David Pajo. I'm finding it in between, nicely centered, ambient with some extra heft but nothing remotely amazing. B+(***) [sp]

Tortoise: Tortoise (1994, Thrill Jockey): First album, Bundy K. Brown was the guitarist at the time. Strikes me as a bit more tentative. B+(*) [sp]

Unpacking: Found in the mail last week:

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Wednesday, November 12, 2025

November archive (in progress).

Music: Current count 45120 [45079] rated (+41), 16 [14] unrated (+2).

I spent much of last week struggling with the feeling that I should post something on my Substack, but my original idea of a birthday dinner history was largely usurped by my planning document, and the rest would have required more research than I had time for. Besides, with the elections, I thought it might be good to offer some reaction, so I returned to an early idea, which was to every so often offer a grab bag of bits on various topics, which like Jeffrey St. Clair's Roaming Charges could end with short bits of "Booked Up" and "Sound Grammar." The latter could even be a bit more than simple lists, as I had album reviews and book notes I could draw on. I also had the draft file for Loose Tabs, although I figured that for the newsletter, I should consolidate points from the general sprawl and chaos of archival notes.

Seemed straightforward enough, but as of Sunday I barely had two introductory paragraphs, but at least we settled on concept and title: Notes on Everyday Life, without the irony of trying to turn out focused essays. When I got up on Monday, I had a choice to make: rush out Music Week, and clear my cache of music reviews, or postpone and force myself to write. I chose the latter, and sent it out this evening. I don't know how often I'll do things like this, but if you sign up, you'll get first crack on some music, books, and news links. Sure, they'll show up on the website sooner or later — actually pretty soon, as I'm archiving the posts here, including today's Notes on Everyday Life. And while the big selling point is email delivery, the websites are more authoritative, as I've already fixed one mistake I made. (I said Robert Christgau had passed on Gurf Morlix's A Taste of Ashes, but he gave it a ** grade, same as mine.) Also note that since my post, I received word that DeJohnette won the DownBeat Readers Poll Hall of Fame vote, evidently just a couple days before he died. Lots more deserving people still outside, but he did earn the nod.

The other reason I held Music Week back was I wanted to speak in the past tense about sending out a mass voter email introducing the 20th Annual Francis Davis Jazz Critics Poll. I finally got that done late this evening (further delaying this post). The website has been set up for a while, and the invitations have been drafted. I've also set up, but haven't used yet, a third email list, jpmedia. I'm going to start adding publicists to it, and send out an update in a couple days. Anyone able to help publicize the poll who would like to be included in the list please get in touch with me. I spent a good deal of time today compiling an initial list of 34 names, but those are nearly all publicists, most from my "trash" directory.

Another thing that slowed me down was writing an answer to a question about my "recent reading." Nearly everything else in my Q&A queue is a pitch for me to listen to some album. It doesn't hurt to ask, but those are best answered in Music Week. Still, lack of traffic there makes missing things easy.

I was too exhausted Wednesday night to rush this out, then got distracted Thursday, pushing this into evening. Seems like everything takes forever these days. Interesting batch of records this week. My only real thought is that I kept coming up just short with hip-hop albums, which left me doubting my cognitive skills, as I never quite kept pace with lyrics that are probably worth more effort: Danny Brown, Armand Hammer, RAP Ferreira, maybe Ashnikko. Easy to counter that the country and jazz albums, Snocaps, Mountain Goats, and Mavis Staples are more my speed these days. But they are really good albums, which signify to me right now.

Next week I need to focus on some house work (e.g., new roof), hopefully without bobbling the jazz poll too badly. My update of the metacritic file has been very hit-and-miss, but we should be seeing some end-of-year lists soon (looks like 4 at already at AOTY). I imagine I'll track them when/if I find time.

New records reviewed this week:

Rodrigo Amado: The Bridge: Further Beyond (2023 [2025], Trost): Consistently outstanding tenor saxophonist, from Portugal, albums since 2000, second album with this international quartet, where bassist Ingebrigt Håker Flaten, drummer Gerry Hemingway, and especially pianist Alexander von Schlippenbach provide much more than backup. Their 2023 album Beyond the Margins was easily the year's best — not only topping my list, but winning El Intruso's poll and showing up all the others (including ours). This one is a bit less commanding, but the group's strengths are still much in evidence. A- [bc]

Armand Hammer & the Alchemist: Mercy (2025, Backwoodz Studioz/Rhymesayers): Duo of Billy Woods and Euclid, both stars in their own right, eighth album since 2013, second with the Alchemist producing. The group albums have often seemed a bit murkier than their solo albums, and this is no exception, but the slow grind certainly has sonic appeal. B+(***) [sp]

Ashnikko: Smoochies (2025, Parlophone): Rapper-singer Ashton Casey, from North Carolina, second album after some EPs (from 2017) and a mixtape (2021). I love the beat and the energy here, but not quite enough to overcome my lack of focus on the songs. Nor does the album cover make me want to show it off. B+(***) [sp]

Martin Bejerano: The Purple Project: Reimagining the Music of Prince (2025, Figgland): Pianist, some electric keyboards, fifth album since 2007, side credits include Roy Haynes and Russell Malone, plays 10 Prince songs, with Nicole Yarling (vocals), Kurt Hengstebeck (bass), and David Chiverton (drums). Some great songs here, but none improved, or even reimagined in interesting ways, so the minor annoyances add up. B- [cd] [11-21]

Danny Brown: Stardust (2025, Warp): Detroit rapper, actual last name Sewell, sixth album since 2010. Other than fast, not sure what "hyperpop" means, but the word crops up often viz. this album. Too fast for me to follow, but the electroclash catches my fancy. B+(***) [sp]

David Broza & Omer Avital: Brozajazz: Paris Alhambra (2024 [2025], Magenta): Israeli singer-songwriter, b. 1955 in Haifa, grew up in England and Spain, lived 17 years in New Jersey before returning to Israel. Thirty-some albums, plays guitar and sings from his repertoire, backed by a jazz group led by Avital (bass), with Eden Ladin (piano), Itamar Borochov (trumpet), and Itay Morchi (drums). First I've heard of him, a long (112 minutes) live set with an enthusiastic audience, holds up well. [BDS alert: Broza has a reputation as a peace activist, but his website features a link to a "Wartime Diaries" podcast, where "Israel's leading artists began crisscrossing the country in a joint effort to lift morale." The blurb talks about the Oct. 7, 2023 Gaza revolt, with no mention of anything Israel has done since, or had done before. Needless to say, the grade below, like all of mine, reflects the music only. While in general I support BDS, and think that had the BDS movement been stronger and more effective, Israel might have veered away from its path to genocide. But I have continued to review albums by Israeli jazz artists, for various reasons, including that I personally don't want to be judged by the criminal acts of my government, and also because I believe that art given to the world breaks free from the limits and faults of its creators.] B+(***) [sp]

Joy Crookes: Juniper (2025, Insanity): British (Bangladeshi-Irish) neo-soul singer-songwriter, started with YouTube covers at 13, moved on to an EP in 2017 and an album in 2021, a Mercury Prize nominee. Second album, catches my ear, gets better on multiple replays. A- [sp]

Sam Dillon: My Ideal (2024 [2025], Cellar Music): Mainstream tenor saxophonist, several albums, more credits back to 2010, quartet with piano (David Hazeltine), bass (Alexander Claffy), and drums (Rodney Green). B+(**) [sp]

Stella Donnelly: Love and Fortune (2025, Dot Dash): Singer-songwriter from Australia, third album since 2019, first one (Beware of the Dogs) was pretty impressive. B+(**) [sp]

Chandler Dozier: Bakersfield East (2025, self-released, EP): Country singer-songwriter, from North Carolina, seems to be his first album, we'll call it an EP at 6 songs (21:13), including a Hank William cover ("Move It on Over"). Good voice, trad virtues. B+(***) [sp]

Jakob Dreyer: Roots and Things (2025, Fresh Sound New Talent): German bassist, based in New York, second album, 15 originals plus one standard, quartet with Tivon Pennicott (tenor sax), Sasha Berliner (vibes), and Kenneth Salters (drums). B+(***) [cd] [11-14]

R.A.P. Ferreira & Kenny Segal: The Night Green Side of It (2025, Ruby Yacht/Alpha Pup): Underground rapper, started as Milo (2011-18), prolific since 2019, shared an album with the producer in 2017. B+(***) [bc]

Hannah Frances: Nested in Tangles (2025, Fire Talk): Singer-songwriter, from Chicago, second album, has elements that remind me of Joni Mitchell and Kate Bush, but not enough to really pan out. B [sp]

Joshua Hedley: All Hat (2025, New West): Country singer-songwriter, plays fiddle, third album since 2018 (but Discogs also credits him with A Tribute to Bob Wills from 2000), With Ray Benson producing, this one revives his Western Swing interest. Loose, with a grin as wide as his brim. B+(**) [sp]

Nicholas Jamerson: The Narrow Way (2025, Cloverdale): Country singer-songwriter, from Kentucky, has a couple previous solo albums, several more in the duo Sundy Best. Intimate settings, two duets with his sister Emily Jamerson. But I'm not sure "hell's full of hippies" is as scary as he thinks. B+(**) [sp]

Jess Jocoy: Cul-De-Sac Kid (2025, self-released): Country singer-songwriter from suburban Seattle, third album, songs have some depth. B+(**) [sp]

Tyler Keith: I Confess (2025, Black & Wyatt): Garage/punk singer-songwriter, started in the Neckbones (1995-99), worth checking out if your tastes run to fast, hard, and primitive; later bands include the Preacher's Kids and the Apostles. This is in a similar vein, but even more junked up. B+(*) [bc]

Brennen Leigh: Don't You Ever Give Up on Love (2025, Signature Sounds): Country singer-songwriter, from Texas, steady stream of albums since 2002, which started good and just keep getting better. She is quick to take the gloss off the title song, following it with many more break up songs like "Dumpster Diving," "A Reason to Drink," "Thank God You're Gone," and "How's the Getting Over Me Going," emerging at the end with "I'm Easy to Love After All." Indeed. A- [sp]

Thomas Morgan: Around You Is a Forest (2024 [2025], Loveland Music): Bassist, Discogs credits him with 154 credits since 2000, of which 17 are counted as his albums, but his name appears first on none of them, so this is arguably his debut. He plays bass on the first piece, but his main "instrument" is WOODS, a program written in SuperCollider with a recursive acronym (for WOODS Often Oscillates Droning Strings). This is followed by eight more pieces, each with a guest feeding sound into the program. Those guests are people he's worked with over the years (Bill Frisell, Dan Weiss, Craig Taborn, Henry Threadgill) plus some notables (Gerald Cleaver, Ambrose Akinmusire, Immanuel Wilkins, the poet Gary Snyder). Seems a bit scattered at first, but the many facets seem to be the point. [PS: While I generally feel that music should be evaluated free from its conception, Morgan's story did much to sell me on the process.] A- [cd]

The Mountain Goats: Through This Fire Across From Peter Balkan (2025, Thirty Tigers): Alias for singer-songwriter John Darnielle, 23rd album since 1994, seems to have evolved into a band, with John Wurster (drums) joining in 2007, Matt Douglas (piano/keyboards since 2015; he also does string & woodwind arrangements here), and various bassists — Cameron Ralston is new, as are Mikaela Davis (harp) and Ben Loughran (synths). Starts with a dubious instrumental, but gets better and better after that. A- [sp]

Raphaël Pannier Quartet: Live in Saint Louis, Senegal (2024 [2025], Miel Music): French drummer, studied at Berklee and based in New York, has two previous quartet albums, this one with Yosvany Terry (alto sax), Thomas Enhco (piano/rhodes), and François Moutin (bass), plus Khadim Niang & Sabar Group: eight drummers from Senegal. B+(***) [cd]

Rosalía: Lux (2025, Columbia): Spanish singer-songwriter, her third album (Motomami) was a big worldwide hit, which is also garnering much praise (93/13 at AOTY). I'm less convinced this time, as the orchestrations tend to veer into something like opera. B+(*) [sp]

Brandon Sanders: Lasting Impression (2025, Savant): Drummer, has at least one previous album, variable cast here, including Stacy Dillard (tenor sax on 6 tracks), Warren Wolf (vibes on 3), Jazzmeia Horn (2 vocals), with Eric Scott Reed (piano) and Eric Wheeler (bass) on 7 (of 8) tracks. B+(**) [cd]

Mark Sherman: Bop Contest (2025, Miles High): Vibraphonist, first albums appeared in 1980, has a fairly steady stream since. Bop-oriented quintet here, with veteran players Donald Vega (piano), Ron Carter (bass), Carl Allen (drums), and Joe Magnarelli (trumpet/flugelhorn). Two originals, covers from Oliver Nelson and Cedar Walton, a couple standards. B+(**) [cd]

Nick Shoulders: Refugia Blues (2025, Gar Hole): Country singer-songwriter, from Fayetteville, Arkansas, fifth album since 2018, trimmed the music back, sometimes puts the politics forward. B+(**) [sp]

Laura Ann Singh: Mean Reds (2024 [2025], Out of Your Head): Jazz singer-songwriter, first album, backed by Scott Clark (drums), Adam Hopkins (bass), John Lilley (sax), and Bob Miller (trumpet). Ballad moments recall Sheila Jordan, but noise breaks are something else. B+(**) [sp]

Snocaps: Snocaps (2025, Anti-): New group effort by twin sisters Katie and Allison Crutchfield, formerly of PS Elliot (2007-11), more recently in separate bands (Waxahatchee and Swearin'), along with MJ Lenderman (of Wednesday, plus a highly regarded solo album) and Brad Cook (producer, plays some bass and drums). Makes it all seem so easy. A- [sp]

Mavis Staples: Sad and Beautiful World (2025, Anti-): Started in her father's gospel group, the Staple Singers, breaking out as a solo artist in 1969, up to 86 now. Widely scattered covers, only two I recognized instantly, and they are standouts. A- [sp]

WNC WhopBezzy/70th Street Carlos: Out the Blue (2025, WNC): Baton Rouge, Louisiana rapper, has a previous album from 2018. Pretty hard core. B+(**) [sp]

Recent reissues, compilations, and vault discoveries:

Melvin Gibbs: Amasia: Anamibia Sessions 2 (2006-25 [2025], Archetext): Bass guitarist, in the 1980s played in the avant-funk Defunkt and in Ronald Shannon Jackson's avant-fusion band, the Decoding Society, and later was one of the principals in Harriet Tubman, along with side gigs with Henry Rollins, Arto Lindsay, DJ Logic, Bill Frisell, Sonny Sharrock, and John Zorn. Three tracks here with Pete Cosey (guitar) date from 2006, while the other three seem to be recent. B+(**) [sp]

Joseph Kamaru: Heavy Combination 1966-2007 (1966-2007 [2025], Disciples): A major Kenyan musician (1939-2018), ethnically Kikuyu, style Benga, although he's broader than that, with "afro-funk, disco grooves, and folk style laments." Remastered by a grandson also named Joseph Kamaru, who is now based in Berlin and records as KMRU. A- [sp]

Mike LeDonne's Groover Quartet: Turn It Up!: Live at the Sidedoor (2004-24 [2025], Cellar Music, 2CD): Pianist, but plays Hammond B3 organ in this long-running quartet, with Eric Alexander (tenor sax), Peter Bernstein (guitar), and Joe Farnsworth (drums). This double album offers two live sets, one from way back in 2004 (at Cory Weeds' Cellar Jazz Club), the other recent, from the Side Door Jazz Club in Old Lyme, CT. B+(**) [sp]

Old music:

Ashnikko: Weedkiller (2023, Parlophone): Ashley Casey's first studio album (33:05), after a 2021 mixtape (25:24), less explicitly dance-pop than her new album, the hard edges contributing to a genre list that includes "nu metal, trap metal, industrial pop, and hyperpop." B+(**) [sp]

Melvin Gibbs: Anamibia Sessions 1: The Wave (2022, Editions Mego): Not clear to me what the relationship is between this album and its 2025 successor, this being an ambient drone album that struggles to catch let alone hold one's attention. B- [sp]

The Staple Singers: The Staple Swingers (1971, Stax): Roebuck "Pops" Staples and his four children, most notably youngest daughter Mavis, who moved to the front during the 1960s, as the group moved from gospel to civil rights to secular soul. Wikipedia divides their discography between "early albums," which run from Savoy to Vee Jay to Riverside to Epic to their first two albums on Stax, and "charted albums," which starts here (9 r&b, 117 pop). The differences here were that, following Mavis' solo album, Al Bell produced with the Muscle Shoals crew, and Pervis dropped out in favor of Yvonne. Half of this is quite good, which makes you wonder about the rest. Cover features playground swings. B+(*) [sp]

The Staple Singers: Be Altitude: Respect Yourself (1972, Stax): Even more of a commercial breakthrough, with three singles: "Respect Yourself" (12), "I'll Take You There" (1), and "This World" (38). The singles do stand out, which makes the rest sound like filler, but not quite. B+(**) [sp]

The Staple Singers: Be What You Are (1973, Stax): Three more singles, but only one ("If You're Ready") a top-10 hit. Pretty steady. B+(*) [sp]

The Staple Singers: City in the Sky (1974, Stax): As consistent as any of their Stax albums, but lacking an obvious hit. B+(**) [sp]

Mavis Staples: Mavis Staples (1969, Volt): Fourth child of Roebuck "Pops" Staples, who organized his family into a gospel group in 1948 (when Mavis was 9), moving them into secular soul in the 1960s, as Mavis became their singing star. She stayed with the group, eventually billed as "featuring," but recorded this solo album in 1969, a second in 1970, more from 1979, 1989, 1993, and 1996 before landing on Anti- in 2004, with an album every few years since. Al Bell and Steve Cropper produced this set of covers. B+(**)

Mavis Staples: Only for the Lonely (1970, Volt): Second solo album, short (9 songs, 29:04), produced by Don Davis, who turns up the strings. Strong vocals, on less obvious songs. B+(*) [sp]

Unpacking: Found in the mail last week:

• Lena Bloch/Kyoko Kitamura: Marina (Fresh Sound New Talent) [11-14]
• Juan Chiavassa: Fourth Generation (Whirlwind) [10-10]
• Satoko Fujii Quartet: Burning Wick (Libra) [11-21]
• Jung Stratmann Quartet: Confluence (self-released) [12-03]
• Ted Rosenthal Trio: Classics Reimagined: Impromp2 (TMR) [10-17]
• Mark Sherman: Bop Contest (Miles High) **
• Carolyn Trowbridge: Found Memories (self-released) [01-09]

Ask a question, or send a comment.

Monday, November 3, 2025

November archive (in progress).

Music: Current count 45079 [45048] rated (+31), 14 [22] unrated (-8).

I'm a week past my 75th birthday now. Which is to say I'm older than either of my grandfathers ever got. One was born in 1868, so our three generations span 157 years. He was 68 when he died, well before I was born. The grandfather I knew wasn't born until 1894. He was the definition of an old person when I was a child, and he died at 70 in 1964, when I was 13. My father was 77 when he died, in 2000, a few months after I moved back to Wichita. He suffered a stroke a decade earlier, which significantly impacted what was left of his life. I'm fortunate enough to be somewhat oblivious to the ailments they had to deal with. I still have pretty good hearing, and I can get through a long day without nodding off. But I'm getting less and less done, and it's getting more and more frustrating.

My big project last week was fixing birthday dinner. This was a 13-dish Indonesian Rijsttafel, mostly dishes I had never made or even tasted before. I went very light on the chilies, but I murdered a lot of garlic, ginger, galangal, shallots, turmeric, tamarind, lemongrass, lime leaves, macadamia nuts (in lieu of kemiri), peanut, shrimp paste, and coconut milk along the way. Many of the dishes followed the same logic: grind up a "flavor paste," then fry it in some oil. Add coconut milk and whatever your main ingredient is, and cook it until the sauce is reduced, sometimes all the way to an oil that adds a final crispness to the meat. I did this with chicken, pork, lamb, beef, eggplant, string beans, and I had several more variations planned that I didn't get around to.

In addition to the "plan" cited above, I wrote up some narrative on this dinner last week. I expected I would take that and turn it into a Notes on Everyday Life post, but didn't manage to do that. Partly that's because I was thinking that even though I had cooked and written enough for a substantial post, I should add some more value to it. I should dig through my old notebooks and come up with some history of the "birthday dinner" tradition (loosely described from memory last week). Also, I still had extra groceries from my shopping, and wanted to use some of them up (although a lot of the more perishable items hit the garbage bin early). I didn't manage the research, or the post, but I've been cooking quite a bit this week, including (on top of several days of leftovers):

1. Shrimp: I had thawed out a pound, thinking I'd do a sambal, but I wound up turning them into scampi.
2. Pork loin: I put it in a velvet marinade (erroneously, as it turns out), and boiled it for a Chinese pork & peanuts dish.
3. Duck: I had a half duck, roasted from Thai Binh. I chopped it up and did an "Aceh style" Indonesian curry, throwing in a can of chickpeas.
4. Eggplant: Little purple ones, which I cut up, fried, and cooked in coconut milk. For good measure, I added some peanut sauce.
5. Pork belly: I boiled it, then a few days later I turned it into Chinese twice-cooked pork, with a green bell pepper.
6. Chicken livers: I couldn't find an Indonesian recipe, so I just floured and sauteed them with onion and bacon. I had some leftover small Yukon potatoes, so I diced and cooked them the same way.

Finally, I made a Chinese fried rice to go with the pork & peanuts, including bell pepper, zucchini, eggplant, Chinese sausage, egg, and almonds in the mix. When I later made the twice-cooked pork, I took the leftover fried rice, some more leftover rice, what was left of the pork & peanuts, and the leftover potatoes, and mixed them all up with more scallions.

I think I still have some eggplant, cabbage, carrots, potatoes, squash, and water chestnuts left, as well as things safely stashed away in the freezer (ground pork, squid, fish, crabs). I'm slowly hoping to reduce the freezer stash, imagining I can come up with a series of "clearance special" dinners. But I don't get many opportunities, and rarely take the sort of liberties I took this week. Still more fun than housework, or website work, or writing.

Of those, housework is likely to weigh heaviest on my mind this next week. We need a new roof, which seems like a big and fateful decision. I expect to have four bids by the end of the week, and no obvious decision. Still, I've managed to put a lot more thought into it than I did when buying a car a few months ago. The roof, at least, will be hired out, so just a shopping job. Except maybe for the carport, where we're likely to need some structural support, and the attic, which is of no real concern to the roofers. I did break down and hire out a small plumbing project last week: the kitchen faucet head developed a serious leak, so I bought another one, and had someone else install it. I used a plumber I'm talking to about a bigger, more daunting job. I still have some work under the sink, but it shouldn't be hard.

Many more projects waiting in the wings, taking forever to get done. But I did finally make a bit of progress toward the 20th Annual Francis Davis Jazz Critics Poll. I set up the website a few weeks ago, but needed to edit the invite and voter notes files. I got the former done today, and the latter good enough to work for now. I sent a message to the volunteer helper mailing list tonight, on the state of the poll. I hope to send a message to the voter email list soon after this. The invites should go out by November 15, with a deadline of December 21. With the website in fairly good shape, as least as regards this year's poll, the next big thing is to review the invite list, and see if I can come up with better email tools. The latter isn't an urgent need, as my server change earlier this year has been much for the better, but there is still room for improvement.

I'm also thinking about setting up a third email list, one for publicists and other interested non-voters. Anyone who wants to get in on that should send me a message. I'd also welcome any tips on prospective voters. Also any questions/suggestions on the website. I've been spinning my wheels for weeks trying to figure out the exact level of detail that would be optimal to each specific component.

Back to a fairly normal level of new music this week. I'm pretty close to current with unheard promo CDs, but I've still made little effort with catching up with downloads (or, indeed, with downloading files I have links for). The 2025 tracking file currently shows 1101 albums rated (out of 3203 listed; jazz only 655 of 1217.) I expect jazz will get a big kick when the ballots start coming in, and non-jazz will eventually catch up as I compile the less reliable EOY aggregate. Usually that kicks off around Thanksgiving.

That's enough for now. It's very late, and I have a very early morning to contend with tomorrow.

New records reviewed this week:

Aesop Rock: I Heard It's a Mess There Too (2025, Rhymesayers): Underground rapper Ian Bavitz, regular releases since 2000, this a surprise quick release after May's Black Hole Superette. Not as glib as he was decades ago, but the added weight helps move the mess. A- [sp]

Patricia Brennan: Of the Near and Far (2024 [2025], Pyroclastic): Vibraphonist, from Mexico, based in Brooklyn, follow up to her poll-winning Breaking Stretch, has had a big year already with appearances on new albums by Mary Halvorson (A-), Dave Douglas (**), Tomas Fujiwara (A-), Adam O'Farrill (A-), Dan Weiss (***), and Arturo O'Farrill (***). Original pieces, a large group conducted by Eli Greenhoe, with piano (Sylvie Courvoisier), guitar (Miles Okazaki), bass (Kim Cass), drums (John Hollenbeck), electronics (Arktureye), three violins and a cello. Much of this is very nice, even what seems like an excess of strings. B+(***) [cd]

Carrier: Rhythm Immortal (2025, Modern Love): Brussels-based electronica producer, seems to be one of many aliases for Guy Brewer (Covered in Sand, delete_everything, Tradecraft). B+(*) [sp]

Brìghde Chaimbeul: Sunwise (2025, Tak:til): Scottish smallpipes player, grew up as a native gaelic speaker on Isle of Skye, has several albums since 2019, sings some. B+(*) [sp]

Paul Cornish: You're Exaggerating! (2025, Blue Note): Pianist, from Houston, first album, although he has side credits back to 2017, starting with groups Blue Iverson and Thumpasaurus, and work with Terrace Martin and Joshua Redman. Trio with bass (Joshua Crumbly) and drums (Jonathan Pinson), with a guest guitar spot for Jeff Parker. B+(**) [sp]

Dave: The Boy Who Played the Harp (2025, Neighbourhood): British rapper David Orbosa Omoregie, third album since 2019, also a 2023 EP with Central Cee. Masterful lyricist, with a conscience. One line noted: "ten years in the game and I won't lie, it's gettin' difficult." But looking easy. A- [sp]

Deena: This Is the Time (2025, self-released, EP): Singer-songwriter, last name Schoshkes, best known for the Cucumbers (with John Fried, 1983-2004, plus an album in 2023). Just three songs, 10:32. B+(*) [bc]

Grey DeLisle & Friends: It's All Her Fault: A Tribute to Cindy Walker (2025, Brooklyn Basement): DeLisle (or Griffin or Van Oosbree) is a singer-songwriter, comedian, and actress (including her claim as "the most prolific voice actress in American animation history, having performed over 1500 cartoon voices since 1996"). I don't know how consistently her 8 previous albums hew country, but titles include Homewrecker and Driftless Girl. Obviously, the songwriter here comes from the deep country, as do most of the 13 women she counts among her friends — she only puts her name to one song, and that is a duet with Brennen Leigh, so this tends to get filed under "various artists." B+(**) [sp]

Adam Forkelid: Dreams (2024 [2025], Prophone): Swedish pianist, several albums, this one is solo, all original pieces, lacks the big rhythm boost I tend to favor but sticks with you. B+(***) [cd]

David Greenberger & the Hi-Ho Barbers: Ginger Ale (2025, Pel Pel): Spoken word artist, also plays bass guitar, started on radio with Duplex Planet, has more than a dozen albums since 2003, most starting with him quoting monologues collected in nursing homes, sort of like reading Studs Terkel with scattered musical accompaniment. The Hi-Ho Barbers were an amalgam of name fragments: Robyn Hitchcock (guitars), Mark Greenberg (drums), Paul Cebar and Kelly Hogan (chorus vocals). More of the latter than usual, filling a gap I never noticed before, but the extra musicality doesn't hurt. A- [cd] [11-17]

Jazzwrld & Thukuthela: The Most Wanted (2025, Waltz Music Group/Empire): South African amapiano duo, first album, don't know much else. B+(**) [sp]

Cate Le Bon: Michelangelo Dying (2025, Mexican Summer): Welsh singer-songwriter, moved to Los Angeles in 2013, seventh studio album since 2009, someone I've been aware of but never paid much attention to. I'm not noticing words, but I'm getting a nice layered vibe, which shifts tone on a piece that features John Cale. B+(**) [sp]

Demi Lovato: It's Not That Deep (2025, Island): Dance-pop singer-songwriter, started as a Disney teen actor, ninth studio album since her 2008 debut went gold. B+(*) [sp]

Joe McPhee & Strings: We Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (2021 [2025], RogueArt): A major free jazz figure since 1969, just plays tenor sax and offers some spoken words here, backed by viola (Mat Maneri), cello (Fred Lonberg-Holm), and double bass (Michael Bisio), a younger generation he's well acquainted with. B+(***) [cdr]

Roscoe Mitchell/Michele Rabbia: In 2 (2024 [2025], RogueArt): Duo, the venerable saxophonist (bass and sopranino here), and percussion/electronics. B+(**) [cdr]

Mobb Deep: Infinite (2025, Mass Appeal): New York hip-hop duo from the gangsta 1990s, Havoc and Prodigy, seven albums 1993-2006, one more from 2014, this 9th album coming 11 years later. Name-dropping Tupac and Biggie, who overshadowed them but are still locked in their identity. They lament: "they don't make 'em like us no more." No need. B [sp]

Roberto Montero: Todos Os Tempos (2025, Vaicomtudo Music): Brazilian guitarist, based in Los Angeles, seems to be his first album, various supporting cast. B+(*) [cd]

John O'Gallagher/Ben Monder/Andrew Cyrille/Billy Hart: Ancestral (2024 [2025], Whirlwind): Alto saxophonist, many albums since 2002, some quite impressive. With guitar and two drummers here. Here again he rises to the occasion. A- [cd]

Tom Ollenberg: Where in the World (2025, Fresh Sound New Talent): British guitarist, has a couple previous albums since 2021. Mild-mannered quartet with piano (Aaron Parks), bass, and drums, playing original pieces. B+(**) [cd] [11-21]

Ted Piltzecker: Peace Vibes (2024 [2025], OA2): Vibraphone player, half-dozen albums since 1985, some large gaps (12, 17 years), some smaller (4, 5), two originals plus his arrangements of mostly bop-era jazz standards. Sextet with trumpet (Brad Goode), bass, drums, Brazilian and Peruvian percussion. B+(**) [cd]

Deborah Shulman: We Had a Moment (2025, Summit): Standards singer, sixth album since 2004, recording dates unlisted but three songs date back to early work with Terry Trotter (piano), the other 7 from "the last couple of years," with "longtime pianist and arranger" Jeff Colella. B+(*) [sp]

Enoch Smith Jr.: The Book of Enoch Vol. 1 (2025, Misfitme Music): Pianist, several albums since 2011, trio with bass (Kai Gibson) and drums (David Hardy). One original, but opens with two public domain gospels, followed by an Andrae Crouch. B+(*) [cd] [11-07]

Pat Thomas: Hikmah (2024 [2025], TAO Forms): British avant-pianist, started appearing around 1990 with Derek Bailey (Company), Lol Coxhill, and Tony Oxley, but his profile increased significantly in recent years, especially with the quartet Ahmed. This is one of several recent solo albums. B+(***) [cd] [11-07]

Premik Russell Tubbs & Margee Minier-Tubbs: The Bells (2025, Margetoile, EP): Actually just a single, 6:42, kind of cute if you're into Xmas cheer. B [cd]

Cameron Winter: Heavy Metal (2024, Partisan): Singer-songwriter, from Brooklyn, fronts the band Geese, which has four albums since 2018, with a growing critical and popular reputation, although I have yet to hear it. I'm not hearing much here either, just tortured riffing and ululating. Doesn't really register as metal, but that's hardly a saving grace. B- [sp]

Recent reissues, compilations, and vault discoveries:

Alts 'N Outs: The Other Side of Blue Note (1958-64 [2025], Blue Note): Lazy product, compiling six alternate takes from the label's the label's most vital period, one each from Cannonball Adderley, Sonny Clark, Art Blakey, Jimmy Smith, Grant Green, and Wayne Shorter (sessions which by my reckoning produced one A, four A-, and one B+). I don't find this very useful, but it's enjoyable enough for your time. B+(**) [sp]

Big L: Harlem's Finest: Return of the King (1992-99 [2025], Mass Appeal): New York rapper Lamont Coleman, released one album (Lifestylez Ov Da Poor & Dangerous) before being shot dead at 24 in 1999, followed by a couple of posthumous releases. Part of the Nas label's "Legend Has It" series. I've heard a couple albums in the series without wondering about recording dates — no surprise that still-living old-timers like Slick Rick, Ghostface Killah and Mobb Deep sound like they always did, so those albums could have been crafted from old tapes. But Coleman's clearly were, with dates given for his gree styles, and also for a 1995 pairing with Jay-Z. But this isn't strictly a reissue: new stuff has been added and/or old stuff has been merged (e.g., Mac Miller, who was 7 when Big L died, and who died in 2018, makes an appearance). B+(***) [sp]

Horace Silver: Silver in Seattle: Live at the Penthouse (1965 [2025], Blue Note): Pianist, initially led the Jazz Messengers, the genre-defining hard bop group that went through many editions led by drummer Art Blakey. Silver continued to lead 5/6-piece groups, drawing on many of the same musicians as Blakey, but where he was unique was in composing some of the catchiest tunes ever to come out of jazz. His Blue Notes from 1956-66 were often classic. This previously unreleased live tape features Woody Shaw (trumpet) and Joe Henderson (tenor sax), with Teddy Smith (bass) and Roger Humphries (drums), stretching out on five of hi better known tunes. A- [sp]

Old music:

Big L: Lifestylez Ov Da Poor & Dangerous (1995, Columbia): New York gangsta/horrorcore rapper Lamont Coleman (1974-99), first and only album before he was killed in a drive-by shooting, sold well, as did his posthumous The Big Picture. I never liked the philosophy, but the big, hard beats had their attractions, as they do here. And I do get "I Don't Understand It." Hardly anyone did. B+(***) [sp]

Big L: The Big Picture: 1974-1999 (1997-99 [2000], Rawkus): Posthumous album, includes a 1998 single, completed by manager Rich King and various producers, including DJ Premier and Ron Browz. B+(**) [sp]

Unpacking: Found in the mail last week:

• John Gunther: Painting the Dream (Origin) [11-21]
• Rahsaan Roland Kirk: Vibrations in the Village: Live at the Village Gate (1964, Resonance) [11-28]
• Rahsaan Roland Kirk: Seek & Listen: Live at the Penthouse (1967, Resonance, 2CD) [11-28]
• Bobby Rozario: Healer (Origin) [11-21]

Ask a question, or send a comment.

Saturday, December 27, 2025

October archive (finished).

Music: Current count 45048 [45041] rated (+7), 22 [16] unrated (+6).

I made it through my 75th birthday Saturday. After my Tuesday posts of Music Week (3969 words, per wc), Loose Tabs (14825 words), and my big Notes on Everyday Life (Substack) post on Making Peace in Gaza and Beyond (5766 words) (archived here), I figured I had the whole week open to work on my birthday dinner. As you can see, I spent very little time listening to new music last week, or working on the computer in any way, shape, or form. On the other hand, it seems like I had a hard time getting going, although I wound up with a respectable effort: 13 dishes, plus 2 cakes and store-bought ice cream for dessert.

At some point, I should do the research and compile a list of major birthday dinners. The idea came up around 1995-96, in Boston. After I left Contex, I occasionally had lunch with some friends there, and at some point I expressed a desire to cook for them. My birthday was coming up, so I invited them over, and made a huge phantasmagoria of Chinese dishes (17-18 if memory serves, topped the next year with more like 20-22, also Chinese), and a similar quantity of Indian the year after that. Then I think I did Turkish for my last year in Boston, and Indian again for our one year in New Jersey — probably the biggest one ever, with friends from NYC coming out to the sticks, for curries I cooked over several days on a tiny stove that looked like it was ripped out of an Airstream, more or less warmed up at the last minute.

In 1999, we moved to Wichita, and I think the tradition got disrupted. But a year or two later, I got it going again. More Turkish, Spanish, Moroccan, Thai, Cuban, Russian, Greek, Korean. One year I got lazy and just made a single pot feijoada. I skipped one year when my culinary muse, Jerry Stewart, had moved to Salina, so we drove up there and went out for fried chicken at the Brookville Hotel (then in Abilene). Another, after he moved back, I was grousing about what to cook, and he talked me into just grilling hamburgers (well, beef, pork, salmon, not sure what else; some not very successful homemade buns, and lots of beans and potato sides). Another year I made my own southern fried chicken. I finally made a serious attempt at French. I never did Italian, although I cook a fair number of Italian dishes. In 2024, I had a Burmese cookbook I had bought but never opened, so I offered that as a possibility, and Laura approved.

In prepping for that, I bought James Oseland's Cradle of Flavor cookbook, on Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore. I didn't need it for Burmese, but I've ordered Rijsttafel a couple times in Indonesian restaurants, and that always struck me as the exact concept behind the birthday dinners: a lot of little dishes spread out around a pile of rice. So it's long been a concept on the list, but just a bit out of reach. However, this seemed like a now of never moment, so I decided to put some time and effort into it. I started by shopping for extra cookbooks, like I did for Burmese, but actually found little that looked promising. I wound up going to the library, and picked up two slim books with a lot of pictures that proved pretty useful, two more which were mostly words and not much help, plus a Dorie Greenspan baking book — it occurred to me that I didn't have to follow convention for dessert, but could switch it up (much like how in NYC we would go to Chinatown for dinner, then cross Canal for Italian desserts). I also started to assemble a shopping list, and thought to order some items from Amazon that I feared I might not be able to find. (Kecap manis for one; turned out daun pandan wouldn't be a problem, but I never did find the daun salam, even on Amazon.)

I did some preliminary shopping last Monday, going Thai Binh and Dillons. I did major shopping on Wednesday, at Lucky Market, Whole Foods, and another Dillons. I didn't have a real menu, just a bunch of vague ideas. I bought a lot of stuff, including a little bit of just about everything green. I probably wound up using a little less than half of what I bought, but my idea was: pile it all up on a table, look through the cookbooks, pick a recipe, grab what I needed, finish it, store it away (possibly to heat up later). I figured I would start on Wednesday, but didn't. I figured I'd have all day Thursday, but got nothing done, except the decision not to try to grill anything. (I have a broken gas grill, so I spent several hours trying to figure out how to fix it, but failed. I love grilled food, but don't care much to tend to the grill, so unless I have help, it can be a big distraction. So no satés, no grilled fish or chicken, no grilled eggplant, all of which would have been great, but were likely too much for me.)

Friday got off to a slow start too. It was evening before I got the first pickle made, and had the pork simmering. I boiled most of the gado gado ingredients, cooked the lamb, and made a couple more pickles. I made the orange spice cake, but punted on Greenspan's Lisbon chocolate cake (I'm not good with a lot of hand whisking). I didn't get to the peanut sauce until after midnight. Saturday I got going around 11, and was slower than I used to be, but pretty methodical. I boiled the rice. I still wanted a chocolate contrast to the cake, so I settled on Ruth Reichl's flourless chocolate cake: easy, I've made it a dozen times, very intense even without any finishing. I did the preliminary braise of the ribs and chicken. I started the beef redang, which takes 3-4 hours. I realized that the lamb needed more cooking to get a similar effect, so redid it. I cooked the green beans. I finally got around to the greens. It occurred to me that the sauce I used on the greens would work even better on two packages of mushrooms I had bought for the hell of it, so I mixed up another batch and chopped and cooked them. I put the ribs into the oven, and pan-fried the chicken. I probably should have done the chicken a bit differently, to get a bit more crust. I assembled and dressed the gado gado. I started frying the rice. Guests showed up, and I got them to do a couple little things. I fried four eggs to top the rice, and cut up a cucumber for a garnish. I had a couple things to warm up (pork, green beans, maybe something else). I finally got everything out into bowls and dishes: 13 of them. Dinner was supposed to be at 6. Not sure when it was, but no later than 7. Six guests, so 8 total.

The tiny kitchen was a total wreck by then. I'm pretty well equipped and stocked, for everything but space. The food pretty much lived up to expectations. The chicken could have been browner, the rendang glossier and more tender, the peanut sauce more robust (and the stuff we put it on a bit crunchier). I should have made more rice, and had I compared the recipes better could have come up with more interesting add-ins. What seemed like a lot of greens had become very little. (I should know that by now, but still I'm surprised.) I left out things (especially shrimp paste and dried shrimp; I also had a pound of shrimp thawed out for a sambal that I never got to). I don't like hot peppers, but first day I tried to experiment with much reduced quantities, and those dishes still came out pretty hot for my taste. Second day I pretty much skipped the hot peppers altogether, whereas the first day's strategy was closer to the mark (just above it, but once you started mixing things you could get a nice sharp taste). On the other hand, no one complained. I offered sambal oelek on the side, and got no takers.

I had three pints of Talenti to go with the cakes: vanilla, coffee chocolate chip, and a lemon sorbet. I was thinking the latter would go with the orange spice cake, but the butter pecan would have been better. The cakes were very moist and very rich. After the guests left, I started to clean up, only to find a flood under the sink. I finally determined the faucet was leaking, and probably needed to be replaced. I've hated that faucet — an expensive Kohler with touchless controls that did the wrong thing way too often for my tasted — but it was hell to install, and wouldn't be much easier to replace. Still, I have to buy another faucet real soon.

In past years, I've been known to make a second dinner combining leftovers with new dishes from unused ingredients. I have some things I should still cook up somehow, but don't see turning them into more Indonesian food. The leftover pork will probably go Chinese. I have a Thai duck dish I like a lot. I have some chicken livers I didn't find a use for, but they're good for lots of things. The frozen stuff can stay frozen until some opportunity comes along. On the other hand, cooking gives me a sense of accomplishment I get from few other things. Like writing.

For more on the dinner see Facebook or better still my planning file, which I'm turning into a document, including links to all of the recipes. This meal will also probably be the subject of my next Notes on Everyday Life newsletter. That's likely to take a couple of days, as opposed to the hour or two of extemporizing in this post.

This coming week will mostly be house stuff. I need to decide on a roofing contractor, and they seem to mostly be avoiding me (except for the ones I'm avoiding). I also have both big and small plumbing projects. I'm not sure I'm even up for the latter. Plus a lot of organizing, sorting, storing and/or trashing. And the Francis Davis Jazz Critics Poll is soon upon us.

This is the last Monday in October, so I've opened a November archive, but I haven't indexed October yet or added the Music Weeks. I've made some minor edits to last week's Rubén Reinaldo review, as some of my writing was rather muddled. Grade remains unchanged. Besides, gives me a second image to go against the long intro.

Reading Illan Pappé's Israel on the Brink and the Eight Revolutions That Could Lead to Decolonization and Coexistence has me thinking even more about future socio-political engineering schemes there. I find it easy to see similar fractions forming in Israel's credibility, but I would be very surprised to see changes develop along the lines he sketches out. I think the best case scenario is Israel discards Gaza, turning it over to the UN, which only partially reconstructs it, as most of the pre-2023 population go into exile. Israel then annexes the rest of the occupied territories, braving a not very effective BDS movement, which combined with lessening demographic pressures from Palestinian emigration starts in the 10-20 year time frame to soften up a bit, eventually landing on one of the binational schemes floating about (probably the worst one they can find). Until now I've done my best to ignore binational schemes, as Israel is nowhere near willing to accept one (nor are most Palestinians interested in offering one, although that may just be because there's no point selling yourself short when you can't sell yourself at all). But now they got me thinking about such schemes, and sure, I could write about that if anyone cared. But there's no evidence of that being true. I just did a Google of "tom hull making peace in gaza and beyond," and 9 of the first 10 listings are to my own pieces/tweets/etc. And the 10th is a Facebook post from Tim Scott that has nothing whatsoever to do with my piece. (It is mostly a retweet of Donald Trump, above which Scott — yes, that Tim Scott — writes "Thanks to President Trump's bold and determined leadership, we're seeing a historic opportunity for lasting peace.")

There are more Israel books in the wind, but the only question that matters is whether there is some schism in Israeli politics that will see some common bond with Palestinian voters as worth pursuing. Dahlia Scheindlin is the only writer I'm aware of who is working on this sort of thing, but her latest book came out in 2023 (The Crooked Timber of Democracy in Israel), which is almost an eon ago.

New records reviewed this week:

Lily Allen: West End Girl (2025, BMG): British singer-songwriter, fifth studio album since 2007, 7 years since number four, a stretch of time covering a marriage and a divorce, so easy subject matter, which she handles adroitly. Music doesn't have quite the same zip as the earlier albums. B+(***) [sp]

Call Super: A Rhythm Protects One (2025, Dekmantel): British electronica producer Joseph Richmond-Seaton, Discogs lists four albums since 2014, more EPs/singles, and a half dozen DJ mixes, where this one is slotted. B+(**) [sp]

The Expert: Vivid Visions (2025, Rucksack): Irish hip-hop producer Cian Galvin, Discogs credits him with a half-dozen albums since 2015, most cuts here have featured guests, including AJ Suede, Blu, Stik Figa, ShrapKnel, Defcee, and Buck 65. B+(**) [sp]

Rochelle Jordan: Through the Wall (2025, Empire): Dance-pop singer-songwriter, born in UK, grew up in Toronto, fifth album since 2011. Previous one was pretty good, with this one just much more, enough for 2-LP: 17 songs, 59:58. A- [sp]

Killah Priest & Purpose: Abraxas 2 (2025, Proverbs): Rapper Walter Reed, from Brooklyn, 1998 debut was well regarded (Heavy Mental), had one more album chart in 2000, plus a couple dozen more since that I hadn't noticed. B+(*) [sp]

Maria Somerville: Luster (2025, 4AD): Dream pop singer-songwriter from Ireland, previous releases back to 2018 but this is first on a real label. Hazy, bordering on shoegaze. B+(*) [sp]

Chris Williams: Odu: Vibrations II (2025, AKP): Trumpet player, "(84)" at Discogs, also plays synth, and this could be taken as ambient or deep listening, aside from the horns, which include spots for Kalia Vandever (trombone) and Patrick Shiroishi (sax), both with effects. B+(**) [sp]

Recent reissues, compilations, and vault discoveries:

None

Old music:

None

Grade (or other) changes:

Rubén Reinaldo: Fusión Olívica (2024 [2025], Free Code Jazz): Spanish guitarist, Bandcamp page has "Reinaldo" in quotes and shows last name as Baña, I'm not finding anything on Discogs but he has a previous duo album on Bandcamp. Backed by organ (Antonio López "Monano"), bass (Gustavo Hernán), and drums (David Failde). He bravely defied Trump and sent me vinyl, but I buried it under some pile until it came to the top of my unplayed list. Fits loosely in the soul jazz idiom, but a bit fancier, with the bass adding a resonance that organ alone could never quite deliver. A- [lp]

Unpacking: Found in the mail last week:

• Jakob Dreyer: Roots and Things (Fresh Sound New Talent) [11-14]
• Joe McPhee & Strings: We Know Why the Caged Bird Sings (RogueArt) * [08-11]
• Roscoe Mitchell/Michele Rabbia: In 2 (RogueArt) * [10-13]
• Raphaël Pannier Quartet: Live in Saint Louis, Senegal (Miel Music) **
• Dave Rempis/Jason Adasiewicz/Chris Corsano: Dial Up (Aerophonic) [12-26]
• Brandon Sanders: Lasting Impression (Savant) [11-07]
• Sara Serpa/Matt Mitchell: End of Something (Obliquity) [11-07]
• Spinifex: Maxximus (Trytone) [11-14]

Ask a question, or send a comment.

Monday, October 20, 2025

October archive (in progress).

Music: Current count 45041 [45001] rated (+40), 16 [29] unrated (-13).

My 75th birthday is coming up this week. It's been a long, strange trip, one I'm increasingly reflecting on. I'm not big on milestones, but close to 30 years ago I decided to celebrate by cooking up a big dinner for a few close friends, and that's become an annual tradition almost ever since. Back in the 1980s I started seriously exploring the great world cuisines, so each annual dinner has turned into some kind of challenge to discover something new. At some point, I should gather my notes and document these (and similar) events, so I can have something to link to here. The best I can offer right now is a sketch of a recent but relatively modest Chinese (with a few extra notes here).

I've been thinking about this year's event for a while now, and it's just about the only thinking that gives me any pleasure. While I've never gotten to the obvious choice of Italian — which I have cooked on many occasions — or such less obvious ones as Persian, German, Scandinavian, or most of Africa and Latin America, I've long contemplated trying my hand at Indonesian/Malaysian, so that is this year's theme (possibly with a switch to French for dessert, as birthday in my family always means cake).

In good years, I would have thought this through well by now. In bad years, I found myself throwing something quick together at the last minute. (We've even done American food, twice: soul food featuring fried chicken, once just a lot of hamburgers.) I hoped this would be one of the good years, but I guess I'm slowing down, because time sure seems to be accelerating. I've complained all year about how little I've gotten done, and even this most happy of tasks seems to be slipping away from my grasp.

So all I've managed so far has been to flip through some cookbooks — one I've long had but never used, Cradle of Flavor, and a couple more I picked up from the library after the No Kings demo — and order some daun pandan and kecap manis, which seem to be mandatory. I've built up a list of possible ingredients, and figure I'll make two shopping trips: one today to look for the more esoteric staples, and one on Wednesday to pick up the meats and vegetables and whatever else I've missed. Whereas most years, I'd start from a well defined list of recipes, what I'm thinking of doing this time is just buying a lot of possible ingredients then looking through the cookbooks to find things to do with them. It's an overkill strategy, but my small experience with Rijsttafel suggests many small dishes brimming with flavor to mix into big piles of festive rice. And scanning through the cookbooks offers a lot of sambals that can be used as building blocks or just served on the side. That way I can start soon, and escape from the world.

Today, however, I need to post a lot of stuff. This Music Week, of course, but also I have the follow up to my Gaza War Peace Plan post, tentatively titled Making Peace. It's something of a joke to say that all I've done in the last week has been to figure out the solution to peace in the Middle East, because there is zero chance that anyone who can do anything about matters will read me and put such obvious solutions into practice. But pretty much everything you need to know is in those two posts. Of course, you could make it even simpler and say: try to do the right thing for everyone involved, be honest and open about it, and adjust when necessary. The first one got 104 views, which is not a lot but up from my previous posts. I'm not begging for money, but more free subscribers would be nice. The second post should go out tonight, possibly by the time I post this.

I should also go ahead and publish whatever I've managed to save up for Loose Tabs. I haven't come close to making my rounds, let alone making even a cursory edit, but the draft file wc word count is 14235 (so about 12k actual words), and some of the sections are beginning to smell funny. What I'm hoping to do now is to post it when this goes up, but dating it ahead to Tuesday (or, given that I rarely post before midnight, dating this back to Monday). I can always add change bars as I find other things that fit in (many, no doubt, already in open tabs I want to close). I can also write another More Thoughts on Loose Tabs, like I did last time. Indeed, I'm already having more thoughts on the Gaza posts, with new ones sure to come as I read Ilan Pappé new book, Israel on the Brink and the Eight Revolutions That Could Lead to Decolonization and Coexistence. Say what you will about the Nazis, the British, and even the Mongol Hordes, but there are no historical precedents for what Israel has done in and around Gaza, and we have even less historical guidance for anticipating the aftermath. (And yes, I've read Pankaj Mishra's ambitious The World After Gaza, where he, like Pappé, tries to look ahead after looking back. Another book along these lines that looks promising is Omar El Akkad's One Day, Everyone Will Have Always Been Against This, although it is also billed as a memoir, as it's hard to find solid ground here.) I'm sure I'll have more to say after Pappé book. Indeed, I should do another books post, as more relevant books are appearing all the time — and many more are in the works: Amazon already has pages for 2026 books by Omer Bartov (Israel: What Went Wrong) and Norman G Finkelstein (Gaza's Gravediggers: An Inquiry Into Corruption in High Places).

Meanwhile, I'm overwhelmed with domestic tasks. I talked to more roofers last week, and hope to get some concrete bids this week, and be able to make some decisions next week. I don't know how I'll find the time. Each discussion generates new questions, ideas, and worklists, requiring more thought. Meanwhile, stuff breaks, and has to be repaired (or lived with), and repairs drag on. I feel like I should be able to fix most things, but my own skills are clearly diminishing, and it's hard to find other folks to pick up the slack. After all, we live in a world where fraud is so prevalent it's hard to ever trust anyone.

One thing I should work on but will postpone at least another week is the Francis Davis Jazz Critics Poll. I still expect to send out ballots in mid-November, but at this point my ambitions don't extend much beyond trying to keep it barely afloat. I do have the website set up, but the ballot invites and other documentation needs a close edit. If anyone who reads this wants to help, please take a look at what's available, suggest edits and/or ask questions. I may be short on initiative, but I still try to respond to requests. I've mostly suppressed the FAQ because there haven't been any, but how could there possibly be no questions? Maybe there's some AI that can scan the website, rephrase it as questions, and make me wonder what it missed and/or what needs to be answered better?

One thing I won't be doing this week is listening to new music, or for that matter working much on the computer. Fortunate that we have a pretty large (and varied) list of finds this week to tide you over. And that I have a lot of treasured old music to enjoy.

PS: I held this post back until I published my second Gaza piece: Making Peace in Gaza and Beyond. This is also archived here. Also now available is Loose Tabs. Given that the latter collects 36 days of notes, it can't properly be called a rush job, but everything there (250 links, 13861 words) feels incredibly rushed and slapdash. Some day I expect to look back at it and pick out a dozen or so bits that I still think make good points, but right now I just have this desperate urge to clean house. I may well add a few changes later, but this opens up a new scratch file.

New records reviewed this week:

Affinity Trio [Eric Jacobson/Pamela York/Clay Schaub]: New Outlook (2024-25 [2025], Origin): Trumpet-piano-bass trio, second group album, each contributes an original, along with six covers, starting with "On the Sunny Side of the Street." B+(***) [cd]

Ammar 808: Club Tounsi (2025, Glitterbeat): Denmark-based Tunisian DJ/product Sofyann Ben Youssef, third album under this alias, also works with the Tuareg rock group Kel Assouf (based in Belgium). B+(**) [sp]

Bar Italia: Some Like It Hot (2025, Matador): British new wave band, fifth album since 2020, lead vocalist is Nina Christante, but guitarists Sam Fenton and Jezmi Tarik Fehmi also sing, and separately released a pretty good album earlier this year as Double Virgo. Still, she's a plus, and the more they sound like New Order, the more I like them. A- [sp]

Bobby Conn: Bobby's Place (2025, Tapete, EP): Singer-songwriter from Chicago, a "long time musical mischief maker and cultural provocateur," albums back to 1997, this one appears on Spotify as two EPs -- the 6-track (19:10) "Side One" and the 3-track (21:20) "Side A" -- distinct enough they should be kept separate, but interesting that he's into both approaches. B+(*) [sp]

Hollie Cook: Shy Girl (2025, Mr Bongo): English reggae singer-songwriter, daughter of Sex Pistols' drummer Paul Cook, tenor so albums since 2011. B+(**) [sp]

Madi Diaz: Fatal Optimist (2025, Anti-): Singer-songwriter, half-dozen albums since 2007, plays guitar, piano (her original instrument) on one track. Minimally folkie, something I'm rarely attracted to, but this one feels right. Title song is especially strong. A- [sp]

El Michaels Affair: 24 Hr Sports (2025, Big Crown): Hip-hop group led by producer Leon Michels, who produced albums in 2002 by Sharon Jones and Lee Fields, has group albums since 2005, including one with Black Thought in 2023. B- [sp]

Esthesis Quartet: Sound & Fury (2025, Sunnyside): Quartet of Elsa Nilsson (flute), Dawn Clement (piano, vocals), Emma Dayhuff (bass), and Tina Raymond (drums), all pictured on cover, third album, plus Bill Frisell (guitar). B+(**) [bc]

Carter Faith: Cherry Valley (2025, MCA Nashville): Country singer-songwriter, from North Carolina, dropped her surname Jones, but Wikipedia just refers to her as Faith. First album after a couple EPs. First song that caught my attention, midway through, was "Grudge." B+(**) [sp]

Robert Finley: Hallelujah! Don't Let the Devil Fool You (2025, Easy Eye): Blues/soul singer-songwriter, b. 1954 in Louisiana, has played music since he was 11 but didn't record until 2016. Fifth album, with daughter Christy Johnson on backing vocals, on eight songs that at least allude to gospel ("Praise Him," "His Love," "Helping Hand," "On the Battlefield," "I Am a Witness," etc.). The religion doesn't bother me, especially when the guitar transcends it. A- [sp]

Tomas Fujiwara: Dream Up (2023 [2025], Out of Your Head): Drummer, a Braxton student, fair number of albums since 2007, lots of side credits. Quartet with Patricia Brennan (vibes), plus Tim Keiper and Kaoru Watanabe on a long list of African- and Asian-sounding instruments, mostly percussion but some flute-like. A- [sp]

Todd Herbert: Captain Hubs (2024 [2025], TH Productions): Strong tenor saxophonist, several albums since 2007, mainstream group here with David Hazeltine (piano), John Webber (bass), and Louis Hayes (drums), playing five Herbert originals, two pieces by band members, and covers of Coltrane, Shorter, and "You Go to My Head." B+(***) [cd]

Maja Jaku: Blessed & Bewitched (2025, Origin): Jazz singer-songwriter, last name shortened from Jakupović, from Serbia, based in Austria, some songs co-written by Adrian Varady (drums, co-producer) or Saša Mutić, with two standards. Recorded in Brooklyn with Michael Rodriguez (trumpet), Alan Bartus (piano), Dezron Douglas (bass), and Johnathan Blake (drums). This is nice, especially on standards like "Never Let Me Go." B+(***) [cd]

Zara Larsson: Midnight Sun (2025, Summer House/Epic): Swedish electropop singer-songwriter, fifth album since 2014. B+(*) [sp]

Jens Lekman: Songs for Other People's Weddings (2025, Secretly Canadian): Singer-songwriter from Sweden, works in English, seventh album since 2004, fancy flights, but long (17 songs, 79:37). B+(***) [sp]

Lizzy & the Triggermen: Live at Joe's Pub (2024 [2025], self-released): Los Angeles-based swing band, Lizzy Shaps (Elizabeth Shapiro) the singer, nine musicians, some I've actually heard of -- Ricky Alexander (tenor/baritone sax, clarinet), Gordon Au (trumpet), John Allred (trombone), Luca Pino (guitar) -- playing standards with a few originals and some patter. B+(**) [cd]

Russ Lossing Trio: Moon Inhabitants (2020 [2025], Sunnyside): Pianist, has a couple dozen albums since 2000, this a trio with Masa Kamaguchi (bass) and Billy Mintz (drums), opens with five covers: Tchaikovsky between two Ornette Coleman tunes, Harold Arlen, Sonny Rollins, closing with three originals. B+(*) [bc]

Kelsey Mines: Everything Sacred, Nothing Serious (2024 [2025], OA2): Bassist, from Seattle, has a couple of albums on Relative Pitch, composed all of this, with flute (Elsa Nilsson), trombone, piano, guitar, drums, and percussion, and some additional recording in São Paulo, co-produced by Steve Rodby, with liner notes by Jovino Santos Neto. B+(*) [cd]

Andy Nevala: El Rumbón (The Party) (2023-24 [2025], Zoho): Pianist, based in Atlanta, self-released a 2000 album, has a few more credits, teaching experience, some big band work. Lively Latin jazz album, ten pieces from all over turned into a seamless party experience. B+(***) [cd]

Nicholas Payton: Triune (2025, Smoke Sessions): Trumpet player from New Orleans, albums since 1994, also plays keyboards, with Esperanza Spalding (bass and vocals) and Karriem Riggins (drums), with some guests (mostly vocals). I'm not much impressed here until the last two cuts: the first is the funk anthem "#bamisforthechildren" — "BAM" (Black American Music) is his preferred term for jazz; the second is an extended keyboard vamp called "Feed the Fire," which ends with some fairly impressive trumpet. B+(*) [sp]

Princess Nokia: Girls (2025, Artist House): New York rapper Destiny Nicole Frasqueri, fifth album. "I know what I'm doing. I trust my process." B+(***) [sp]

Reneé Rapp: Bite Me (2025, Interscope): Pop singer-songwriter, kicks off. B+(**) [sp]

Jussi Reijonen: Sayr: Salt/Thirst (2025, Unmusic): Finnish guitarist, has at least one previous album, has another Sayr: Live in Helsinki schedule to release on same date but this is the only one I was sent. "Sayr" is a concept from Arabic music, used here to denote a series of (thus far) solo albums. B+(*) [cd] [10-24]

Jussi Reijonen: Sayr: Kaiho - Live in Helsinki (2025, Unmusic): Finnish guitarist, also plays oud, which adds to the Arabic tones of his thoughtful solo work. B+(*) [os] [10-24]

Rubén Reinaldo: Fusión Olívica (2024 [2025], Free Code Jazz): Spanish guitarist, Bandcamp page has "Reinaldo" in quotes and shows last name as Baña, I'm not finding anything on Discogs but he has a previous duo album on Bandcamp. Backed by organ (Antonio López "Monano"), bass (Gustavo Hernán), and drums (David Failde). He bravely defied Trump and sent me vinyl, was buried under some pile until it came to the top of my unplayed list. Fits in the soul jazz idiom, but a bit fancier, with the bass adding a resonance organ never quite delivered. A- [lp]

Gonzalo Rubalcaba/Yainer Horta/Joey Calveiro: A Tribute to Benny Moré and Nat King Cole (2025, Calveiro Entertainment): Cuban pianist, flanked by two saxophonists (tenor and alto), and backed by others, playing four songs that Cole covered in his Havana albums, plus four from Cuban star Moré. B+(***) [sp]

Rich Siegel: It's Always Been You (2025, self-released): Singer, also plays piano, wrote several songs here but mostly far-ranging covers, ranging from Berlin to Tom Waits, with a mix of French, Spanish, and Brazilian, backed by bass (Cameron Brown) and drums (Tony Jefferson). B [cd]

Tom Skinner: Kaleidoscopic Visions (2025, International Anthem): British drummer, mostly has jazz credits like Sons of Kemet but has some other ventures, like Owiny Sigoma Band and, more commercially, the Smile (a trio with two blokes from Radiohead). Second studio album under his own name, has him also playing vibes, guitar, piano, and all sorts of electronics, with two saxophonists (Robert Stillman and Chelsea Carmichael), guitar, bass, cello, and vocals (Meshell Ndegeocello, Contour, Yaffra). B+(**) [sp]

Sudan Archives: The BPM (2025, Stones Throw): Brittney Parks, from Cincinnati, learned violin early, studied ethnomusicology later, works both into her varied dance-pop, third album after a couple of EPs. I'm having trouble coming up with specifics here, which suggests something is lacking, but that too eludes me. A- [sp]

Suede: Antidepressants (2025, BMG): English group, first album in 1993 was part of the Britpop wave, had a break between 2002-13, known in the US as London Suede, but they dropped the qualifier for their last couple albums. Lots of guitar, an impressive din of sound. B+(*) [sp]

Taylor Swift: The Life of a Showgirl (2025, Republic): Big star, you know that, 12th album (not counting remakes) since 2007, a Google search offers more info on psychological disorders and political polarization than info on the music itself, which has received such mixed reviews you sometimes wonder who is listening to what. I'm not enough of a fan to be able to recall any of her songs by name, but I've heard them all, and mostly enjoyed them. This one has a 59/23 score at AOTY, which means that Pitchfork's 5.9 rating is precisely average. On the other hand, from the very first play I found nearly all of this delightful. A- [sp]

Patrisha Thomson: Your Love (2025, PT Designs Productions): Standards singer, third album, songs cover a wide range, including one original (dated 2005). B [cd]

Henry Threadgill: Listen Ship (2025, Pi): Saxophonist, founded Air in 1971, especially notable for its free jazz developments on early jazz models, has had a very notable solo career since 1979. Just composer and conductor here, leading a group of six guitarists and two pianists through a maze of sixteen fractured "roadmaps." B+(***) [cd]

Mark Turner: Reflections On: The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man (2025, Giant Step Arts): Tenor saxophonist, one of many to emerge in the 1990s, has been especially busy of late. Extended piece, with ten movements built around spoken word excerpts from James Weldon Johnson's 1912 novel about race in America. Quintet with Jason Palmer (trumpet), David Virelles (piano/profit/organ), Matt Brewer (basses), and Nasheet Waits (drums). Strong group, and the narration is interesting. B+(***) [cd]

Recent reissues, compilations, and vault discoveries:

Kenny Barron: Sunset to Dawn (1973 [2025], Muse/Time Traveler): Muse Records was a label founded by Prestige Records producer Joe Fields in 1972, which ran up to 1996 when it was sold to 32 Jazz (run by Joel Dorn; Fields moved on to found the HighNote and Savant labels). The latter reissued much of the catalog on CD, before being sold to Savoy Jazz (a venerable label name by then part of Nippon Columbia), which reissued some samplers, but let the label's many releases go out of print. Muse was a very important (mostly mainstream) label during its time: I count 112 titles in my database, most unrated because the music hasn't been readily available on streaming. So the announcement that this new label (or new label name, as it seems to be associated with Craft, which itself is tied to Concord) will be reissuing from its catalog is terrific news. This is the first of the reissues, the pianist's first recording, mostly electric piano with bass (Bob Cranshaw), drums (Freddie Waits), and percussion (Richard Landrum and Warren Smith). The product push is focused on luxury vinyl, but my promo copy is a CD (better for me, although Gary Giddins' original back cover notes require a microfiche reader). Nice record, but wouldn't have been my leadoff hitter. (I have 32 Jazz's reissue of Barron's second album, Peruvian Blue, rated A-.) B+(**) [cd]

Roy Brooks: The Free Slave (1970 [2025], Muse/Time Traveler): Hard bop drummer (1938-2005), from Detroit, started with Blue Mitchell in 1960, rarely appeared as leader (first in 1964, then this in 1972). Crackling live quintet with Woody Shaw (trumpet), George Coleman (tenor sax), Hugh Lawson (piano), and Cecil McBee (bass). A- [cd]

Ivan Farmakovskiy: Epic Power (2010 [2025], SteepleChase): Russian pianist, one article says "renowned" and mentions prizes he won in 1994 and 1997, I didn't find him in Discogs until I backed into an entry with his name in Cyrillic, which yielded two 2009-10 titles. I wonder if the "iy" in his name here is meant to pawn him off as Ukrainian? This was from the same period, a trio with bass (Christian McBride) and drums (Jack DeJohnette), mosty playing his originals. Very impressive work. Hard to see why anyone would sit on this. B+(***) [sp]

Carlos Garnett: Cosmos Nucleus (1976 [2025], Muse/Time Traveler): Alto saxophonist (1938-2023), from Panama, moved to New York in 1962, released his first five albums on Muse (1974-78), with this the fourth, a large group playing his original pieces, in a Coltrane-ish spiritual jazz vein, with some vocals by Cheryl P. Alexander. B+(*) [cd]

John Lennon/Yoko Ono/Plastic Ono Band: Power to the People: Live at the One to One Concert (1972 [2025], Universal, 2CD): Two full concerts at Madison Square Garden, spun off from a "Deluxe Edition" that includes much more (9-CD, 3-DVD, book, stickers, who knows what else?). This runs 31 songs, 141 minutes. Lennon's own songs from his two now-classic albums, plus a few songs originating in his previous group, are well known, sharply performed. More songs, especially those sung by Ono, are new to me or long forgotten, but not without merit (although often, as remembered, "shrill"). Most tracks previously unreleased. The exceptions are probably from Some Time in New York City, although I suspect that the sound is much improved here. I haven't seen the "Deluxe Edition" box, but hear that it has some tie-in to the film Betrayal at Attica B+(**) [sp]

Pharoah Sanders: Love Is Here: The Complete Paris 1975 ORTF Recordings (1975 [2025], Transcendence Sounds, 2CD): Tenor saxophonist (1940-2022), a Coltrane protégé in the 1960s, coming off a series of expansive albums on Impulse! that helped define what we've since come to call "spiritual jazz" (in the trinity, he was "son" to Coltrane's "father" and Ayler's "holy ghost"). Quartet with Danny Mixon (piano/organ), Calvin Hill (bass), and Greg Bandy (drums). Some of this has been out before, but not at this length (11 tracks, 113 minutes). Starts with an "Improvisation with Pipe Organ" that I find very murky, but ends with a resounding "Love Is Everywhere." New label seems to be a spinoff of Barcelona's Elemental Music. B+(**) [sp]

Old music:

Roy Brooks: Beat (1964, Workshop Jazz): Hard bop drummer from Detroit, first album as leader, with Blue Mitchell (trumpet), Junior Cook (tenor sax), George Bohanon (trombone), Hugh Lawson (piano), and Eugene Taylor (bass). B+(**) [sp]

Unpacking: Found in the mail last week:

• Martin Bejerano: The Purple Project (Figgland) [11-21]
• Theo Bleckmann: Love and Anger (Sunnyside) [10-31]
• Tomas Fujiwara: Dream Up (Out of Your Head) [09-12] [damaged]
• Thomas Morgan: Around You Is a Forest (Loveland Music) [11-07]
• Tom Ollenberg: Where in the World (Fresh Sound New Talent) [11-21]

Ask a question, or send a comment.

Monday, October 13, 2025

October archive (in progress).

Music: Current count 45001 [44977] rated (+24), 29 [29] unrated (+0).

Week is a day short, but the rated drop is mostly because I haven't been paying much attention. Indeed, I'm surprise the drop isn't worse, but I've lost track of time. Last Monday we had insurance out to look at the roof, and they decided that he had enough hail damage to replace the whole roof, but that the most visible wounds were our own fault, so didn't merit them putting a tarp up to stop the leaking. Since then, I've been talking to roofing contractors, who curry favor by admitting that insurance companies are really criminal enterprises, then lose with sales pitches that make me as wary of them. The only things are are clear right now is that this is going to cost us a lot of money, and I'm not really going to trust whoever I wind up picking. The whole experience has me reeling so severely that I took time out today to work up my solution to a much simpler problem: peace in the Middle East.

This will be the subject of two Notes on Everyday Life pieces: one on the actual plan, and another on what I think would be a better, albeit far from ideal, plan (links to local drafts, the former nearly done, the latter just barely outlined). Events are moving fast, with the hostage exchanges today, the ceasefire and very partial withdrawal presumably started, and Trump off to Egypt to wax eloquent on the art of the deal. I'm hoping to post those on Tuesday and Friday, with the latter shortly followed by an updated Loose Tabs. The draft file is close to ready now, with nearly 10,000 words so far (193 links), but I figure I should keep it open until the second post is ready, as the Israel section (27 links so far, plus whatever I find during the week) will help document.

Aside from this writing, I need to concentrate on house matters next week. It's going to be rough.

New records reviewed this week:

Agnas Bros.: Sista Försöket (2025, Moserobie): Swedish group: Kasper Agnas (guitar), Max Agnas (piano), Mauritz Agnas (bass), and Konrad Agnas (drums). They have several albums going back to 2012, as well as solo credits, especially Konrad (the eldest, b. 1990; there was also a previous generation of Agnas Bros., with their father, Urban, and his brothers, Tomas and Joakim; Urban's wife Sabrina, niece Maja, and nephew Nils also have Discogs credits). Live, moves along nicely (32:54). B+(***) [cd]

Eric Alexander: Like Sugar (2024 [2025], Cellar Live): Mainstream tenor saxophonist, has a lot of records since 1995, especially quartets like this one, with David Hazeltine (piano), Dennis Carroll (bass), and George Fludas (drums). Title is a nod to Stanley Turrentine, but not quite a tribute. This suits him very nicely. B+(***) [sp]

Bright Eyes: Kids Table (2025, Dead Oceans, EP): Conor Oberst, has been releasing albums under this group/alias since 1998, has some songcraft but that's never sufficed for me. Not sure this should be called an EP (8 songs, 29:06). B+(*) [sp]

Lucrecia Dalt: A Danger to Ourselves (2025, RVNG Intl): Sound artist from Colombia, María Lucrecia Pérez López, based in Berlin, has a dozen albums since 2011. B+(***) [sp]

Maya Delilah: The Long Way Round (2025, Blue Note): English singer-songwriter, plays guitar, first album after two EPs and some singles. Nice batch of songs, with an easy flow. On a jazz label, but not really. B+(**) [sp]

Earscratcher: Otoliths (2024 [2025], Aerophonic): Free jazz quartet with Dave Rempis (soprano/alto/tenor sax), Elisabeth Harnik (piano), Fred Lonberg-Holm (cello), and Tim Daisy (drums), second album, first I've heard all week that's just pure delight to listen to. A- [cd]

Margaret Glaspy: The Golden Heart Protector (2025, ATO, EP): A singer-songwriter of considerable interest, although these 7 songs (25:23) seem to be covers, all but one duet features. The most familiar song is also the most distinctive ("Have You Ever Seen the Rain"). B+(***) [sp]

Phil Haynes & Free Country: Liberty Now! (1996-2025 [2025], Corner Store Jazz, 2CD): Drummer, wide range of releases since working with Paul Smoker in the 1980s. This appears to be two albums in one package, a nightmare configuration for anyone trying to run a poll that distinguishes between new and old archival music. First disc is a recent set with Hank Roberts (cello), Jim Yanda (guitar/vocals), and Drew Gress (bass), each contributing new songs. The second is probably the same group, but playing old Americana, including "Revolution," "What's Going On," and "Respect" -- a 71:16 sampler from their previous albums, or possibly stray tracks from those sessions. The scattered vocals aren't much good, but the melodies take you back. The new material (61:15) is a bit harder to connect with, but the vibe is the same. B+(**) [cd] [10-17]

Hunx and His Punx: Walk Out on This World (2025, Get Better): Punk band from California, principally Seth Bogart, three albums 2011-14, regrouped here for a fourth. B- [sp]

Charles Lloyd: Figure in Blue (2025, Blue Note): Tenor saxophonist, also plays some flute, he's been a big name since the 1960s, recorded this on his 87th birthday, in a trio with Jason Moran (piano) and Marvin Sewell (guitar), with 14 tracks stretching out to 98 minutes. He takes it easy for the most part, with most of the muscle (and sinew) from the guitar. B+(*) [sp]

Jim McNeely: Primal Colors (2025, Challenge): Pianist, composer and big band director, working here with Frankfurt Radio Symphony and Frankfurt Radio Bigband, for a major production. B+(*) [sp]

John Michel/Anthony James: Egotrip (2025, Loudmouth): Underground rapper and producer, first album I can find by either. Pretty splashy. B+(**) [sp]

Rhett Miller: A Lifetime of Riding by Night (2025, ATO): Singer-songwriter from Texas, leader of the alt-country-rock band Old 97's (20+ albums 1994-2024), has also released 8 studio solo albums since 2002 (one previous one from 1989). Easy to listen to, and not without merit. B+(**) [sp]

Neal Miner: Invisibility (2025, Cellar Music): Bassist, a name I thought I recognized from Lou Kaven's Smalls labeld, but I find I hadn't made any note of his 2006 album there -- I do have several side-credits from then and since. This is a trio with Chris Byars (tenor sax, also on his Smalls album) and Jason Tiemann (drums), playing his compositions ("mostly contrafacts over classic American standard songs"). Bryars is the leading talent who came out of that scene, a retro player jumping off from bebop, much like Scott Hamilton did with swing. B+(***) [sp]

The Prize: In the Red (2025, Anti Fade): Australian power pop band, "equal parts brains and bravado." B+(**) [sp]

Jason Rigby: Mayhem (2024 [2025], Endectomorph Music): Tenor saxophonist, first noticed as one of Fresh Sound's new talents (2006, or for side credits 2002), several albums since, 40 credits total. Also plays bass clarinet, flute, piano and other keyboards, percussion, electronics, along with Mark Guiliana (drums, electronics). Fast stuff up front is most appealing. B+(***) [sp]

Bill Scorzari: Sidereal Days (Day 1) (2025, self-released): Singer-songwriter, originally from Kansas, moved to New York City, seems to have gotten a late start after years of practicing law, his 2014 debut was interesting, and three (now four) subsequent albums have only gotten better. Not much of a voice, but orks for him, probably because the songs justify the lyric sheet but wind up sounding even better. A (Day 2) sequel is promised, but not until Sept. 2026. He has more confidence than I that we'll still be here. A- [cd] [10-17]

Grant Stewart: Next Spring (2024 [2025], Cellar Music): Tenor saxophonist, from Toronto, mainstream ("steady swinging, muscular hard bop"), couple dozen albums since 1992, a couple co-led with Eric Alexander, this a quartet with Tardo Hammer (piano), Paul Sikivie (bass), and Phil Stewart (drums), playing standards including Monk, Shorter, Barry Harris, and Bob Mover. B+(**) [sp]

Recent reissues, compilations, and vault discoveries:

Ray Charles: Best of Country & Western (1962-85 [2024], Tangerine): Thirteen songs, including three each from the two 1962 volumes of Modern Sounds in Country & Western Music, where his customary application of strings and chorus to country standards just added to his genius reputation. This picks up some later hits like "Crying Time" (1964), but only includes two songs after 1967: a Johnny Cash cover from 1970, and a Willie Nelson duet from the latter's 1985 Half Nelson. Some classics here, but this can slip into formula. B+(**) [bc]

Old music:

Agnas Bros.: Lycka Till Med Musiken (2017 [2018], Agnas Musikproduktioner): Third group album (first was 2012) for Urban Agnas' sons Konrad (drums, b. 1990), Kasper (guitar, b. 1992), Mauritz (bass, b. 1995), and Max (piano, b. 1997). B+(**) [bc]

Agnas Bros.: Frya (2022, Haphazard Music): Fourth album. B+(**) [bc]

Ray Charles: The Complete Swing Time and Down Beat Recordings (1949-1952) (1949-52 [2004], Night Train, 2CD): First recordings for the blind pianist-singer, before he moved on to Atlantic and stardom. He had a few minor r&b hits during this period ("Confession Blues," "Baby Let Me Hold Your Hand," "Kissa Me Baby"). I've always heard that he was a Charles Brown wannabe early on, and there's a fair amount of that here, but other undeveloped styles as well. B+(*) [sp]

Ronald Shannon Jackson and the Decoding Society: Eye on You (1980 [1981], About Time): Drummer (1940-2013), from Fort Worth, part of Ornette Coleman's mid-1970s Prime Time group. This is a similar-sounding group, with two saxophonists (Byard Lancaster and Charles Brackeen), two guitarists (Vernon Reid and Bern Nix), electric bass (Melvin Gibbs), violin (Billy Bang), and percussion (Erasto Vasconcelos). Still, none of them (even Bang) can quite pull off the sort of miracles Coleman so often delivered. B+(***) [bc]

Jim McNeely Quintet: Rain's Dance (1976 [1978], SteepleChase): Pianist (1949-2025), owns one of the few solo piano albums I've rated A- (his Vol. 20 entry in Maybeck Recital Hall Series), but is best known for extensive work in big bands, starting with Thad Jones/Mel Lewis in 1978, including its later Vanguard Jazz Orchestra edition, and work with several European big bands. Quintet with Larry Schneider (tenor/soprano sax), Mike Richmond (bass), Bob Merigliano (drums), and Sam Jacobs (percussion). B+(***) [sp]

Grade (or other) changes:

Margo Price: Hard Headed Woman (2025, Loma Vista): Country singer-songwriter, fifth studio album since 2016 (plus a live Perfectly Imperfect at the Ryman). Strong upbeat pieces, doesn't lose much on the ballads. [was: B+(***)] A- [sp]

Unpacking: Found in the mail last week:

• Agnas Bros.: Sista Försöket (Moserobie) [09-26]
• David Greenberger & the Hi-Ho Barbers: Ginger Ale (Pel Pel) [11-17]
• John O'Gallagher/Ben Monder/Andrew Cyrille/Billy Hart: Ancestral (Whirlwind) [10-24]

Ask a question, or send a comment.

Tuesday, October 7, 2025

October archive (in progress).

Music: Current count 44977 [44927] rated (+50), 29 [20] unrated (+9).

Bernie Sanders is wrong, It's not okto be angry about capitalism. It's a curse, a chore, a dead weight that saps your energy and spirit and leaves you empty and bitter. That's probably why most people are resigned to its inevitability. And those who can afford it, which probably includes us, will wind up just paying them off to make the problems go away. Most capitalists, after all, are satisfied just taking your money. Political ideologues aren't so easily paid off. No point going into details about what's driving these statements. They're my problems, not yours. But they're coming for you, just as surely as they came for me.

I posted a piece on Cooking Chinese last week. It was on my Substack newsletter, which for various historical and philosophical reasons I call Notes on Everyday Life. After several political posts (and one on Sheila Jordan), I wanted to do something closer to my own everyday life. Your mileage may vary, but cooking, eating, and socializing are pretty universal. Of course, when I was done, I still had further thoughts, so I spent a couple days writing them up, in Friday's (updated yesterday) blog post, Cooking Chinese (Again). That, plus capitalism, pushed this Music Week post out a day.

I was surprised to find the rated count so high (50; 30 is my idea of a good week), as it seems like I spent much of the week desperately searching for things to listen to next. I did the cutoff late Monday, so got most of an extra day in, but I wasn't able to listen to much that day. (My initial cutoff count was 49. I added the Carrier album late Monday, before I finished opening the day's mail, so that made 50, and bumped the A-list from 2 to 3. Tuesday morning I added Wednesday, figuring it would be nice to have at least one new A- album, and that I was overdue in getting to it anyway. But it will be in next week's count.)

Three things helped with the rated count: Phil Overeem's October 1 list suggested some titles (including Wednesday, and a Patricia Brennan album that I expected would show up in the mail later); the About Time Records Bandcamp page, where I listened to everything (checks; missed one, so next week for Ronald Shannon Jackson); and a look into Mark O'Leary's early work: three newly issued tapes that date from 1998-2001, on Bandcamp, plus many of his 2000-08 Leo releases, on Spotify. He wrote me via my Q&A form, adding "even a modest mention of . . . would be very appreciated." Modest mentions is about all I seem to be good for these days, but I wrote up two of those last week, spending most of my listening time trying to figure out how old they were. I got the recording dates from him later (1998-2001), so that's why they're in the "changes" section below. I gather he went off in a different direction after 2008, but I didn't venture there: too many albums, no idea where to start. Maybe later.

It seems like most of what I get through the Q&A form are plugs for reviewing albums. I follow up on them more often than not, but still find it disappointing when my opinion is only sought for commerce. More anger about capitalism, I'm afraid.

If you haven't already, a subscription to Notes on Everyday Life would be appreciated. They do one thing well that I've never been able to do on my own, which is to track readership. It's good to get some evidence back that I'm not just shouting into the void. I'm thinking that my next piece there is going to be a "modest mention" of a sensible peace plan for Israel/Gaza. I've thought about that for 25 years, basically ever since Ehud Barak, Ariel Sharon, and Shaul Moffaz blew up the Oslo Accords (with non-trivial assists from Shimon Peres, Benjamin Netanyahu, and Bill Clinton), although most of the ideas I've come up with over the years no longer work, mostly because I've always assumed that sanity can prevail. The question now is more along the lines of can insanity be constrained? I'm pretty skeptical, especially where Trump is concerned, but if it could be constrained, some ways are more realistic and/or more viable than others.

Don't expect such a piece real soon. While I have a pretty good idea where to go, I need first to collect some Loose Tabs, especially to pick up details on the "Trump Peace Plan" (which is probably one of those compound oxymorons like "Holy Roman Empire"). Not much in the draft file so far, so I have a fair amount of work to do there.

New records reviewed this week:

$ilkMoney: Who Waters the Wilting Giving Tree Once the Leaves Dry Up and Fruits No Longer Bear? (2025, Lex/DB$B): Rapper from Virginia, Murphy Graves, fourth album since 2018, all long, run-on titles. B+(***) [sp]

Marja Ahti: Touch This Fragrant Surface of Earth (2025, Fönstret): Born in Sweden, based in Finland, combines field recordings with electronics and sundry instruments for speculative ambient arts, including a couple others on clarinet and cello. B+(*) [bc]

Pheeroan akLaff/Scott Robinson/Julian Thayer: aRT: Live at Kampo Bahal Gallery (2025, ScienSonic, EP): Drums, reeds, bass trio, the drummer originally named Paul Maddox, from Detroit, has a long and distinguished career starting with Oliver Lake in 1975, including work with Henry Threadgill and Wadada Leo Smith. I think of Robinson as being more retro, but not here. The bassist has few side-credits, mostly with Robinson or Klaus Suonsaari. The three recorded a trio album in 2024 which has proven elusive, but this shorter (23:34) improv piece is probably indicative, but also seems tentative. B+(*) [bc]

Gary Bartz & NTU: The Eternal Tenure of Sound: Damage Control (2022-23 [2025], OYO): Alto saxophonist, in his 80s now, best known for his Afro-centric NTU Troop albums (1970-74), but has a long catalog up through 2011, less recently (although he was featured on one of the Jazz Is Dead albums). I like the sax here, but can't get into the vocals, although they work well enough for slow soul jams. B+(*) [sp]

Chrome Hill: En Route (2024 [2025], Clean Feed): Norwegian jazz group, fifth album since 2008, main name I recognize is Atle Nymo (tenor sax, bass clarinet), but composer is Asbjørn Lerheim (Fender Bass VI, electric guitar, electronics), backed by Roger Arntzen (bass, electronics) and Torstein Lofthus (drums). B+(**) [sp]

Mike Clark: Itai Doshin (2024 [2025], Wide Hive): Drummer, generic name is easy to forget but he's been active since the the early 1970s (with Herbie Hancock) and Discogs credits him with 21 albums since 1992. Quintet of veterans here -- Eddie Henderson (trumpet), Craig Handy (sax), Patrice Rushen (piano/rhodes), Henry Franklin (bass) -- so mainstream you know what to expect, but can't help but be pleased. B+(***) [cd]

Tom Cohen: Embraceable Brazil (2025, Versa): Drummer, from Philadelphia, has several previous albums back to 1997, plays a wide range of Brazilian standards here, some with Chico Pinheiro on guitar and/or Barbara Mendes for vocals. B+(**) [cd]

Jorge Espinal: Bombos Y Cencerros (2023 [2025], Buh): Guitarist from Peru, has a previous trio album from 2015, not sure how much else. This is solo, improv, but the credit reads: "all at once, prepared electric guitar, bass drum, cowbell, pedals, and laptop." Nine pieces, 29:07. For a while I could imagine Captain Beefheart singing to it, but it wound up too fragmented even for Tom Zé. B+(**) [sp]

Debby Friday: The Starrr of the Queen of Life (2025, Sub Pop): Electropop singer-songwriter, born in Nigeria, raised in Montreal, second album. First, which won the Polaris Prize, I liked a lot, this is a bit more inscrutable. B+(***) [sp]

Miho Hazama: Live Life This Day: Celebrating Thad Jones (2025, Edition): Japanese pianist, based in New York, debut 2012, her 2023 m_unit album caught me by surprise, but she's also been involved with European big bands: a 2018 album with Metropole Orkest, and since 2019 she's been "chief conductor" of the Danish Radio Big Band, a post that had previously been given to several notable Americans: Jim McNeely, Bob Brookmeyer, and Thad Jones. They're bolstered here with strings from the Danish National Symphony Orchestra, for this live program of Jones compositions plus a couple Hazama additions. B+(*) [sp]

Conrad Herwig: Reflections - Facing South (2020 [2025], Savant): Trombonist, started with Clark Terry in the 1980s, played with Joe Henderson, Joe Lovano, and Mingus Big Band, but has shifted into Latin jazz, especially with his series of The Latin Side Of recordings. Trio here with Eddie Palmieri (piano) and Luques Curtis (bass). The Latin quotient seems subdued without percussion, but they enjoy space to breathe, without just being hurried along. B+(***) [sp]

Hot 8 Brass Band: Big Tuba (2025, Tru Thoughts): New Orleans brass band, founded 1995, long led by Bennie Pate, who died in 2021, carries on. B+(**) [bc]

JID: God Does Like Ugly (2025, Dreamville/Interscope): Atlanta rapper Destin Route, started with mixtapes in 2009, fourth studio album since 2017, sprawling with 15 tracks, 57:06, many guests, a fairly generous view of God. B+(***) [sp]

Rick Keller: Heroes (2024-25 [2025], Vegas): Saxophonist (tenor, soprano, alto, some flute), started career in 1983 in Europe, based in Los Angeles since 2001 (and now Las Vegas?), has a couple records as far back as 1988, many more side credits, styles this as tributes to "musicians who shaped my development" -- mostly with fusion connections (Davis, Shorter, Zawinul, Hancock, Marcus Miller) or groups (Weather Report, Brecker Brothers). Some vocals don't help. B- [cd]

Zack Lober: So We Could Live (2025, Zennez): Canadian bassist, previuos album from 2021, couple dozen side credits going back to 2003. Nice quartet with trumpet (Suzan Veneman), tenor sax (Jasper Blom), and drums (Sun-Mi Hong). B+(***) [cd]

Donny McCaslin: Lullaby for the Lost (2024 [2025], Edition): Tenor saxophonist, started early 1990s, has released regular albums, especially since 2000, has always impressed me with his chops if not necessarily judgment. Opts for a fusion-heavy mix here, employing various combinations of guitars (notably Ben Monder), keyboards (Jason Lindner), bass, and drums. B [sp]

Mexstep & Principe Q: Tráfico (2025, Puro Unity, EP): San Antonio rapper Marco Cervantes, has a couple previous albums, with "genre-defying" DJ/producer Svani Quintanilla, the grooves a mix of Tex-Mex and turntablism. Six songs, 16:51. B+(***) [bc]

Joe Morris/Brad Barrett/Beth Ann Jones: Abstract Forest (2025, Relative Pitch): Avant-guitarist, many albums since 1990, here with cello and bass. B+(***) [sp]

Elizabeth Nichols: Tough Love (2025, Pulse, EP): Country singer-songwriter, from Kentucky, seems to be her first record, not much info available but has some appeal, could stick around; 7 songs, 20:08. B+(**) [sp]

Bill Orcutt/Steve Shelley/Ethan Miller: Orcutt Shelley Miller (2024 [2025], Silver Current): Guitar, bass, drums trio, considered "experimental rock," because all three have rock band backgrounds (Shelley on Sonic Youth; Orcutt's first group was called Harry Pussy -- I still file his records under rock, but list them with jazz). B+(***) [sp]

Juan Pastor's Chinchano: Memorias (2024 [2025], Calligram): Drummer-led Latin jazz group, seems to be "(2)" in Discogs (which doesn't have this or other albums on the artist's website, but gives him a side credit for James Davis' Beveled). Cover adds names for Stu Mindeman (piano), Matt Ulery (bass), Dustin Laurenzi (tenor sax), and "featuring" Gian Luiggi Cortez Mejia (congas/cajón/bell/cajita). B+(***) [cd]

Patrick Shiroishi: Forgetting Is Violent (2025, American Dream): Alto saxophonist, based in Los Angeles, very prolific since 2014. "Supporting cast," including some notable rock figures, is mentioned in the write-up but not properly credited. Mostly voices, not very distinct. Some fine sax runs over a noise backdrop. B+(*) [bc]

Kalie Shorr: My Type (2025, Pound It Out Loud, EP): Singer-songwriter from Maine, based in Nashville, which gets her no-twang pop anthems a bit of a country audience. Has a good album from 2019, plus several EPs. This one has 6 songs, 18:19. B+(***) [sp]

Wadada Leo Smith/Sylvie Courvoisier: Angel Falls (2024 [2025], Intakt): Trumpet and piano duo, the former in his 80s, an early AACM member, his discography going back to 1971, but it seems like he only rose to a much higher level after 2010, as he started getting grant money for expansive compositions. Swiss pianist, very productive since 1997. Her name is first on the front cover, but his comes first on the back, and on the spine. Similar to last year's duet with Amina Claudine Myers (or this year's with Vijay Iyer). A bit slow for my taste, but rewards a close listen. B+(***) [cd]

Sprints: All That Is Over (2025, City Slang/Sub Pop): Irish garage punk band, Karla Chubb the singer, second studio album after some EPs. Another strong album. B+(***) [sp]

Laura Taylor: Think I'm in Love (2025, Vegas): Las Vegas-based standards singer, recorded a pretty fair disco album in 1979, Discogs goes straight from it to this one, but I have four intermediate albums in my database, including a tribute to Julie London and Chet Baker and a Johnny Mercer songbook. B+(*) [cd]

The Third Mind: Right Now! (2025, Yep Roc): Americana "supergroup" -- best known are Dave Alvin, Victor Krummenacher (Camper van Beethoven), and Jesse Sykes (who takes most of the vocals) -- take some improv ideas from jazz, which include some heavy guitar, and a closing 7:51 "The Creator Has a Master Plan." B+(***) [sp]

Pat Thomas: ود ود (Wadud/Most Loving) (2023 [2025], Nyahh): British avant-pianist, often drops Arabic into his titles -- best known is his group, Ahmed -- solo here, one 30:35 piece, piano sounds prepared. B+(***) [bc]

UNLV Jazz Ensemble 1: Double or Nothing (2025, Vegas): College-level 21-piece big band, directed by Dave Loeb and Nathan Tanouye, mixed a couple of original pieces along with standards, notably Ellington/Strayhorn and Gillespie. B [cd]

Kamasi Washington: Lazarus [Adult Swim Original Series Soundtrack] (2025, Milan): Tenor saxophonist, major chops but also has crossover appeal, one of three soundtracks for Shinichiro Watanabe's anime series (the others are by Bonobo and Floating Points). Soundtracky, with some boss sax. B [sp]

Recent reissues, compilations, and vault discoveries:

Armen Donelian: Stargazer (1980 [2025], Sunnyside): Pianist, had played with Mongo Santamaria and Billy Harper before recording this first album, a trio with Eddie Gomez and Billy Hart, originally released in Japan in 1981. B+(**) [cd]

Hot Chip: Joy in Repetition (2005-22 [2025], Domino): British electropop group, 8 albums 2004-22, this compilation appears to be selected from singles (including a bait track included here, but of uncertain age). Looking back at my individual album grades, I'd say that selection helps, but doesn't clear them as a singles band. B+(**) [sp]

Mark O'Leary Group: I See Further Than You (2001 [2025], TIBProd.): Irish guitarist, released a series of albums on Leo in the early 2000s that were well regarded in Penguin Guide, but moved away from jazz (or toward something else?) after 2008. This is one of several old tapes recently released, this one with Michael Formanek (bass) and Joey Baron (drums). (Two others I reviewed last month but spent most of my time puzzling over the missing dates.) B+(**) [bc]

Eli "Paperboy" Reed: Sings "Walkin' and Talkin'" and Other Smash Hits [20th Anniversary Edition] (2005 [2025], Yep Roc): Blues-smitten singer-guitarist from the Boston suburbs, made a pilgrimage to Clarksdale, Mississippi after graduating high school, but went to Chicago for college, then returned to Boston to record his first album: 12 tracks here, with the reissue adding 15 more (4 bonus tracks + 11 radio sessions). B+(**) [sp]

Atef Swaitat: Palestinian Bedouin Psychedelic Dabka Archive (1970s [2025], Majazz Project/Palestinian Sound Archive): Two sides (46:31) compiled from "immersive field recordings from weddings across the Galilee in the 1970s." B+(***) [sp]

John Taylor: Tramanto(2002 [2025], ECM): English pianist (1942-2015), many side credits starting in 1970 with John Surman, Graham Collier, Harry Beckett, Alan Skidmore, and Kenny Wheeler. This is a trio with Marc Johnson (bass) and Joey Baron (drums). This was a live recording in January, befor the April studio session the trio released as Rosslyn. B+(**)

Wednesday: Bleeds (2025, Dead Oceans): Country-ish rock band from North Carolina, although they also venture into Sonic Youth territory, principally Karly Hartzman (vocals, guitar), although guitarist MJ Lenderman has the bigger profile, and most of the songs (aside from a Lefty Frizzell cover) are jointly credited. Lots of people love this album, and they're not wrong. A- [sp]

Old music:

Abdullah: Life's Force (1979, About Time): Trumpet player Leroy Bland, better known as Ahmed Abdullah, Discogs (which notes that he kept the Arabic name even after converting to Buddhism) treats this as a group name. Played with Sun Ra, Arthur Blythe, a few others -- his 1974 group, Melodic Art-Tet, is especially notable. Group here with Vincent Chancey (French horn), Muneer Abdul Fatah (cello), Jerome Hunter (bass), Jay Hoggard (vibes), and Rashied Sinan (drums). B+(***) [bc]

Pheeroan ak Laff: House of Spirit: "Mirth" (1979 [1980], Passin' Thru): Drummer, first album on his own, solo, produced by Oliver Lake. B+(***) [yt]

Willem Breuker Kollektief: William Breuker Collective (1983 [1984], About Time): Dutch saxophonist (1944-2010), a co-founder of ICP, ran his group from 1974 on, a not-quite big band which played free jazz while liberally quoting from Kurt Weill, classical, and circus music. Most of their records are on the BV Haast label. I've sampled them occasionally where I could, but my grades are all over the place, as is their music. This was snagged from a rare New York performance, much like European labels latch onto concerts by visiting Americans. This one is more wonderful than not, but still trips up more than I would like. B+(***) [bc]

François Carrier Trio With Uri Caine: All' Aba (2001 [2002], Justin Time): Canadian alto saxophonist, debut 1994, impressed me early and has long been a favorite. The pianist was in peak form during this period. A- [bc]

Mike Clark: Plays Herbie Hancock (2022 [2023], Sunnyside): Veteran drummer, joined Hancock's band in 1974, and remained in the Headhunters long after Hancock left. Acoustic trio here with Jon Davis (piano) and Leon Lee Dorsey (bass), playing eight Hancock standards. B+(**) [sp]

Jerome Cooper: The Unpredictability of Predictability (1979, About Time): Drummer (1946-2015), best known for Revolutionary Ensemble, also injects flute, whistle, balafon, percussion, and voice into this early solo album. It's a remarkable tour de force, especially as the balafon adds a melodic overtone to the basic thud of the drums. A- [bc]

Jerome Cooper Quintet: Outer and Interactions (1987 [1988], About Time): Drummer-led quintet, his compositions, he also plays chiramia, balaphone, and flutes, joined by Joseph Jarman (tenor sax/flute), William Parker (bass), Thurman Barker (drums), and Jason Hwang (violin). Best parts here focus on the percussion. B+(***) [bc]

Fred Hopkins/Diedre Murray Quartet: Prophecy (1990 [1998], About Time): Bassist (1947-99), not much as a leader (two more albums with the cellist around this time list her first, but he started out with Air in 1975, was a regular with David Murray, and appeared with others like Don Pullen, Oliver Lake, and Henry Threadgill. Quartet with cello (Murray), guitar (Brandon Ross), and drums (Newman Baker). B+(***) [bc]

Sam Jones Plus 10: The Chant (1961, Riverside): Bassist (1924-81), a dozen-plus albums starting in 1960, huge number of side credits (especially with Cannonball Adderley and Cedar Walton). Second album, three brass, three saxes, drums, piano/guitar (Victor Feldman/Les Spann) or piano/vibes (Wynton Kelly/Feldman), three tracks where Jones plays cello and Keter Betts picks up the bass. B+(***) [sp]

Joe Morris: Racket Club (1993 [1998], About Time): Avant-guitarist, long list of records starts in 1990, this one with two saxophonists (Jim Hobbs on alto and Steve Norton on baritone), electric bass (Nate McBride), and two drummers (Jerome Deupree and Curt Newton). B+(***) [bc]

Mark O'Leary/Cuong Vu/Tom Rainey: Waiting (2004 [2006], Leo): Freewheeling guitar-trumpet-drums trio. B+(***) [sp]

Mark O'Leary/Ståle Storløkken/Stein Inge Braekhus: St. Fin Barre's (2002 [2008], Leo): Guitar-organ-drums trio, recorded on the guitarist's home turf in Cork City. B+(*) [sp]

Mark O'Leary/Eyvind Kang/Dylan Van Der Schyff: Zemlya (2004 [2008], Leo): Another trio, recorded in Seattle, with viola and drums (and electronics credits for all). I'm rarely getting a good sense of how the guitar fits into these records, but the viola is exceptional here, and the timbre is close enough that the two instruments co-extend. A- [sp]

Mark O'Leary/Kenny Wollesen/Jamie Saft: The Synth Show (2005 [2008], Leo): The guitarist adds E-Bow and Soundscapes to his repertoire, with Saft on synthesizer and Wollensen on drums. At the time, there was a boomlet for "jazztronica," extending from Matthew Shipp's Blue Series to postmodernists like Dave Douglas and even to retro-oriented Nicholas Payton. My favorites, like Nils Petter Molvær and Nik Bärtsch, focused on rhythm. This one is more into texture. B+(*) [sp]

The Henry Threadgill Sextet: When Was That? (1981 [1982], About Time): Saxophonist (alto/tenor, clarinet, flutes), started with Air in 1975, effectively kicked off his solo career here (after a best-forgotten 1979 album on Arista/Novus), a group with Olu Dara (cornet), Craig Harris ( trombone), Fred Hopkins (bass), Brian Smith (piccolo bass), and drums (Pheeroan Aklaff or John Betsch). B+(*) [bc]

The Henry Threadgill Sexett: Just the Facts and Pass the Bucket (1983, About Time): Seven figures (back facing) on the cover, so the group appears to be misnumbered, with both drummers returning, the only change being replacing the piccolo bass with a proper cello (Diedre Murray). B+(**) [bc]

Grade (or other) changes:

Mark O'Leary Quartet: White Album (1998 [2025], TIBProd.): Early New York set with Paul Motian (drums), Kenny Werner (piano), and John Patitucci (bass). B+(*) [bc]

Mark O'Leary Group: A Simple Question (1999 [2025], TIBProd.): Early trio with Marc Johnson (bass) and Bill Stewart (drums). B+(**) [bc]

Unpacking: Found in the mail last week:

• Affinity Trio [Eric Jacobson/Pamela York/Clay Schaub]: New Outlook (Origin) [10-17]
• Kenny Barron: Sunset to Dawn (1973, Time Traveler) [10-17]
• Patricia Brennan: Of the Near and Far (Pyroclastic) [10-24]
• Roy Brooks: The Free Slave (1970, Time Traveler) [10-17]
• Adam Forkelid: Dreams (Prophone) [10-24]
• Carlos Garnett: Cosmos Nucleus (1976, Time Traveler) [10-17]
• Maja Jaku: Blessed & Bewitched (Origin) [10-17]
• Lizzy & the Triggermen: Live at Joe's Pub (self-released) [08-14]
• Kelsey Mines: Everything Sacred, Nothing Serious (OA2) [10-17]
• Roberto Montero: Todos Os Tempos (Vaicomtudo Music) [10-17]
• Ted Piltzecker: Peace Vibes (OA2) [10-17]
• Rich Siegel: It's Always Been You (self-released) [09-12]
• Enoch Smith Jr.: The Book of Enoch Vol. 1 (Misfitme Music) [11-07]
• Pat Thomas: Hikmah (TAO Forms) [11-07]
• Patricia Thomson: Your Love (PT Designs Productions) [10-01]
• Henry Threadgill: Listen Ship (Pi) [09-26]
• Wayne Wilkinson: Holly Tunes (self-released) [11-07]

Ask a question, or send a comment.

Monday, September 29, 2025

September archive (finished).

Music: Current count 44927 [44894] rated (+33), 20 [17] unrated (+3).

Making slow progress through a depressing series of everyday life challenges, where even accomplishments sometimes feel like losing ground. Certainly losing time, as this is the last Music Week of September. I've been writing daily notebook entries to get myself going each day, so many of the gory details are in there. No need to rehash them here. I do have fairly modest hopes of getting two things done this week:

1. The website set up for the 20th Annual Francis Davis Jazz Critics Poll (link will be here, probably tomorrow, as what I have works, but I keep wanting to restructure the documentation, and still need to edit the invites). This falls far short of any imagined redesign, but it should suffice for the coming poll. I'll follow this up with messages to my email lists, to get people thinking about the eventuality. Actual voting is unlikely to be open before mid-November, but I don't want to be cut up short, as has always happened in the past.

2. I hope to write up and send out a Notes on Everyday Life post. I'm thinking it will be on cooking Chinese, featuring a recent meal with some technique and lore. After several posts on politics, this should point back toward everyday life (mine at least). Not that cooking is much of a refuge, given that the fascists aren't going to stop with the usual victims.

Future posts will include one on building computers, and one on recycling. I'm also thinking about doing one on three books on jazz in the 21st century, which might just turn into a list of things I think they've missed. I also have a couple books handy on fascism in America, and some thoughts about what does and does not work in the analogy. I'm thinking we should distinguish between first- and second-wave fascism. What they have in common is a desire to seize power and to use it violently against their enemies, allowing for no dissent. Both are authoritarian, but that word seems to intend some kind of static equilibrium, whereas the actual movements are not just dynamic but insatiable. On the other hand, the cultural framework is different: first-wave fascism was distinctly modernist, whereas second-wave is postmodernist (atavistic in its desires, but can't really pull that off.

I actually have very little in the Loose Tabs draft file at the moment, and even less desire to flesh it out. Still, I should, of only to keep an eye out. We're at once powerless to resist but complicit if we do not. In between it often seems that all one can do is tsk-tsk, which I suppose is the point of the column: to show that we witnessed this and knew better but couldn't do anything about it.

I got a few things out of the Slobodian book on Hayek's Bastards, where the "new fusion" is characterized by "hard currency, hard borders, and hard-wired culture." All three of those are very much at odds with a real world they hope to subdue with arbitrary force. It's easy to predict that they will fail, not least because flex is key to survival of the capitalism they adore in theory but can't stand in practice. The unknowns are how many people, especially among the rich, they can con along the way, and how much damage they can do before their failures wipe them out. As we learned from the first wave of fascism, those variables are large and deadly.

I noted this quote (p. 168), which is not quite the point I wanted to make, but still worth sharing:

Common across the platforms and decades is a will to startle and an atmosphere of competitive speculation about the events of the near future. These are attention plays in an economy where attention is a scarce resource. Their strategy is to hit the same notes with a sledgehammer, the ones their consumers expected to hear: the crisis is around the corner. The crash is coming. The status quo is doomed. All assumptions must be undone. Taboos must shatter, the unspoken said aloud. Your liberty is at risk. Act now and act quickly. The centralizers are coming. The socialists are coming, The refugees are coming. The gold requisitioners are coming. The authorities are coming. The state is coming (even if we are the state).

It's easy to dismiss this as "paranoid style," but it feeds on real problems, just blaming the wrong people and offering the wrong remedies. The sad thing is that it works, mostly because the people they hate -- the "progressives" who have deluded themselves into thinking growth and profit are all that elites need to keep ahead of their problems -- don't have answers to these problems (at least ones that respect, much less address, their complaints).

I'm moving on to David A Graham's The Project: How Project 2025 Is Reshaping America: a thin but important book, as it appears now that the plan was not just a bunch of bad ideas, but a very methodical approach to seizing power and installing loyal (and self-starting) cadres deep enough in government to have significant impact. Before the election, someone said that the key was that Harris voters believed that she would do things like ending wars that she said she wouldn't do, while Trump voters didn't believe he would do what he plainly said he would do. We've only been able to test one of those hypotheticals: Trump has not only delivered on his promises, he's done so in spectacularly brutal fashion, far exceeding the fears of most of his opponents (even me). Graham's book helps explain this, although I suspect that a fuller explanation requires that we look not just at Trump but to the ideological convictions of his followers, and the power bases they had wormed their way into, in preparation for their leader's permission to go crazy.

With September over, the September archive is complete, and added to the 2025 index. While I don't feel like I got much else done during the month, I do count 187 albums rated (+1 one grade change). Although this week is relatively thin, a lot of terrific albums appeared came to my attention during the month.

New records reviewed this week:

JD Allen: Love Letters (The Ballad Sessions) (2025, Savant): Tenor saxophonist, many albums since 1999, mostly trios which show how imposing he can be, this one lightens up, adding a piano (Brandon McCune) to his usual bass (Ian Kenselaar) and drums (Nic Cacioppo). B+(**) [sp]

Mulatu Astatke: Mulatu Plays Mulatu (2025, Strut): Ethiopian musician, plays vibes, keyboards, percussion, emerged as "the father of Ethio-Jazz" in the 1970s, a compilation of his early material was released as Vol. 4 of Éthiopiques in 1998, which led to his reemergence on the world stage. Now 81, this is billed as his "first major studio album in over 10 years," although I've heard a couple of live collaborations in that period. Old pieces, mostly new big band arrangements, credits unclear, horns a plus. B+(***) [sp]

Decius: Decius Vol. II (Splendour & Obedience) (2025, The Leaf Label): British electronica group, brothers Liam and Luke May, with Quinn Whalley (Paranoid London/Warmduscher) and Lias Saoudi (Fat White Family). Presumably named for the short-lived Roman emperor (249-251) -- at least their album art is Roman. B+(***) [sp]

Doja Cat: Vie (2025, Kemosabe/RCA): Singer-rapper Amala Diamini, from Los Angeles, fifth album since 2018, rather hit and miss. B+(**) [sp]

Dave Douglas: Alloy (2025, Greenleaf Music): Trumpet player, major figure since 1993, joined by two younger trumpet players here (Alexandra Ridout and Dave Adewumi, the idea being to forge a stronger trumpet bond), plus vibes (Patricia Brennan), bass (Kate Pass), and drums (Rudy Royston). B+(**) [sp]

Baxter Dury: Allbarone (2025, Heavenly): Sometimes comes off as a chip off the old blockhead -- spoken vocals, choppy beats -- but that's rarely sufficed with regular albums since 2002. This is touted as his "best yet," and sometimes is. B+(*) [sp]

Robbie Fulks: Now Then (2025, Compass): Folkie singer-songwriter, steady stream of albums since 1996, ranging from bluegrass to Michael Jackson covers to a session with some of the Mekons. Another mixed bag of songs. B [sp]

Geese: Getting Killed (2025, Partisan): Brooklyn band, fourth album since 2018, Cameron Winter the singer, plays keyboards and guitar, backed by guitar-bass-drums. Irritating singer aside, there is something interesting in the mix here, mostly rhythmic. But "irritating" is an understatement. B [sp]

Gao Hong/Baluji Shrivastav: Neelam (2025, ARC Music): Chinese pipa and Indian sitar duo, both with substantial discographies on their own since their moves, the former from China to US in 1994, the latter from India to UK in 1982. The latter's ragas, aided by Yousef Ali Khan on tabla, seem to be the base for improvisations. B+(*) [os]

Jade: That's Showbiz Baby! (2025, RCA): British dance-pop singer-songwriter, surname Thirwall, formerly in the group Little Mix (6 albums, 2012-20, all BPI platinum), first solo album, grew on me a bit, then made me regret it. B+(**) [sp]

Sofia Kourtesis: Volver (2025, Ninja Tune, EP): DJ/producer from Peru, based in Berlin, has one album and five EPs since 2014, presumably does her own lead vocals (not credited). Six songs (28:01). B+(**) [sp]

Harold López-Nussa: Nueva Timba (2025, Blue Note): Cuban pianist, many notable musicians in his family, half-dozen albums since 2007, second on Blue Note (a deal that seems to have required him to relocate from Havana, so he wound up in Toulouse, France). B+(**) [sp]

Maruja: Pain to Power (2025, Music for Nations): English avant-rock band, half-dozen EPs since 2016, first studio album, has some jazz rep probably due to the prominence of Joe Carroll's saxophone, vocalist Harry Wilkinson is more rapper than singer. B [sp]

Mark O'Leary Group: A Simple Question (2025, TIBProd.): Guitarist, from Ireland, Discogs lists several dozen albums from 2005-18, early records on Leo were well-regarded in Penguin Guide, seems to have moved to "rock/ambient/post-rock" around 2008, but has a bunch of recent releases, this a nice trio ("a new paradigm") with Marc Johnson (bass) and Bill Stewart (drums). B+(**) [bc]

Linda May Han Oh: Strange Heavens (2025, Biophilia): Bassist, born in Malaysia, grew up in Australia, lives in New York, has a dozen or so albums since 2012, as well as such notable side credits as Dave Douglas, Joe Lovano, and Vijay Iyer. This trio with Ambrose Akinmusire (trumpet) and Tyshawn Sorey (drums) got mid-year poll votes two months before its release date. I was pleased when my copy arrived, until I opened up the "origami-inspired" packaging and didn't find any music inside. This is supposedly a feature: "This innovative design caters to the environmentally-conscious listener, who is aware of the harmful effects of plastic in the environment, yet feels that a digital download is just not enough." I'll grant that digital downloads aren't enough, as I'm often left scrambling to collect bits of information that accompany physical CDs, but the music itself is essential to the value proposition. So I ignored this until I could conveniently stream it. (Downloading is a pain I avoid if possible. I did wind up consulting the packaging to determine that the recording dates were Jan. 10-11, 2025, at Bunker Studios -- information not (yet) available at Discogs or Bandcamp. As for the music, simple pleasures: focusing on the bass leads, neat fit for the trumpet (who I like more here than on any of his own albums), outstanding drummer. A- [sp]

Kassa Overall: Cream (2025, Warp): Drummer from Seattle, bounces between jazz (played with Geri Allen in 2009) and hip-hop (Das Racist in 2010), in 2013 did albums with Peter Evans, Vijay Iyer, and Kool A.D., and released a mixtape Christgau and I liked but not on his discographies at Discogs or Wikipedia (Stargate Mixtape). Joined Jon Batiste's Tonight Show band, and started crossing over in every which direction, from Marisa Monte to Carmen Lundy, Arto Lindsay to Cass McCombs, Yoko Ono to Danny Brown. This one, where the title is an acronym for "cash rules everything around me" (caps some places, but u&lc on the cover), offers "eight interpretations of hip-hop classics," but no vocals, so they sound like extended samples. No credits given either, but the saxophonist deserves a shout out. B+(***) [sp]

Sam Prekop: Open Close (2025, Thrill Jockey): Started in rock bands Shrimp Boat and the Sea and Cake, seems to have moved fully into electronic music these days (although I do hear some probable guitar). B+(*) [sp]

Rent Romus/Tatsuya Nakatani: Uplift (2023 [2025], Edgetone): Saxophonist, plays everything and then some, Discogs has a picture of playing two simultaneously, many albums since 1995. Live duo with drums here. B+(**) [sp]

Cécile McLorin Salvant: Oh Snap (2025, Nonesuch): Jazz singer-songwriter, widely acclaimed, has three Grammys, even a MacArthur, eighth album since 2010, most easily winning the vocal jazz category in the Francis Davis Jazz Critics Poll. While I don't doubt her technical skill, I've never gotten much out of her albums, and this one delivers less than usual. B [sp]

Shame: Cutthroat (2025, Dead Oceans): British post-punk band, fourth studio album since 2014. Agreeably trashy, until it isn't. B [sp]

Martina Verhoeven/Luis Lopes/Dirk Serries: Invincible Time (2023 [2025], Raw Tonk): Pianist (electric), with two guitarists, one long take (50:16). B+(**) [bc]

Vlure: Escalate (2025, Music for Nations): Scottish rave-punk band, first album, although NME thinks they've "spent years honing their sound." They do have one. B+(**) [sp]

Webber/Morris Big Band: Unseparate (2024 [2025], Out of Your Head): Tenor saxophonists Anna Webber and Angela Morris, also flute, lead a conventional big band (plus vibes and guitar), which leans free but doesn't poke its head out too far. B+(***) [cd]

Recent reissues, compilations, and vault discoveries:

Mark O'Leary Quartet: White Album ([2025], TIBProd.): No date given, but featured drummer Paul Motian died in 2011, so that's an outer bound. The guitarist started up c. 2000, so that narrows the window down a bit. The others -- Kenny Werner (piano) and John Patitucci (bass) -- started in the early 1990s. B+(*) [bc]

Old music:

Decius: Decius Vol. I (2022, The Leaf Label): British electronica group, Roman statuary on the cover. B+(**) [sp]

High on Fire: Cometh the Storm (2024, MNRK Heavy): Metal group, 9th studio album since 2000, first I've tried -- only because Dan Weiss included it in his 2020-2024 top 50, and it was the last unheard album there (of 2), but note that I did (for no discernible reason) have their first album in my database. First album after a 6-year break, with a new drummer and some "Turkish folk music and Middle Eastern music" mixed into "the band's previous sludge metal and stoner metal genres." The mix isn't very integrated, more like an interlude. The metal strikes me as generic, though not especially offensive. B [sp]

Mark O'Leary/Mat Maneri/Matthew Shipp: Chamber Trio (2002 [2005], Leo): Guitar-viola-piano trio, recorded in New York, where the latter two already had several records together. Takes a while to kick in. B+(**) [sp]

Mark O'Leary/Tomasz Stanko/Billy Hart: Levitation (2000 [2005], Leo): Guitar-trumpet-drums trio. Guitar gets more traction, and the trumpet is superb, as expected. B+(***) [sp]

Mark O'Leary/Mat Maneri/Randy Peterson: Self-Luminous (2002 [2005], Leo): Guitar-viola-drums trio. The viola dominates once more, but less decisively. B+(**) [sp]

Mark O'Leary/Uri Caine/Ben Perowsky: Closure (2003 [2005], Leo): Guitar-piano-drums trio. The piano adds a jolt of energy. B+(**) [sp]

Mark O'Leary/Steve Swallow/Pierre Favre: Awakening (2000 [2006], Leo): Guitar-bass guitar-drums trio. B+(*) [sp]

Sam Prekop/John McEntire: Sons Of (2022, Thrill Jockey): Two-thirds (or sometimes half) of Chicago indie rock band the Sea and Cake (11 studio albums 1994-2018), guitar/vocals and drums. Prekop was previously in Shrimp Boat (1987-93), which I recall from a 3-CD retrospective box issued by avant-jazz label AUM Fidelity in 2004 (Something Grand). McEntire has little else under his own name (Discogs lists a 1998 soundtrack and three singles/EPs, two with Prekop, and a compilation of Cluster), but played in Tortoise and Bastro/Gastr Del Sol, with Stereolab and Red Krayola, and has an even larger production discography. This slots as electronica, four pieces ranging 7:51 to 23:41, each flowing into the next, simple and beguiling. A- [sp]

Unpacking: Found in the mail last week:

• Rick Keller: Heroes (Vegas) [08-11]
• Jussi Reijonen: Sayr: Salt/Thirst (Unmusic) [10-24]
• Laura Taylor: Think I'm in Love (Vegas) [08-18]
• UNLV Jazz Ensemble 1: Double or Nothing (Vegas) [08-25]

Ask a question, or send a comment.

Monday, September 22, 2025

September archive (in progress).

Music: Current count 44894 [44857] rated (+37), 17 [21] unrated (-4).

I got a late start on this, well into Monday evening, so this will have to be perfunctory. One week's worth of records. I'm more or less current in a diminishing promo queue, although there are a couple of promising items I still haven't gotten to. Beyond that, I've been struggling to figure out what to play next, and that's led to a pretty scattered set of albums. Complicating things is that I was responsible for a disturbing number of mistakes in my bookkeeping. Only one (of six) A- records had its cover scanned, and a couple hadn't been accounted for at all. I doubt that I've caught them all, so there may well be records in the monthly archive that never made it into Music Week.

I don't know why I've been so scatterbrained this week, but a lot of things are happening very fast now, and I'm not coping well. I did manage to get my recycling kiosk built today. It will stand next to the front door, and collect items to give away, go into recycling, or the trash. Lots of room for CDs and books, since that's most of what we have. Next step will be to set up an accounting system to track what we're getting rid of. I can see the argument that there's no need, but I want to keep some sort of audit trail, at least of things no longer needed but still useful as memories.

I've started work on my next Substack post. It's going to be further thoughts on the latest Loose Tabs, but will be space-limited, so will focus on only a few key points. That piece is nearly done, so shouldn't take more than another day or two. Beyond that, I have a few more ideas. Some will be closer to the "everyday life" theme. I'm thinking about writing one on the advantages of building your own computers, and how one goes about doing that.

New records reviewed this week:

Adult Mom: Natural Causes (2025, Epitaph): Singer-songwriter Stevie Knapp, fourth album since 2015, may be considered a band now. Songs include one about cancer. B+(**) [sp]

Apathy: Mom & Dad (2025, Dirty Version/Coalmine): Underground rapper Chad Bromley, from Connecticut, 20 albums since 2004, Nancy & Ronald Reagan on the cover, looking sunny and care free, which is not how he remembers their era. "Grew up in the '80s with a welfare budget." Old style turntablism, dazzling wordplay, political smarts, bearing the full weight of history. A- [sp]

Lucian Ban/John Surman/Mat Maneri: Cantica Profana (2022-23 [2025], Sunnyside): Pianist from Romania, moved to New York 1999, has frequently looked back to his native music, as in his 2011 Transylvanian Concert with Maneri (viola) and his 2020 recording of Transylvanian Folk Songs with Maneri and Surman (baritone/soprano sax, bass clarinet). The latter was dubbed The Bela Bartók Field Recordings, although the recordings were new, based on his research. Subsequent tours generated two more live albums, this and The Athenaeum Concert (below). This one was taken from three earlier concerts. Surman is an inspired addition here. A- [sp]

Lucian Ban/John Surman/Mat Maneri: The Athenaeum Concert (2024 [2025], Sunnyside): Notes quote Bartók: "A future generation might conceivably discover and embody in their art music properties of the peasant music which have altogether escaped us." B+(***) [sp]

Jon Batiste: Big Money (2025, Verve/Interscope): Pianist, singer-songwriter, bandleader, has done some acting, is basically a big deal, born into "a New Orleans musical dynasty," cut his first album at 17, organized his band Stay Human before it became Stephen Colbert's Tonight Show house band (2015-22). I'm surprised at how little detail info is available on this -- big name, major label, but nearly a month after release, AOTY has 0 critic reviews, a 65/57 user score. Two featured guests: Andra Day and Randy Newman, but several other songs (e.g., "Maybe") channel Newman. Title song is big bunk, and cover shows Batiste playing guitar. Half of this is really good, in as many different ways. The other half tails off, but again through divergence. Few albums are so scattered, but few artists have so many options, and the authority to pursue them. A- [sp]

Big Thief: Double Infinity (2025, 4AD): Not my idea of a folk-rock band, just a very talented singer-songwriter (Adrianne Lenker) with enough of a band to deserve group billing (minus their bassist this time, but additional musicians make up for that. First play strikes me as near-perfect. I don't know how much more time I'll put in, but quite possibly one of the year's best. A- [sp]

Johnathan Blake: My Life Matters (2025, Blue Note): Drummer, from Philadelphia, several albums as leader since 2012, many side credits. With Dayna Stephens (sax), Jalen Baker (vibes), Fabian Almazan (piano), Dezron Douglas (bass), "plus special guests including Bilal and DJ Jahi Sundance," playing "a suite of songs that serves as a dual treatise on the importance of family values and the social imperative to stand up in the face of injustice." Does that. B+(**) [sp]

David Byrne & Ghost Train Orchestra: Who Is the Sky? (2025, Matador): Talking Heads majordomo, their 2-4-6 albums topped my annual lists, but his solo career has been very erratic, with interesting side projects early, a fine 1994 eponymous album, and more misses than not. He's slowed down considerably over the years, this coming 7 years after American Utopia, which itself was 6 years after Love This Giant. He seems at least to have recovered much of his chunky rhythm here, and Brian Carpenter's band helps (although they don't much sound like themselves), as he seems to aim at some bigger stage. B+(**) [sp]

Ethel Cain: Willoughby Tucker, I'll Always Love You (2025, Daughters of Cain): Singer-songwriter, aka Hayden Anhedönia, shades of darkwave or gothic or whatever, identities and aesthetics unfathomable (by me at least), but somewhere way back was an evident overdose of Baptist religion. Second studio album, ignoring whatever this year's Perverts was (a drone exercise, but it still got 77/27 at AOTY, with this one currently at 83/28). Seems thoughtfully composed at first, slips into some not-bad ambient drone, then tries to square the circle. B+(*) [sp]

Cardi B: Am I the Drama? (2025, Atlantic): New York rapper Belcalis Almánzar, got a lot of interest with her mixtapes and singles in 2016-17, followed that with a triumphant studio album in 2018, second album here, makes up for lost time by running 23 songs, 70:49, including old singles back to 2020's "WAP." B+(**) [sp]

Loyle Carner: Hopefully! (2025, EMI/Universal): British rapper-singer, fourth album, pretty successful over there, not so much here. B+(**) [sp]

Double Virgo: Shakedown (2025, Year0001): British duo/group, principally Jezmi Tarik Fehmi and Sam Fenton, first album after singles going back to 2020, so seems to be a parallel project to Bar Italia, where they defer to singer Nina Cristante. Hints of Pavement and Wire, not that I feel like pursuing them. B+(***) [sp]

Kathleen Edwards: Billionaire (2025, Dualtone): Canadian singer-songwriter, sixth album since 2002. Jason Isbell co-produced, and provided the backing band. B+(**) [sp]

Anat Fort: The Dreamworld of Paul Motian (2024 [2025], Sunnyside): Pianist from Israel, moved to New York in 1996, gained some attention with her ECM debut in 2007. Motian's started out as Bill Evans' drummer, went on to play with dozens of other famous pianists, rather oddly as he always seemed to be following his own drift, nudging the pianist to sharpen the contrast. His own groups almost never included piano, often guitar (especially Bill Frisell). Fort picked out 11 of his songs, with Steve Cardenas (guitar), Gary Wang (bass), and Matt Wilson (drums). B+(***) [sp]

Luigi Grasso: La Dimora Dell'atrove (2024 [2025], LP345): Italian saxophonist (soprano, alto, baritone, bass clarinet), albums since 1999, supported here by NDR Bigband, which he is a regular in. Bills this as "two themes and variations." B+(*) [cd] [09-26]

Michael Hurley: Broken Homes and Gardens (2025, No Quartet): Folk singer-songwriter (1941-2025), recorded an album for Folkways in 1964, a couple more 1971-72, then appeared as the lead artist on the 1976 album Have Moicy! Recorded steadily after that, but less notably, finishing this a month before he died on the road. B+(***) [sp]

Josiah the Gift & Machacha: The Happening (2025, BarsOverBs): New Jersey rapper, member of Umbrella Collective, several albums since 2020, here with producer Mattæus Overgaard Jensen. B+(**) [sp]

Kirk Knuffke/Stomu Takeishi/Bill Goodwin: Window (2025, Royal Potato Family): Cornet player, many albums since 2009, superb both in free and mainstream contexts, trio here with bass and drums. Also sings a couple songs here (not a plus, but not a minus either). B+(***) [sp]

Lizzo: My Face Hurts From Smiling (2025, Nice Life/Atlantic): Rapper Melissa Jefferson, four albums since 2013, Cuz I Love You (2019) a big hit, has a fifth one planned for later this year, calls this poorly-received interim effort a mixtape (AOTY: 50/3). Distinction seems to be hard, fast, rude, and repetitive. B+(*) [sp]

The Oxys: Casting Pearls Before Swine (2025, Cleopatra): Punkish band from Austin, third album since 2020, some past credits for various members, including two from Sylvain Sylvain and the Sylvains. Ten songs (28:14). B+(**) [sp]

Vinnie Paz: God Sent Vengeance (2025, Iron Tusk Music): Underground rapper from Philadelphia, Vincenzo Luvineri, started in 2006 with Jedi Mind Tricks, with 17 albums, most with metal-sounding titles, like Fires of the Judas Blood, The Priest of Bloodshed, The Pain Collector, Savor the Kill, Burn Everything That Bears Your Name, Lower the Blade, Tortured in the Name of God's Unconditional Love. I'm not into the pain, let alone the violence, that fills these tales, but I noted lines like "my life is darker than Charlie Parker" and "beware the wrath of a patient man," and the gloomy music lays bare the harsh reality. No reason we need to live in dystopia, but there's something to be said for not flinching when you do. A- [sp]

Carmen Staaf: Sounding Line (2024 [2025], Sunnyside): Pianist, from Seattle, based in New York, debut 2004 but mostly side credits (most often with Allison Miller or Jenny Scheinman). Explores Monk and Mary Lou Williams here, with various accompanists: Ambrose Akinmusire (trumpet duo) to open and close, Darren Johnston (trumpet plus others) for two tracks in the middle, Ben Goldberg (clarinets, three tracks, two with Johnston), one Monk tune just adds bongos (John Santos). B+(***) [sp]

Peter Stampfel, Friends & Daughters: Song Shards: Soul Jingles, Stoic Jingles, Vintage Jingles, Prayers and Rounds (2025, Jalopy): 46 songs of sorts, as noted in the subtitle, in less than 43 minutes, done up in his own inimitable style by one of our leading semi-pop folklorists, although for once I find the style grating, possibly because the humor is all but unfathomable. I briefly glanced at the notes when I first heard of this, and they seem likely to be interesting, but since I've played it I've lost all interest. B- [sp]

Craig Taborn/Nels Cline/Marcus Gilmore: Trio of Bloom (2024 [2025], Pyroclastic): Keyboards (mostly electric), guitars (too, including lap steel), drums. Billed as a self-titled debut, but the names are big enough they couldn't keep them off the cover. Long (70:18). A- [cd] [09-26]

Natsuki Tamura/Satoko Fujii: Ki (2025, Libra): Japanese trumpet and piano duo, their 10th, a relatively quiet affair that breaks up a bit toward the end. B+(**) [cd]

Tyler, the Creator: Don't Tap the Glass (2025, Columbia): Los Angeles rapper Tyler Okonma, started in Odd Future, solid gold since 2011, cashes in with a short one (10 tracks, 28:50), after 2024's 52:54 Chromakopia. B+(*) [sp]

Us3: Soundtrack (2025, Us3): British group, bill themselves as jazz-rap, debut 1993, I filed them under rap at the time, and haven't heard anything since until this, which I found a DownBeat review for. No rap here, as the title implies. B [sp]

Milan Verbist Trio: Time Change (2025, Origin): Belgian pianist, first album, trio with Toon Rumen (bass) and Jens Meijer (drums), mostly originals (covers from Ornette, Stanko, Bach, and Peacock). Has some impressive moments, but who doesn't? B+(*) [cd]

Wild Iris Brass Band: Way Up (2025, Ear Up): New Orleans band founded by Jeff Coffin (tenor sax) and Ray Mason (trombone), with trumpet (Emmanuel Echem), alto sax (Jovan Quallo), sousaphone (Neil Konouchi), drums (Justin Amaral), and tambourine (Ryoko Suziki). Coffin, who does a lot of side work in Nashville, has albums back to 1999 and close to 200 side credits back to 1989. B+(*) [sp]

Saul Williams: Saul Williams Meets Carlos Niño & Friends at TreePeople (2024 [2025], International Anthem): Spoken word artist, started doing open mic, won a poetry slam title in 1996, which led to roles in a documentary (SlamNation) and a feature film (Slam), and from 2000 on to albums, including one with saxophonist David Murray. Niño is a percussionist, who has regularly recorded with "& Friends" (since 2009). Music didn't quite grab me, but the insights/good messages of the farewell message did, like "we are all bearing witness to the horrendous acts of our government" and "we have a special responsibility because we're in the belly of the beast." B+(**) [sp]

Simón Willson: Feel Love (2024 [2025], Endectomorph Music): Bassist-composer, from Chile, based in New York, third album, quartet with Neta Raanan (tenor sax), Evan Main (piano), and Kayvon Gordon (drums). Interesting postbop, saxophonist continues to impress. B+(**) [cd]

Gaia Wilmer & Ra Kalam Bob Moses: Dancing With Elephants (2023 [2025], Sunnyside): Brazilian alto/baritone saxophonist, studied in Boston (where she met the percussionist), has worked in New York and Sao Paulo, producing several albums since 2017, mostly large groups (sextet and up). Her she takes Moses' solo tracks and builds on them, with various combinations of five more saxophonists, piano, guitar, and/or voice (Song Yi Jeon). Mixed results here, and Moses gets overwhelmed, but George Garzone remains unmistakable. B+(*) [sp]

Yoko Yates: Eternal Moments (2024 [2025], Banka): Pianist, originally from Japan, studied at Berklee and in Cambridge (UK), second album, original pieces, quintet with Jamie Baum (flute), Sam Sadigursky (clarinet/bass clarinet/alto sax), bass, and drums. B [cd]

Recent reissues, compilations, and vault discoveries:

Charlie Rouse: Cinnamon Flower: The Expanded Edition (1977 [2025], Resonance): Tenor saxophonist (1924-88), played in big bands early, ranging from Bull Moose Jackson to Dizzy Gillespie (and including brief stops with Basie and Ellington), but best known for his work with Thelonious Monk (1959-70, the band continuing after Monk died as Sphere). His own work is rather mixed, including Brazilian themes: Bossa Nova Bachanal (1962) and this in 1977, expanded here past 80 minutes. B+(*) [cd]

Old music:

Chris Cacavas: Chris Cacavas and Junk Yard Love (1989, Heyday): Singer-songwriter from Tucson, played keyboards and lap steel for a 1980s band of some note, Green on Red (Dan Stuart was the leader; Steve Wynn and Chuck Prophet also played at various points), started his solo career here, which appears to be up to 18 albums now, but still lacks a Wikipedia page. I looked into him after noticing a single (***) Christgau review for a 1992 album, identified as this but more likely Good Times. Solidly within their genre. B+(*) [yt]

Chris Cacavas & Junkyard Love: Good Times (1992, Heyday): Second album, the group name firmed up, easy to see from the cover how Christgau might have confused the title. One extraordinary song. I couldn't find the lyrics online, so tried to transcribe them: "I'm a saint/ I can do no wrong/ if you see me walking down the street/ just throw flowers at my feet/ and if you got something to say /well you best get on your knees and pray/ because I'm a saint/ I can't believe this crazy life I'm living/ where I can do what I want and all is forgiven/ can you see the trouble I'm in/ I'm evil but just can't sin/ if you don't believe a word I say well alright/ I'll ride on your dash one day/ because I'm a saint." Another verse, then ends with a chorus answering "he can do no wrong" to each assertion of "I'm a saint." Several more good ones. Could be a SFFR (subject for future research). B+(***) [yt]

Mary Halvorson/Kirk Knuffke/Matt Wilson: Sifter (2011 [2012], Relative Pitch): Guitar/cornet/drums trio, presented this as a group eponymous album but the names, all fairly well known by then, were prominent on the front cover, and this turned out to be a one-shot grouping. B+(***) [sp]

Unpacking: Found in the mail last week:

• Todd Herbert: Captain Hubs (TH Productions) [10-01]
• Andy Nevada: El Rumbón (The Party) (Zoho) [08-08]
• Premik Russell Tubbs & Margee Minier-Tubbs: The Bells (Margetoile) [10-15]

Ask a question, or send a comment.

Monday, September 15, 2025

September archive (in progress).

Music: Current count 44857 [44818] rated (+39), 21 [21] unrated (-0).

A few weeks back, before starting my long, slow read of John Cassidy's Capitalism and Its Critics: A History: From the Industrial Revolution to AI, I quickly thumbed through Bernie Sanders' post-2020 campaign memoir, It's OK to Be Angry About Capitalism, and got enough out of it to write up a review, which I sent out to subscribers of my Notes on Everyday Life newsletter, and posted as Bernie Sanders Finds It's OK to Talk Like an Old Lefty (also archived). I quickly realized I had more to say, but dragged my feet until I finally posted More Thoughts on Bernie Sanders and Capitalism last week (also archived). I put a lot of thought into those pieces, not that they shouldn't be crafted to make sharper points. But they do raise an important question that hardly anyone has raised: if Americans really want a revolution, and there is some evidence for this, why were they only offered a chance to vote for Trump but not for Sanders? There's a lot to unpack there, and I can imagine it taking book-length, but the key ideas can be found in these two pieces.

In the meantime, I collected notes for Loose Tabs. As soon as I mailed the Sanders piece out, I decided to finish Loose Tabs off before posting this Music Week. I started with a PS to last week's Music Week, with an update on my everyday life, a plug for the Sanders piece, a note on Robert Christgau's latest Consumer Guide (my reviews below, with Young a late upgrade), and a bit on my not-yet-ready Loose Tabs. I worked on it well into Sunday evening, then decided to post what I had, so I can get on with my life. All I've done on it so far today was to fix the ellapsed days counter (28), and add a couple tweets. Even so, I didn't get around to doing the cutoff until 6PM, and it's close to 9PM as I'm writing this.

What I am considering is going back over the Loose Tabs and writing up some sort of executive summary/further reflections I can send out as the next newsletter. But I also have a couple more ideas in the works, ones that come closer to everyday life. And really I could use some detox from politics.

Big push this week will be house stuff. It's time to finally build that recycling kiosk. The scrap wood is pretty much organized. Main problem is likely to be rain, but it should be cooler in a day or two, and only Wednesday seems likely to rain much. Also need to work on the Jazz Critics Poll website, but I'm running out of things in the way, and the actual setup is pretty simple. (Designing a new website would be harder, and may not happen any time soon.) Setting up my own writing framework is also on the todo list.

Lot of records this week from the HHGA list. There's probably another dozen I haven't heard yet. I also picked up tips from Phil Overeem's September list. Not a lot of jazz this week. Fair number of things in the new jazz queue, but very few have been released yet. I also have a folder of download offers that I haven't touched.

On first play, Big Thief's Double Infinity is already an A-, and not a low one.

I'm thoroughly enjoying Cassidy's Capitalism and Its Critics, and should wrap it up this week. I'm up to Joseph Stiglitz, which I think only leaves Thomas Piketty. (Stiglitz is not listed on the book cover, but is in the chapter on Samir Amin, along with Dani Rodrik. I have another half-dozen recently purchased books in the wings (and more older ones), but suddenly I'm tempted to look for Quinn Slobodian's Hayek's Bastards: Race, Gold, IQ, and the Capitalism of the Far Right, which complements the critics of capitalism with critics of the capitalist world whose preferred cure is even more extreme capitalism. The individuals listed, like Murray Rothbard and Charles Murray, don't especially interest me, but the pseudo-revolutionary ardor of the far right is very much among us. I've also just learned that the title is a play on Joan Robinson's characterization of Keynes' Bastards (Samuelson, Solow, and the other neo-Keynesians who dominated American economics until they lost ground to Friedman and his "school").

New records reviewed this week:

Africa Express: Africa Express Presents . . . Bahidorá (2025, World Circuit): British nonprofit founded in 2006 by Damon Albarn and Ian Birrell to promote African musicians, although their roster through five albums includes many others. Rather scattered, with some nice stuff, especially near the end. B+(*) [sp]

Amaarae: Black Star (2025, Interscope): Ama Serwah Genfi, born in the Bronx, parents from Ghana, third album. Nice beats, dense, generously sprinkled with sex. A- [sp]

Fly Anakin: (The) Forever Dream (2025, Lex): Rapper Frank Walton, close to a dozen albums since 2016. B+(*) [sp]

Blood Orange: Essex Honey (2025, RCA/Domino): British singer-songwriter Devonté Hynes, previously recorded as Lightspeed Champion (2008-10), fifth album since 2011. B+(*) [sp]

Blueprint: Vessel (2025, Weightless): Underground rapper Albert Shepard, from Columbus, Ohio, a dozen-plus albums since 2003, some very good, most real steady. This is both. A- [sp]

Chance the Rapper: Star Line (2025, self-released): Chicago rapper Chancelor Bennett, has mixtapes since 2012, but this is only counted as his second (or third) studio album (some dispute whether the title is one word or two). Much of interest here, some amusing, some making me uncomfortable, impressing on me that the impact of racism is still very palpable (e.g., the 4th of 4 "black commandments": "if they wanna we go to war"), not that the solution isn't clear ("my problem is your problem; your problem is my problem"). A- [sp]

Charley Crockett: Dollar a Day (2025, Lone Star Rider/Island): Country singer-songwriter, has been kicking out 2-3 albums per year since 2015, making this his 16th. All are good. None are great (although I gave his Live From the Ryman Auditorium an A-). B+(***) [sp]

Orhan Demir/Neil Swainson: Wicked Demon (2024-25 [2025], Hittite): Turkish guitarist, acoustic, based in Canada since 1977, has a 1990 album and several more recent, nice duo with bass. B+(**) [cd]

Mark Ernestus' Ndagga Rhythm Force: Khadim (2025, Ndagga): German DJ, side credits back to 1993, released his first Afro-centric ndagga albums in 2013. This particular group is fairly minimal: Bada Seck (bougarabou, thiol, mbeung mbeung bal, tungune), Serigne Manoune Seck (bougarabou, khine, mbeung mbeung, tungune), and Mbene Diatta Seck (vocals). B+(**) [sp]

Evidence: Unlearning Vol. 2 (2025, Rhymesayers Entertainment): Rapper/producer Michael Perretta, former member of the jazz-inflected Dilated Peoples (5 albums, 2000-14), has a half-dozen solo albums since 2007, including Unlearning Vol. 1 (2021). B+(*) [sp]

Fatboi Sharif & Driveby: Let Me Out (2025, Deathbomb Arc): Rapper from New Jersey, several albums since 2021, with various producers (Steel Tipped Dove twice), first with fellow NJ producer. Somewhat ghoulish. B+(*) [sp]

Ingebrigt Häker Flaten/(Exit) Knarr: Live at Artfacts '22 (2022 [2025], Sonic Transmissions): Norwegian bassist, Discogs credits him with 58 albums since 2000, performance credits go back to 1994 and number 274, he's anchored such major groups as Atomic and the Thing, as well as numerous Ken Vandermark projects. Septet here named for a 2021 album, here with Mette Rasmussen (alto sax), Atle Nymo (tenor sax/clarinets), Erik Kimestad (trumpet), guitar, piano, and drums. B+(*) [sp]

Ingebrigt Håker Flaten/(Exit) Knarr: Drops (2024 [2025], Sonic Transmissions): Same band concept, although the cast has shifted, with Amalie Dahl on alto sax (except for one track with Mette Rasmussen), Karl Hjalmar Nyberg on tenor, no trumpet, Marta Warelis taking over at piano (with electronics), Jonathan F. Horne on guitar, and an extra drummer for one track ("a bold, extended lineup"). B+(**) [sp]

From the Dirt: Colored Edge of Memory (2025, self-released): Americana band from Frederick, Maryland, with Dan Kenny as singer-songwriter, filed them under folk although there is also a bluegrass influence. Seems nice enough, but I doubt that much will stick. B+(***) [sp]

Freddie Gibbs & the Alchemist: Alfredo 2 (2025, ESGN/ALC): Rapper Fredrick Tipton, many albums since 2004, several with producer Alan Maman since 2018, including their previous Alfredo (2020). B+(*) [sp]

The High & Mighty: Sound of Market (2025, Eastern Conference): Hip-hop duo, Eric Meltzer (Mr. Eon) and Milo Berger (DJ Mighty Mi), recorded an album in 1999 on Rawkus that got some notice, three more through 2005, now one more. B+(***) [sp]

Kaytranada: Ain't No Damn Way! (2025, RCA): Haitian DJ/producer based in Canada, fourth album since 2016, not counting many mixtapes, a few collaborations, and lots of production work. Fairly basic beat-centric album, exactly what I expect. B+(***) [sp]

Knowledge the Pirate: The Round Table (2025, Pimpire/Trouble Chest Entertainment): Rapper Richard Iverson, half-dozen albums since 2018, this one sometimes co-credited to executive producer Roc Marciano, who also gets a featuring listing on one song. B+(**) [sp]

Lex Korten: Canopy (2024 [2025], Sounderscore): Pianist, also plays Rhodes, couple previous albums, scattered side credits (recently: Simon Moullier, Alfredo Colón, Sasha Berliner, Zoh Amba). Most tracks here feature voice (Claire Dickson), alto sax (David Léon), guitar (Tal Yahalom), drums (Stephen Boegeheld). I'm not much into the vocals. B [cd] [09-19]

Rocío Giménez López/Franco Di Renzo/Luciano Ruggieri: La Palabra Repetida (2025, Blue Art): Argentinian pianist, has a couple albums since 2017, trio with bass and drums, their second together, standards, mostly from jazz (Davis, Ellington, Parker, Shorter, Coltrane). B+(**) [bc]

Mahotella Queens: Buya Buya: Come Back (2025, Umsakazo): South African vocal trio, best known for backing Mahlathini (1937-99), but they have a fair number of albums on their own, starting in 1966, with this new album their first since 2007. Classic township jive, can't miss. A- [sp]

Lili Maljic: The Nearness of You: In Loving Memory of Jim Rotondi (2024 [2025], Pacific Coast Jazz): Standards singer, sticks to A-list songs, handles them well enough, the dedication to the trumpet player, who died two months after helping out here, is a nice touch. B+(**) [cd]

MindsOne: Stages (2025, Fort Lowell): Hip-hop group (Kon Sci, Tronic, various DJs but mostly DJ Noumenon), fifth album since 2007. Old school scratches, and (per HHGA) "precision, moving between introspection and sharp observations about life, ambition, and purpose." A- [sp]

Nils Petter Molvær: Khmer Live in Bergen (2023 [2025], Edition): Norwegian trumpet player, developed a distinctive strain of jazztronica in the 1990s -- which, by the way, started with Masqualero with Arild Andersen, which once again brings us back to George Russell and his Electronic Sonata -- especially on the ECM albums Khmer (1998) and Solid Ether (2000). This draws songs from both albums, bringing back the original band from the latter, plus long-time collaborator Jan Bang (live sampling). A- [sp]

Nourished by Time: The Passionate Ones (2025, XL): Alt-r&b singer-songwriter Marcus Brown, second album. B [sp]

Nova Twins: Parasites & Butterflies (2025, Marshall): British duo, Amy Love (vocals/guitar) and Georgia South (bass/vocals), third album, funk beats, metallic clang hilights, can rap some. I've been a fan so far, and some of this is really extraordinary, but it's rather hit-and-miss, taking four songs to get to "Soprano," and more to get to what sounds like supercharged Queen. B+(**) [sp]

Panic Shack: Panic Shack (2025, Brace Yourself): Welsh post-punk band, Sarah Harvey the singer, first album after a couple EPs, 11 songs, 34:16. Some of the themes I'm not into, but they have so much fun with them I can't complain. Reminds me of some '70s new wave, only not male. A- [sp]

Preservation & Gabe 'Nandez: Sortilège (2025, Backwoodz Studioz): Former has a 25-year history as an underground DJ without revealing so much as a name (unless it's Jean Daval? "half-French," from New York); 'Nandez (or Nadez) is younger, "half-Malian," both with some connection to Billy Woods. B+(***) [sp]

Margo Price: Hard Headed Woman (2025, Loma Vista): Country singer-songwriter, fifth studio album since 2016 (plus a live Perfectly Imperfect at the Ryman). Strong upbeat pieces, loses a bit on the ballads. B+(***) [sp]

ShrapKnel & Mike Ladd: Saisir Le Feu (2025, Fused Arrow): Hip-hop duo, Curly Castro and PremRock (Mark Debuque), from Philadelphia's Wrecking Crew, fourth album since 2020, couple more since, this one produced by Ladd, who has a rep as a spoken word artist including collaborations with jazz musicians, especially Vijay Iyer. B+(**) [sp]

Earl Sweatshirt: Live Laugh Love (2025, Tan Cressida/Warner): Rapper originally from Chicago, father a South African poet and political activist, mother a law professor noted as a "critical race theorist," started with Odd Future in Los Angeles, 6th studio album since 2013 (counting an Alchemist collab), but short at 24:08 (11 tracks). B+(*) [sp]

Zach Top: Ain't in It for My Health (2025, Leo33): Country singer-songwriter, grew up on a rance in Washington, second album. B+(**) [sp]

UFO Fev & Body Bag Ben: Thousand Yard Stare (2025, 1332): Rapper and beats, I've seen cover scans with the credits flipped but will go with Discogs (especially since they have a scan to prove it). B+(**) [sp]

Jubal Lee Young: Squirrels (2025, Reconstruction): Countryish singer-songwriter, never heard of him through 6-7 albums since 2004, son of Steve Young (1942-2016), another one I've barely heard of (just enough to have him redundantly listed in my country and folk files, neither of which actually graded an album). Christgau recommended this one, and it's interesting enough, and more than a little amusing. Not yet enough to send me back to the catalogs, but I wouldn't rule that out. I sat on the fence here a while, but finally decided not to give a fuck. A- [sp]

Recent reissues, compilations, and vault discoveries:

Bar-B-Q Killers: Part 1: The Last Shit (1986 [2025], Chunklet Industries, EP): Athens, GA garage band, three songs, 8:24. Title per cover, but Discogs lists as Chester Drawers, after the first song on what is basically a single. Group went on to release an album, Comely, in 1987. B [bc]

Marshall Crenshaw: From "The Hellhole" (2012-16 [2025], Yep Roc): Retro rocker in the early 1980s, seemed major for several striking albums, still sounds much the same, although this collection of remastered stray tracks stikes me as pretty useless. B- [sp]

Woody Guthrie: Woody at Home: Vol 1 + 2 (1951-52 [2025], Shamus): Famous folksinger (1912-67), from Oklahoma, wrote hundreds of songs, with most of his recordings in 1944-49. These previously unreleased tapes -- 22, with 13 songs that hadn't been previously released -- were recorded shortly before he was diagnosed with Huntington's Disease, which ended his career early. This is fairly minor, but interesting. B+(*) [sp]

Old music:

Body Type: Expired Candy (2023, Poison City): Australian garage rock group, four women, second album after two EPs. Pretty good, but ran on well past my peak interest. B+(***) [sp]

The High & Mighty: Home Field Advantage (1999, Rawkus): Philadelphia hip-hop duo, rapper Mr. Eon (Erik Meltzer) and producer DJ Mighty Mi (Milo Berger), first album, draws some notable guest spot artists, like Eminem. B+(***) [sp]

Unpacking: Found in the mail last week:

• Tom Cohen: Embraceable Brazil (Versa) [10-10]
• Juan Pastor's Chinchano: Memorias (Calligram) [10-03]
• Natsuki Tamura/Satoko Fujii: Ki (Libra) [09-19]

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