October 20, 2025:
One couldn't help but notice how quiet things were on Squidco and The Squid's Ear last week, at least until Thursday when we launched our Squidco Harvest Sale. The main reason for that lull was order manager Carl Kruger’s vacation to the mountains of North Carolina, which shifted my usual blog time into managing the many tasks he normally handles so deftly. I also had yet another round of shipping complications, as global postal services have become increasingly strict about customs data in the age of US tariffs. The result was a change to our metering to take advantage of Global Advantage, promising faster delivery through USPS. All of that consumed much of the week and, combined with the sale, meant we didn’t add any new releases.
Consequently, this week will be full of activity, with new albums appearing on the site by mid-week and a regular mailing list at week’s end. We’ll feature a new artist interview on The Squid's Ear and return to our regular review schedule. Look out for new releases from Relative Pitch, Confront, another ezz-thetics title from Hat Hut, Ltd., Copy This!, a monstrous outing from The Gate on Imploding Sounds, new titles from 577 Records, Laura Singh on Out Of Your Head Records, the duo of Jasper Stadhouders & Jaap Blonk on Kontrans, and two Daniel Levin albums on ears&eyes Records.
Lastly, by the end of the week we expect to confirm three new albums on our digital label, Squid Note Records.
Squidco Publishing Roundup:
You can view our latest fully cataloged albums in the Recently Section.
You can also browse new titles as they enter our Just In Stock Section — meaning we physically have the album and can ship it, though we may still be updating additional information about the release.
To see restocks of previously listed titles, visit our Recently Restocked page.
And if you're interested in a future release, you can ask us to notify you by email via our Upcoming Releases page — no obligation necessary.
October 10, 2025:
I haven't missed a week in this blog for quite some time, so apologies for last week's absence. We've been deeply involved with new releases and recent purchases, while still spending time dealing with international shipments and tariffs. None of that stopped some truly great music from arriving at our door, making for a wonderful two-week listening session here at the Squidco offices.
On top of that, we're working on three new albums for our digital Squid Note label, which we hope to announce soon. We're also on the verge of becoming the U.S. distributor and fulfillment partner for an important domestic label. If all goes well, we'll have some major news to share in the coming weeks.
But back to the music. From the last two weeks' mailing lists, there are some exceptional titles to highlight. Let's start with the most recent arrivals: four new ezz-thetics by Hat Hut, Ltd. titles from the newly reformed board that took over from Werner X. Uehlinger. From their press announcement earlier this year:
The iconic Swiss music label Hat Hut Records is reaffirming its legacy and forging ahead into the future. Just after celebrating its 50th anniversary, the Basel-based label has re-established its direction under new leadership. Musician Marco von Orelli and Melanie Imhof now helm the label as part of a newly formed Board of Directors, joined by founder Werner X. Uehlinger, Swiss saxophone pioneer Co Streiff, and long-time friend and companion of the label, Christian C. Dalucas.
The label's renewed focus begins with European improvisers and composers, starting with the quartet of Swiss musicians — trombonist Robert Morgenthaler, vibraphonist Christopher Dell, bassist Fridolin Blumer, and percussionist Heinz Geisse. This album, branded with the traditional orange Hatology colouring, is a fine example of modern collective free improvisation, guided into lyricism through years of shared experience.
Christoph Gallio of the Percaso label (Day & Taxi) interprets a lesser-known work by Gertrude Stein through sixty-nine concise vignettes, with only the final two lasting more than a minute. It's an engaging work of fascinating diversity and charming song-lettes, reminiscent to my ears of Steve Lacy's approach — but in miniature.
Two pianists, Francesca Gemmo and Magda Mayas, come together in First Visit, with Gemmo focusing on the outer parts of the piano and Mayas exploring the inner. It's a remarkable album that demonstrates the breadth of sound possible from the instrument, particularly in the hands of such inventive artists. Mayas is perhaps the better known of the two, but Gemmo will be familiar to many from her work with Andrea Centazzo and her collaborations with vibraphonist Sergio Armaroli.
On the contemporary side, Cat Hope presents a major work expressing outrage over the treatment of refugees. Performed live with an ensemble of bass instruments, a community choir, and four vocalists, the work is profoundly moving — an appeal for compassion and a portrayal of suffering expressed entirely through sound rather than words, hence the title Speechless.
 Blumer / Dell / Geisser / Morgenthaler: Beyond Scope (ezz-thetics by Hat Hut Records Ltd)
A seasoned quartet of trombonist Robert Morgenthaler, vibraphonist Christopher Dell, bassist Fridolin Blumer, and percussionist Heinz Geisser recorded in Zurich, exploring the essence of free improvisation through deep listening and spontaneous structure, where interplay and attentiveness replace convention, revealing the magic that happens in the space between the rules.
 Hope, Cat: Speechless (ezz-thetics by Hat Hut Records Ltd)
Composed by Cat Hope and recorded live at the Tura and Perth Festival, this striking opera for four vocal soloists, bass orchestra, and community choir unites the visceral voices of Caitlin Cassidy, Judith Dodsworth, Sage Pbbbt, and Karina Utomo under conductor Aaron Wyatt in a profound, wordless protest against the inhumanity of refugee detention and a moving appeal to shared compassion.
The other exciting news — and a real challenge to importnews — are the four new releases on Listen! Foundation (Fundacja Sluchaj!). Each is a noteworthy addition to the label's extraordinary catalogue. I went straight to the trio of Peter Evans, Joe Morris, and Tyshawn Sorey, being a long-time admirer of all three and their many projects. This release feels more composed than improvised, thanks to the exceptional focus and interplay of these musicians.
In contrast, the Ray Anderson/Joe Hertenstein Quartet brings a set of compositions from its members, creating a lyrical and fascinating collection of live and studio recordings. Trombonist Ray Anderson appears again, in more concentrated form, alongside tenor saxophonist Ivo Perelman in a remarkably elastic duo set — an exchange full of wit, technique, and deep musical chemistry.
The set concludes with another compelling trio — trumpeter Luís Vicente, bassist John Edwards, and percussionist Vasco Trilla. All three are well represented in Squidco's catalogue, and these studio recordings reaffirm why each is in such demand as an improviser in a wide range of settings.
Last week we also introduced three new albums on Pi Recordings, each on CD (LP versions are due at the end of the month). The standout is the latest from Henry Threadgill, a composer and saxophonist I've followed since the early 1980s. Here, he brings together a remarkable ensemble of six acoustic guitarists and two pianists for a unique album of pointillistic interaction, titled simply by the letters of the alphabet.
Speaking again of trumpeter Peter Evans, his contribution to drummer Dan Weiss's Unclassified Affections stands out within a modern quartet featuring vibraphonist Patricia Brennan and guitarist Miles Okazaki. And, at long last, Fieldwork returns! Seventeen years after their last recording, the trio of Steve Lehman (alto saxophone), Vijay Iyer (piano, Rhodes), and Tyshawn Sorey (drums) are heard in a series of compositions that showcase the strong creative bond between these three extraordinary players.
 Henry Threadgill: Listen Ship (Pi Recordings)
Composer Henry Threadgill conducts a suite for six acoustic guitars and two pianos, bringing together Bill Frisell, Miles Okazaki, Brandon Ross, Gregg Belisle-Chi, Jerome Harris, Stomu Takeishi, Maya Keren, and Rahul Carlberg in an intricately orchestrated work whose intervallic syntax and meticulous counterpoint entwine with unexpected timbres to reveal his singular and sublime vision.
 Fieldwork (Iyer / Lehman / Sorey): Thereupon (Pi Recordings)
Seventeen years after their last recording, the New York trio of Steve Lehman (alto saxophone), Vijay Iyer (piano, Rhodes), and Tyshawn Sorey (drums) reunite with dense, high-impact compositions and fearless interplay, blending complexity with groove as they reaffirm their status as one of the most vital ensembles in contemporary improvised music.
 Weiss, Dan (w/ Evans / Okazaki / Brennan): Unclassified Affections (Pi Recordings)
Drummer and composer Dan Weiss brings together Peter Evans (trumpet), Patricia Brennan (vibraphone), and Miles Okazaki (guitar) in a set of compositions written for their distinct voices, shifting from meditative calm to intense peaks, weaving intricate contrapuntal textures and improvisations into a mysterious and transcendent collective sound.
Given the exceptional past two weeks, I should also mention Driff Records' return with two new albums — their first in quite a while — alongside three new releases from Evil Clown, including two Leap of Faith variants and one from my favourite of their configurations, Perturbations' Intractable Problems. Matthew Shipp's new solo album on Cantaloupe Music continues his evolution as a boundary-blurring improviser with a sound entirely his own. I keep returning to Donny McCaslin's Lullaby for the Lost; perhaps I'm drawn to his tone from David Bowie's Blackstar, but this album stands firmly on its own, with nine instrumental pieces that blur the line between jazz and rock.
Last but certainly not least, trombonist Samuel Blaser's solo album 18 Monologues Elastiques presents eighteen improvisations inspired by the Swiss-born author Blaise Cendrars. The album captures Blaser's remarkable technique and imagination, blending surprising timbres with beautifully melodic passages. With new Blaser projects on the horizon, this album offers a focused and personal portrait of his artistry.
 Blink (Dijkstra / McBride / Rosenthal / Hofbauer / Boyarin): Blink (Driff Records)
Led by alto saxophonist Jorrit Dijkstra, BLINK embraces collective improvisation over solo display, blending microtonal tuning, layered rhythmic cycles, and ensemble interplay inspired by insect swarms, African High Life, and minimalist rock, resulting in an inventive, off-balance sound that thrives on tension, texture, and spontaneous cohesion.
 Karayorgis, Pandelis Trio (w/ Julia Werntz / Eric Moe): Climbing To Sleep (Driff Records)
Reuniting pianist Pandelis Karayorgis with bassist Nate McBride and drummer Randy Peterson, and featuring composer-pianist Eric Moe, this microtonal project bridges jazz and contemporary composition through Werntz's Capricious Nocturnal Variations, as Karayorgis' trio expands its themes with richly textured interplay and fluid explorations of the uniquely tuned Werntz Nocturne Scale.
 Perturbations: Intractable Problems (Evil Clown)
The ninth set from Evil Clown's Perturbations project brings together reed players David Peck and Michael Caglianone with brass player John Fugarino, each expanding their roles through percussion, electronics, and objects, while Joel Simches provides real-time processing, creating a vivid and continuously transforming improvisation of shifting sonorities and electro-acoustic textures.
 Shipp, Matthew: The Cosmic Piano (Cantaloupe)
In a fully improvised solo recording, pianist Matthew Shipp channels a lifetime of discipline and influence into an expansive and deeply personal work whose shifting architectures, sly dissonances, and luminous pacing unfold with the gravity of composed modern classical music while retaining the spontaneous intensity of free jazz, reframing his sound in a broader, genre-fluid context.
 McCaslin, Donny: Lullaby For The Lost (Editions)
With longtime collaborators Jason Lindner, Ben Monder, Tim Lefebvre, Zach Danziger, Nate Wood, Ryan Dahle, and Jonathan Maron, visionary saxophonist Donny McCaslin channels the raw intensity of improvised jams into a cinematic, high-energy sound world, blending jazz with rock, electronica, and soulful urgency, a fierce and timeless statement.
 Blaser, Samuel: 18 Monologues Elastiques (Blaser Music)
A solo journey of striking imagination, Swiss trombonist Samuel Blaser channels the modernist spirit of Blaise Cendrars in eighteen original works recorded in Berlin, blending sculptural sound, melodic exploration, and poetic abstraction into a deeply personal meditation that bridges contemporary jazz, literature, and sonic art.
Squidco Publishing Roundup:
These are the updates to Squidco and The Squid's Ear over the last week. You can view our latest fully cataloged albums in the Recently Section.
You can also browse new titles as they enter our Just In Stock Section — meaning we physically have the album and can ship it, though we may still be updating additional information about the release.
To see restocks of previously listed titles, visit our Recently Restocked page.
And if you're interested in a future release, you can ask us to notify you by email via our Upcoming Releases page — no obligation necessary.
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Jaap Blonk:
Sylvie Courvoisier and Mary Halvorson:
Joe Henderson:
Jason Kao Hwang:
AMM and Sachiko M:
Thelonious Monk with Sonny Rollins:
Mark Wastell:
Dave Burrell / Sam Woodyard:
Frequency Disasters:
Tatsuya Nakatani:
Gallio's, Christoph Stone Is A Rose Is A Stone Is A Stone : Yet Dish (first visit) (ezz-thetics by Hat Hut Records Ltd)
Gemmo, Francesca / Magda Mayas: Tides In The Mirror (first visit) (ezz-thetics by Hat Hut Records Ltd)
Pereleman, Ivo / Ray Anderson: 12 Stages of Spiritual Alchemy (Listen! Foundation (Fundacja Sluchaj!))
Anderson, Ray / Joe Hertenstein Quartet feat. Michael Moore / Michael Formanek: 7th Dinner Live (Listen! Foundation (Fundacja Sluchaj!))
Evans, Peter / Joe Morris / Tyshawn Sorey: Comprehensive (Listen! Foundation (Fundacja Sluchaj!))
Edwards, John / Luis Vicente / Vasco Trilla: Choreography of Fractures (Listen! Foundation (Fundacja Sluchaj!))
