Ikue Mori / Brian Marsella / Sae Hashimoto:
Archipelago X (Tzadik)
Part of Tzadik's Spectrum series, the Downtown NY trio of electroacoustic improviser and composer Ikue Mori, pianist Brian Marsella performing on electric keyboards and synths, and classical percussionist Sae Hashimoto on a wealth of marimbas, drums, bells, shakers and chimes, composed these intricately fascinating works by exchanging tracks composed in their home studios. ... Click to View
Mirror Unit (Georg Wissel / Tim O'Dwyer):
Sonic Rivers (FMR)
Following their Creative Sources album Wind Makes Weather, alto saxophonists Tim O'Dwyer and Georg Wissel, both employing preparations on their instruments, improvise a confluence of sonic rivers evoking, exploring and reflecting waterways from around the world, captured in concert at the cinema hall of the cultural center Alte Feuerwache, in Cologne. ... Click to View
Eric La Casa:
Everyday Unknown 4 & 5 (Swarming)
Exploring the details of everyday life as he examines the relationship between his environment and himself, microscopic audio explorer Éric La Casa investigates sounds beyond the threshold of auditory hearing, capturing barely perceptible sonic manifestations with incredible clarity and detail, constructing engaging works from these surprising and intriguing sounds. ... Click to View
Euphorium_freakestra:
2 Trios & 2 Babies (Euphorium)
Two drummerless trios meet two drummers in this incredible 2006 concert at naTo, in Leipzig, one from trumpeter Matthias Mainz, cello player Matthias Lorenz and bass player Michael Haves, the other from Fabian Niermann on tenor saxophone, Konrad Gruneberg on double bass and Oliver Schwerdt on the grand piano, the drummers Christian Lillinger & Gunter Baby Sommer. ... Click to View
Barbara Golden:
Not Dead Yet [CD+ 10 Postcards] (fo'c'sle)
[Bonus Edition] Bay Area experimental music scene legend and multi-disciplinary artist Barabara Golden celebrates her 80th birthday presents works created between 1980-2020, including performances by Robert Ashley, Maggi Payne, Chris Brown, WIGband with Johanna Poethig, George Lewis, William Winant, Mary Oliver and texts by Melody Sumner Carnahan. ... Click to View
Barbara Golden:
Not Dead Yet [CD] (fo'c'sle)
Bay Area experimental music scene legend and multi-disciplinary artist Barabara Golden celebrates her 80th birthday presents works created between 1980-2020, including performances by Robert Ashley, Maggi Payne, Chris Brown, WIGband with Johanna Poethig, George Lewis, William Winant, Mary Oliver and texts by Melody Sumner Carnahan. ... Click to View
Omegatre (Colafiglio / Romano / Cicala):
Terre Rare (Creative Sources)
Since 2005 Italian guitarist Tommaso Colafiglio has led the Omegatre trio, composing and arranging all works on this album with drummer & percussionist Leo Cicala, peformed with Paolo Romano on double bass and electric bass, presenting seven electric jazz compositions that flow with the sophistication and grace each brings through years of collaborative and independent evolution. ... Click to View
David Myers Lee:
Room In A Moon House (pulsewidth)
A series of "Rooms" and related electronic environments from New York sound artist David Lee Myers, whose long running Arcane Device project runs parallel to these nearly ambient works that Myers intimates are for intimate environments, developed through deft use of Eurorack electronics, feedback, sampling and other elegant electronic processes. ... Click to View
Jack Cooper / Jeff Tobias :
Tributaries [CASSETTE w/ DOWNLOAD] (Astral Spirits)
Two side-long tracks of minimal improvisation from NY saxophonist Jeff Tobias (Sunwatchers) and UK guitarist Jack Cooper (Ultimate Painting); "Wicken" and "Debden" are named for and inspired by the tributaries of the River Cam in North Essex, revealing themselves in steady progressions and subtle application of instrumental technique in a beautifully flowing reflection. ... Click to View
Guillaume Gargaud :
17 Compositions (New Focus Recordings)
A compilation of improvised steel-string acoustic guitar works framed by pitch and intervallic restrictions, from French composer and guitarist Guillaume Gargaud, 17 succinct pieces that evade standard jazz vocabulary while integrating influences from Messiaen to Webern to Cecil Taylor, paced in contemplative and sophisticated style. ... Click to View
Okkyung Lee:
Na-Reul (나를 ) (Corbett vs. Dempsey)
Extremely personal and passionate, cellist Okkyung Lee recorded this album after separation from her instrument for months as she traveled to Korea to be with her dying father during pandemic; the 9 pieces are layered with strings, instrument sounds, voice and with profound timing, creating an intensely beautiful album reflecting the anguish and loss of the time. ... Click to View
Joe McPhee:
Route 84 Quarantine Blues (Corbett vs. Dempsey)
One of Corbett vs. Dempsey's Black Cross Solo Sessions, Joe McPhees approaches his album recorded during pandemic lockdown in his home through tenor sax, voice, water, objects and field recordings, the center of the album a cycle of compositions by Charles Mingus, alongside works by Carla Bley and influences by Joni Mitchell, and a virtual symphony of saxes on the title track. ... Click to View
Ken Vandermark:
The Field Within a Line (Corbett vs. Dempsey)
One of Corbett vs. Dempsey's Black Cross Solo Sessions, Ken Vandermark recorded these twelve succinct, insightful and technically superb solo recordings at his home during pandemic lockdowns, part of a new book of compositions for solo reed instruments, each piece dedicated to an artist across multiple disciplines, including Joe McPhee, Anthony Braxton, Samuel Beckett, &c. ... Click to View
Moreno Veloso:
Every Single Night (Corbett vs. Dempsey)
Brazilian singer Moreno Veloso recorded these songs from a songbook developed from his favorite artists, inspired while singing his children to sleep during pandemic, selecting lyrical songs that he performs accompanying himself on acoustic nylon-string guitar, recording the album in a corner of his living room, giving the album a beautiful intimacy and sincerity. ... Click to View
Paul Dunmall / Jonathan Impett / Andrew Ball / Paul Rogers / Phillip Gibbs:
Undistracted (FMR)
A 2004 quintet recording from Victoria Rooms in Bristol with the core of long-time collaborators Paul Dunmall on tenor sax, Paul Rogers on bass and Philip Gibbs, performing with two improvisers also well known for their work in compositional forms--Jonathan Impett on trumpet and Andrew Ball on piano--bringing unique perspectives to their far-ranging, advanced improvisation. ... Click to View
Paul Dunmall / Simon Thoumire / John Edwards / Phillip Gibbs:
Brothers In Music (FMR)
2021 reissue of this 2004 release on the DUNS label bringing together a uniquely voiced quartet with Paul Dunmall on tenor & soprano saxophones, virtuoso concertina player Simon Thoumire, John Edwards on double bass and Philip Gibbs on guitar, with both Dunmall & Thoumire performing on bagpipes on two tracks; a welcome reissue to a distinctive and thought-provoking album. ... Click to View
Theresa Wong:
Venice Is a Fish (Euphorbia Records)
Five pieces composed as a diary manifest in song from Bay Area cellist and singer Theresa Wong, reflecting on her time in Venice through labyrinthine melodic and rhythmic pathways, adding piano and the Japanese 5-string tonkori instrument to add exotic flavor to each eclectic song, blurring genres as Wong's impressions and expression lets each song lead where it must. ... Click to View
Udo Schindler / Wilbert De Joode:
Participation & Interplay [LowToneStudies] (FMR)
Concentrating on the lower end of their instruments, Udo Schindler and double bassist Wilbert de Joode improvise live at DasKihotzky_wagnisARt and at the 99th Salon für Klang+Kunstover in Munich, for 10 parts of their "[LowToneStudies]", Schindler performing on bass clarinet, f-tuba and tubax (a contrabass saxophone), occasionally complementing their lower end with soprano sax. ... Click to View
Darius Jones:
Raw Demoon Alchemy (A Lone Operation) [VINYL + DOWNLOAD] (Northern Spy)
Drawing on compositions from black artists who have created something uniquely their own--Sun Ra, Ornette Coleman, Roscoe Mitchell, Georgia Anne Muldrow--alto saxophonist Darius Jones pulls from the depths of emotion and vulnerability in five solo tracks recorded in Portland, deeply felt blues reflecting the black experience in America and the pain of isolation. ... Click to View
Darius Jones:
Raw Demoon Alchemy (A Lone Operation) [PINK VINYL + DOWNLOAD] (Northern Spy)
Drawing on compositions from black artists who have created something uniquely their own--Sun Ra, Ornette Coleman, Roscoe Mitchell, Georgia Anne Muldrow--alto saxophonist Darius Jones pulls from the depths of emotion and vulnerability in five solo tracks recorded in Portland, deeply felt blues reflecting the black experience in America and the pain of isolation. ... Click to View
Wadada Smith Leo Great Lakes Quartet:
The Chicago Symphonies [4 CD BOX SET] (Tum)
Inspired by Don Cherry's 1966 Symphony For Improvisers and intended to illustrate the profound cultural contributions Chicagoans & Midwesterners have made, trumpeter Leo Smith's presents four expansive symphonies, three performed with Henry Threadgill (sax & flute), John Lindberg (bass) and Jack DeJohnette (drums), the fourth with Jonathon Haffner (sax) plus Smith, Lindberg and DeJohnette. ... Click to View
Wadada Smith Leo / Vijay Iyer / Jack Dejohnette :
A Love Sonnet For Billie Holiday (Tum)
One of two albums marking trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith's 80th birthday, and showing his creative and technical skills still in peak form, here in a trio for the first time uniting independent collaborators, pianist & keyboardist Vijay Iyer and drummer Jack DeJohnette, in compositions from each of the performers plus one collective improvisation. ... Click to View
Sten Sandell / Lisa Ullen:
Double Music (Clean Feed)
The first duo album by pianists Sten Sandell and Lisa Ullén, recorded in their home country of Sweden, performing eight freely improvised piano works which include the two-part "Double Music" and two-part "Onyx", each recording contrasting complex interplay of discord and harmony with beautiful passages of introspection and intellectual depth; a remarkable merging of masterful talent. ... Click to View
Friends & Neighbors (Roligheten / Johansson / Gronberg / Rune Strom / Ostvang):
The Earth Is # (Clean Feed)
Referencing 60s free jazz (the band's name is from an Ornette Coleman album) and structuring their tunes with melodic heads that develop into intricate structures giving the players room for impressive soloing, this is the 5th album from the Scandinavian quintet of Andre Roligheten (winds), Thomas Johansson (trumpets), Oscar Gronberg (piano), Jon Rune Strom (bass), and Tollef Ostvang (drums). ... Click to View
Crazy Doberman:
"Everyone Is Rolling Down A Hill" ... [VINYL] (Astral Spirits)
The Indiana collective Crazy Doberman in a 15-performer configuration including core members Tim Gick and Drew Davis, merging jazz and indescribable approaches to free improvisation with a mix of acoustic & electronic instruments, building their pieces from mysteriously cantankerous rumination to ecstatic grooves and much in-between. ... Click to View
Jerome Bryerton / Damon Smith :
There Must be a Reason for Generating Sounds... [CD + BOOKMARK] (Balance Point Acoustics)
From the late 1990s to the early 2000s, drummer Jerome Bryterton & double bassist Damon Smith toured & recorded with legendary German multi-reedist Wolfgang Fuchs, who was a great influence on both musicians, here presenting a tribute to the late improviser through 11 recordings titled with quotes from Fuchs, and released with a bookmark from an improvisation workshop in Oakland. ... Click to View
New Old Luten Quintet:
Big Pauer (Euphorium)
Opening with a powerful solo set from pianist Elan Pauer, this album was released on the occasion of Pauer's 80th birthday, revealing itself to be the incredible free jazz quintet of of Pauer, Ernst-Ludwig Petrowsky on clarinet & shepherds' flutes, both John Edwards & Robert Landfermann on double bass, and Christian Lillinger on drums & percussion. ... Click to View
Block Ensemble (Ratkje / Joh / Pernille / Ingvaldsen / Rasmussent ...):
Hugs and Bugs (Clean Feed)
Conceived by saxophonist Kirstoffer Berre Alberts and Lasse Marhaug, who composed this large acoustic work for strings, percussion, blowing instruments, pipes (organ and accordion) and vocals, soliciting solo recordings created in isolation during the pandemic which they layered and blocked in the studio to create these two remarkable works of eccentric timbre, motion & pitch. ... Click to View
Ritual Habitual (Marogna / Almeida / Ernsting):
Pagan Chant (Clean Feed)
Presented as a a tribute to past jazz masters John Coltrane, Albert Ayler, Don Cherry and Charlie Haden, Rotterdam's Ritual Habitual trio led by double bassist Gonçalo Almeida with drummer Philipp Ernsting and Riccardo Maronga on tenor sax, bass clarinet & synthesizers, create a sense of ritual through deep repetition of modern creative jazz rooted in free jazz tradition. ... Click to View
Steve Swell's Systems For Total Immersion:
Hommage A Luciano Berio (Silkheart)
After Bartok and Messiaen, trombonist & composer Steve Swell takes his sextet with Marty Ehrlich (winds), Sam Newsome (sax), Jim Pugliese (marimba), Ellen Christi (voice) and Gerald Cleaver (drums) into an exploration of Italian composer Luciano Berio with a diverse set of works reflecting Berio's vast curiosity and ovouer; a spectacular collection from a fantastic band. ... Click to View
