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Dan Brown / Dan Reynolds:
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The Touchables :
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Cecil Taylor / Tony Oxley :
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Sylvie Courvoisier :
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The seventh chapter in Darius Jones' visionary Man'ish Boy series, this powerful trio recording with Gerald Cleaver and Chris Lightcap presents five new compositions and a Lomax-arranged spiritual, confronting themes of Black mental health, trauma, and healing through richly expressive alto saxophone, deep rhythmic interplay, and emotional resonance. ... Click to View


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A focused and highly collaborative session from multi-reedist Steve Adams, bassist Lisa Mezzacappa, and drummer Jason Levis, whose long-standing connections through the Bay Area's creative music scene — including Mezzacappa and Levis's duo B and their co-led Experimental Band — inform these concise and sensitive 2022 improvisations with a compositional approach to form and balance. ... Click to View


Lao Dan:
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Andreas Wildhagen's Spiralis :
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Havard Skaset:
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Mary Halvorson Septet:
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Mary Halvorson leads her Septet with Jonathan Finlayson (trumpet), Jon Irabagon (alto sax), Ingrid Laubrock (tenor saxophone), Jacob Garchik (trombone), John Hebert (bass) & Ches Smith (drums) through 6 original compositions and a Robert Wyatt cover! ... Click to View


Nil by Nose:
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Misha Mengelberg / Sabu Toyozumi:
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Previously unreleased, this remarkable 2000 duo performance from Dutch pianist Misha Mengelberg and Japanese drummer Sabu Toyozumi captures their playful and philosophical interplay in two extended improvisations, a Monk tribute, and a touching solo dedicated to Mengelberg's wife, blending wit, dynamic textures, and deep mutual respect in a session Toyozumi calls a personal tribute to his "guru." ... Click to View


Amy Denio:
Variete (Klanggalerie)

A sophisticated and delightful cinematic work from Seattle multi-instrumentalist Amy Denio, who composes and leads a 12-piece ensemble in a dynamic new soundtrack to the 1925 silent film Varieté, blending electric guitar, accordion, voice, and hammered dulcimer with a chamber orchestra of woodwinds, strings, and percussion in a rich, genre-defying studio recording. ... Click to View


FDF Trio:
Possibility And Prejudices From Within A Cup [VINYL] (Konnekt)

A fiercely expressive trio of drummer Nicolas Field, saxophonist John Dikeman, and pianist Thomas Florin, delivering a raw and evolving session of free improvisation, recorded in Geneva with a spirit of spontaneity and shared energy, channeling aggression, nuance, and dynamic interplay into a collective sound that values connection and honest interaction. ... Click to View


Re-Ghoster Extended:
The Zebra Paradox [VINYL] (Konnekt)

Expanding the Re-Ghoster trio of Nicolas Field on drums, Thomas Florin on piano, and Valerio Tricoli on revox and electronics with the addition of Nate Wooley on acoustic and amplified trumpet and Fritz Welch's visceral vocal work, the group explores surreal electroacoustic improvisation through dense, transdimensional soundscapes, fractured time, deranged textures, and ritualistic intensity; incredible! ... Click to View


Jim Denley / Dale Gorfinkel / Peter Farrar:
Vents (Relative Pitch)

An unconventional Australian trio exploring breath, vibration, and material resonance, as flutist Jim Denley, airdrum inventor Dale Gorfinkel, and sonic sculptor Peter Farrar create a richly textured world of wind, water, and pressure in two improvised pieces of organic, immersive sound, recorded in Sydney and shaped by the physical vitality of their experimental instruments. ... Click to View


Bristle (McKean / Wright / Campbell / Mezzacappa):
Archimera (Queen Bee Records)

Ten years after their last release, Northern California’s Bristle returns with a richly inventive chamber jazz album blending virtuosic improvisation and playful composition, as saxophonists Randy McKean and Cory Wright join violinist/oboist Murray Campbell and bassist Lisa Mezzacappa in a dynamic, Threadgill-esque ensemble sound full of counterpoint, wit, and imaginative sonic twists. ... Click to View



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  Lotte Anker / Kamil Piotrowicz / Jacob Anderskov 
  Antiworld I  
  (Listen! Foundation (Fundacja Sluchaj!)) 


  
   review by Ken Waxman
  2025-06-19
Lotte Anker / Kamil Piotrowicz / Jacob Anderskov: Antiworld I (Listen! Foundation (Fundacja Sluchaj!))

Two's company, three's a crowd doesn't really apply to this unique trio session recorded live in concert by Danish saxophonist Lotte Anker along with two pianists, fellow Dane Jacob Anderskov and Pole Kamil Piotrowicz. Actually one 49-minute improvisation, divided into tracks named by each letter of the title, it's a fine showcase for Anker's in-the-moment creativity on soprano, alto and tenor sax. Anderskov and Piotrowicz, both of whom lead their own groups, use the dual piano's 166 keys to provide the melodic and rhythmic functions of a whole band.

Dynamic and surging and usually evolving from andante to prestissimo, the flowing exposition has one pianist frequently advancing measured and echoing tones, while the other creates a pile up of juddering key clips and continuous rumbling strokes. Alternately harsh and heraldic, Anker's contributions undulate up and down the scale from foghorn-like honks and droning snarls to triple-tongued squeals and altissimo projections.

Although there are interludes of balladic quiet and mid-range motion, often advanced by the pianists' pedal point vibrations and elevated tinkles, they merely underline the program's controlled intensity. Climax is reached during the penultimate sequences as Piotrowicz and Anderskov concentrate their keyboard clips, clanks and clunks into a contemporary version of a boogie-woogie duo. Meanwhile Anker note bends to emphasize irregular vibrations, squeaking breaths and strident whistles. Her subsequent descent to emphasized singular peeps coupled with keyboard rubs neatly wraps up this exciting live set.

Antiworld I's instrumentation may be offbeat, but the session is on the beat creating an in-the-moment session of notable free music.



Lotte Anker / Kamil Piotrowicz / Jacob Anderskov: Antiworld I
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