Swiss trombonist Samuel Blaser pays tribute to clarinetist and composer Jimmy Giuffre, in a quartet with Russ Lossing on piano & keys, Drew Gress on double bass, and Gerald Cleaver on drums, merging Giuffre's lyrical forms to create new and innovative compositions.

A much-needed reissue of the 2002 release from the quartet of Peter Brotzmann (reeds), Joe McPhee (sax, pocket cornet, trumpet), Kent Kessler (double bass) and Michael Zerang (drums & percussion) recording in the studio for incredible free improvisation from four titans.

The South-African inspired Italian improvising group Canto General (named as a reference to poet Pablo Neruda) led by trumpeter Pino Manafra and saxophonist Roberto Ottaviano invite drummer Louis Moholo-Moholo for an album of compositions from Harry Miller, Keith Tippett, Mongezi Feza, &c.

Four generations of Chicago saxophonists--Dave Rempis, Ken Vandermark, Mars Williams, and Nick Mazzarella--come together in an interactive saxophone quartet with each player providing 2 compositions of well-developed, powerful, engaging free and lyrical jazz.

An electroacoustic composition from Herbert Distel, a "Travelogue" of field recordings organized into two long works that present hallucinatory sound with an illusive rhythmic component, structured into a long journey with a departure, journey and arrival.

Composer Jason Eckardt presents "Subject", a work that confronts "enhanced interrogation" techniques using sound and light, plus other works including a 6 part piece about glossolalia ("Tongues"), performed by JACK, ICE, and the Oberlin Contemporary Music Ensemble.

Ellery Eskelin performing solo on tenor saxophone at 61 Local in Brooklyn, NY, four original compositions, personal and distinctive improvisation like listening to tales from a well seasoned and adept traveler.

Seven electric guitar duos from Kaiser & Ewen, recorded during a 6 hour marathon session in Houston, TX, impressive for the intense technical interactions as well as the assertive use of sound and distortion to augment their wonderfully strange, monstrous ideas.

Two masters who rarely play together--guitarist Fred Frith and saxophonist Evan Parker--performing together as a duo at the 30th Musique Actuelle Festival in Victoriaville, Canada for an amazing exchange of ideas and intensely subtle dialog.

If Thousands present a beautiful blanket of sound recorded as a soundtrack for falling asleep. Quite beautiful and soothing. Fans of Godspeed You Black Emperor and Stars of the lid should love this one.

A reissue of Emanem 4301, a classic concert and studio performances from '70-'72 by the innovative trio of Paul Rutherford (trombone, piano) Derek Bailey (guitar) and Barry Guy (double bass), which was a much expanded reissue of the early Incus releaes 3/4 of the same name.

Music for the 1971 film by Michael Grigsby and performed by the trio of Paul Rutherford (trombone), Derek Bailey (guitar) and Barry Guy (double bass), a fascinating and distinctive set, more restrained and gentle than their live performances from that time.

A reissue of the uniquely configured trio of soprano saxophonist Steve Lacy, Masa Kwate on traditional Japanese percussion, and Irene Aebi on voice and violin, from their 1977 LP release on the French Musica label, restored and remastered.

The Montreal duo of trumpeter Ellwood Epps and Josh Zubot on violin and low octave violin for 9 upbeat, technically superb and intricate instant improvisations, what they refer to as "foot-tapping for ghosts, seeing the northern lights from underwater".

Live recordings from guitarist Joe Morris, performing solo at Bimhuis in Amsterdam in two Octobers from 2013 to 2014, showing remarkable technical and creative skills while captivating his audience with accessible progressions and story-telling; masterful!

On the cover, Allison Camerson. Inside: Dave Burrell's Unsung Songbook; Peter Ablinger's Art of Time; Sabrina Schroeder's Stircrazer; plus reviews of recordings and events, label profiles, essays, &c. &c.

After 10 years together, the Rempis Percussion Quartet led by saxophonist Dave Rempist, Frank Rosaly, Tim Daisy on drums and percussion, and Ingebrigt Haker-Flaten on bass, recorded this concert at Chicago's Hungry Brain for a superlative album of rhythmically simmering free improv.

Odd beats, strange solos, a reggae feel here, an avant-garde jazz angularity there, from Rollerball, a goth-tinged pop band with vocalist Mae Starr leading the quintet through catchy melodies with unexpected twists and turns.

British free improvising guitar master John Russell's 60th birthday gig at London's Cafe Oto is celebrated in a duo with Phil Minton, a trio with Henry Lowther & Satoko Fakuda, in a trio with Evan Parker and John Edwards, and in a duo with Thurston Moore.

Label leader Brian John Mitchell in his first Small Life Form release, seven instrumental drone pieces ranging from contemplative to noisy and disturbed, designed so they may all be listened to simultaneously while looped.

With members from Fire!, Red Trio, Amado Motion Trio, &c., the trio of Pedro Sousa (sax), Johan Berthling (bass) and GabrielFerrandini (drums) push the envelope in free improvisation that is energetic, argumentative, restless, and ultimately extremely intelligent.

A trio of collective-improvisers recording in NYC's East Village in 2015 for exceptionally sympathetic dialog, instigated by electric keyboard improvisor Thollem McDonas, with Nels Cline on guitar and Charles Gayle cohort Michael Wimberly on drums; Fred Frith liner notes!

Henry Threadgill's new epic work in four movements written specifically to feature each of the musicians in Zooid: "Ceroepic" for Elliott Kavee (drums), "Dosepic" for Christopher Hoffman (cello), "Tresepic" for Jose Davila (trombone & tuba), and "Unoepic" for Liberty Ellman (guitar).

Using mostly unprocessed electric guitars, the duo of Elliott Sharp and Scott Fields' latest release presents eight dueling guitar works using dynamic, angular tones and textures, from extremely aggressive work to clean avant-jazz with twisted technical intent.

Legendary trumpeter, composer and educator Bill Dixon in a 17 piece orchestra playing original compositions live at the 12th Vision Festival in New York City.

The first solo album from Downtown NY drummer/multi-instrumentalist Mike Pride, 18 diverse and succinct pieces for percussion instruments, studio creations, glockenspiel etudes & drum set improvisations with rhythmically superb music and some strange bits of NYC humor.

A masterful fountain of melodic ideas, intriguing rhythms, and exceptional technical skill from the duo of Hamid Drake on drums and frame drum, and Sylvain Kassap on clarinets and chalumeau, recording live at the France Musique at Studio Theatre dÕAlfortville and in the studio.

A live performance at Judson Church in Manhattan as part of the 20th Vision Festival from the NY/France free improvising trio of Joelle Leandre on double bass, Mat Maneri on viola, and Gerald Cleaver on drums and percussion, two tracks of steadily building, incredibly compatible dialog.

The Swedish duo of percussionist Andreas Pollak and prepared pianist Johan Graden (Adam & Alma) in an album of references and innuendo, clandestine and furtive sounds that evoke great mystery and drama in beautifully shaped sound; evocative music that deceives to emerge from the electronic realm while in actuality coming from all acoustic sources.

The second volume of the project heard in the previous Creative Sources album, "Suspensao", here in a 9-piece electroacoust ensemble with viola, cello, doublebass, alto sax, trombone, piano, electric guitar, computer and percussion, suspenseful lowercase music that unfolds in mysterious, beautiful and rewarding ways.

Live recordings at LOFT in Cologne, Germany from the trio of George Wissel on prepared saxophone, Achim Tang on doublebass, and Simon Camatta on drums & percussion, performing seven "Movements" that use prodigious technique with reserve and direction, revealing the structure of their work as the pieces build and recede in fascinating ways.

Australian improvising guitarist Candlesnuffer (David Brown) and Dutch guitarist Lukas Simonis in an album inspired by photographer Rosamund Purchell's book: "Special Cases: Natural Anomalies and Historical Monsters".

Small promo drill in top right of jewel tray, otherwise like new.

"University of Errors is led by guitarist, vocalist, and pataphysical icon Daevid Allen. Daevid was one of the founding members of The Soft Machine (and later the founder ...

Having previously worked together with Joe McPhee and Kent Kessler, this album distills the Portuguese saxophonist Rodrigo Amado and NY drummer/percussionist Chris Corsano to a concentrated sax and drum duo of earnest and edgy playing, bending jazz, free and blues idioms to their will with magnificent technique and power, both clearly elated in their meeting.

Recorded live at Silence Sounds in Guelph Canada, the duo of Xavier Charles on clarinet and Eric Normand on electric bass & objects eschew idiom in favor of their unique natural language on their instruments, applying patient development of truly idiosyncratic and fascinating command through a single extended work punctuated in seven diverse passages.

From 2008-16 until drummer Frank Rosaly moved to Amsterdam, alto saxophonist Nick Mazzarella's Trio was an active part of Chicago's creative jazz scene; in early 2018 Rosaly returned for a visit and Mazzarella composed a suite of 6 new pieces to commemorate the trio's tenth anniversary, the exuberant result this excellent concert recorded at Co-Prosperity Sphere!

The 25th Book of Angels, performing Zorn's lyrical Masada compositions, is the 2nd B.O.A. release from the a cappella vocal quartet Mycale, using a variety of texts in Portuguese, Berber, Hebrew, French and Spanish to fashion lush harmonies and strong rhythmic drive.

A beautiful solo set of 12 improvisations, Michael Attias performing on alto sax with his left hand and piano with his right, captured in the natural reverberation of La Maison en Bois in Abeville-La-Riviere, France; surprisingly his 1st solo album, developed over 12 years yet played in under an hour with no retakes, a wonderful nuanced reflection in tone, melody & color.

A beautifully hypnotic album of saxophone, accompanied by Pan-Ney, Shruti Box and Organ, recorded in overdubs by composer/wind player Werner Durand in this 2nd chapter of his trilogy focused on the Pan-Ney, a self-built instrument for repetitive foundations, as Durand draws on elements of nature, mythology, dance, religion, literature and folklore.

Recording in Toronto, the core trio of drummer Nick Fraser, saxophonist Tony Malaby and pianist Kris Davis are joined on four tracks by tenor saxophonist Ingrid Laubrock and trumpeter Lina Allemano, in an album of composed and collective improvisation, merging Toronto, NY and European influences in an accomplished album of diverse approaches and orchestrations.

The 5th release from the trio of multi-instrumentalist/vocalist Keiji Haino, guitarist Jim O'Rourke and Oren Ambarchi on wineglass and percussion is an introspective and beautifully developed set recorded live at their March 2013 concert at SuperDeluxe.

An excellent first meeting of two guitarists recording on a February afternoon and released in the sequence recorded with no edits or changes, from Jim McAuley on guitar and Scot Ray on lap steel slide guitar with effects, an innately lyrical blending of styles masking the strong technical skills and long histories of these two superlative players.

Quietly lurking as it prepares to attack, this Kobra is the free improvising quaret of Aurora Nealand on accordion, alto saxophone, voice & objects, Steve Marquette on acoustic & electric guitars, Anton Hatwich on bass, and Paul Thibodeaux on drums, captured live at Chicago's Hungry Brain during the Instigation Festival for a mysterious 2-part "New Omens" and some "Telly Attire".

'Spilla' means 'to play' in the language of Neapolitan musicians, and playing here are NY guitarist and composer Elliott Sharp and Italian guitarist Sergio Sorrentino, presenting world premier recordings of 4 works recorded live in Vercelli, Italy: two improvisations and two graphic scores performed on electric guitar with incredible technique and passion.

While both improvisers were in New York City for the 2019 Vision Festival, multi-reedist and European Free Improv legend Peter Brötzmann met Chicago cellist and electronics artist Fred Lonberg-Holm to record their 3rd album together, their 1st album in the studio a diverse set of incredible concentration, with Brötzmann performing on tenor saxophone, woodwind, and clarinet.

A momentous 2020 concert at London's Cafe OTO, presented in two discs, the 1st with label leader Jean-Marc Foussat in a solo improvisation on synth and voice, the 2nd in a trio with Daunik Lazro on tenor & baritone sax, and Evan Parker on soprano sax, the 2 saxophones weaving and responding to Foussat's remarkable alien soundscapes and vocalization in an immersive extended improvisation.

Having played together in a variety of settings, but never as a trio, saxophonist Sabir Mateen, clarinetist Patrick Holmes and drummer Federico Ughi met in a recording studio in Tuscany, Italy to record this album of wide-ranging free improvisation, Mateen's Farfisa playing and vocal declamations bringing a Sun Ra element to the vehement and profound dialog.

Trumpeter Dennis Gonzalez merges his Yells at Eel project with bassist Aaron Gonzalez and drummer/percussionist Stefan Gonzalez, with Texas-based experimental rock band Pinkish Black--Daron Beck on keyboards and Jon Teague on drums & synthesizers--for a gripping and masterful hybrid of improvisation, dark synthetic rock and heavy moods; a riveting journey.

Exploring the lineage of the Dukes of Bedford, the Russell lineage in Bedford, England, in groupings of acoustic & electric guitarists John Russell, Ray Russell, and Henry Kaiser along with double bassist Ollie Brice, from duos to quartets, eight Duke "Russells" from 1680 to 2003 are explored through intricate and joyfully creative and technically amazing string improvisations.

Taking his title from a poem by Octavio Paz with titles from translations by Lysander Kemp of other Octavio Paz poems, this solo album from double bassist Damon Smith is his definitive statement on the instrument: 23 tracks from 46 seconds to 5 minutes 50, developed over 15 years and displaying Smith's incredible technique and creative intent; incomparable.