CraigP

"I hope Glasper helps build a broader audience for jazz – I won’t hold my breath – but to suggest that he’s found THE answer, as if there is AN answer is silly. In the meantime, I’m glad he’s doing what he’s doing. " Good comments all around. The "conflict" gets press, and everybody seemingly benefits, except people's understanding of the music itself. I know I'm old school, but I still feel there's meaning to the word "jazz", although I like a very open definition of that term. I'd rather someone like Glasper just say, "Hey, I'm a new kind of R & B" or something to that effect, rather than claim he's jazz.

Thanks for the comments, I'm glad people are liking this CD, the group is just killer.

Drew Gress recently released his fourth CD, The Sky Inside, with essentially the same group, consisting of Tim Berne, Ralph Alessi, Craig Taborn and Tom Rainey. Here's an excerpt from the review on my blog: "There’s always something interesting going on with Gress’s arrangements, a sense of motion and intricacy underneath while the horns play with and around each other. While his compositions strike a balance between melody and abstraction, In Streamline stands out because it is simply, unabashedly, beautiful." You can read the whole review here.

I'm with you Xybert, and he adds a lot to Parker's Electro-Acoustic Ensemble as well. I can't get into MOPDTK either. I listened to the most recent one, Red Hot, and with the expanded group the best parts were courtesy of pianist Ron Stabinsky, who does some humorous interpolations of Joe Jackson at one point, and in another piece does a dead-on McCoy Tyner impersonation. But he's not part of the core group. And I don't see why people are so high on Jon Irabagon; he's good, but I don't hear anything really compelling about his soloing.

I like getting the heads-up on new Avant releases via this thread. Along those lines, Tim Daisy has a new trio album out with the great Havard Wiik and bassist Clayton Thomas. (I wonder if his parents were Blood Sweat & Tears fans?) http://timdaisyrelayrecords.bandcamp.com/

Me too! Make it three (sigh)...

I love her playing, and as Steve pointed out, her arranging on Novella was great as well. I'm usually in for whatever recording she's on.

I don't have that particular Golden Quartet album, I'll have to check it out.

Amen.

Sounds interesting. I like Sorey, but his relatively recent "Oblique I" on Pi was underwhelming.

Jazz Loft also carries CIMP recordings, including Kaleidoscope. BTW, what is up with that label? Frustrating that they won't even keep their own site current. This music is hard enough to promote and consume without the label helping to cover it up.

That's weird - I could have sworn that when I went to that page on Babel's Bandcamp site earlier this week the only option was download.

And while we're on the topic of Babel Label, the new digital-only release from the Dominic Lash Quartet is now available, and is really good: http://babel-label.bandcamp.com/album/opabinia It also features Mr. Hawkins, who I believe is now mandated to appear on every Brit jazz release.

Just got an email today from Babel Label with a link to the new Ensemble CD. Sounds good! http://babel-label.bandcamp.com

Will it be on Babel Label as well?

I've posted reviews of these two Clean Feed CDs from bassist Carvalhais on my blog. On Nebulosa the trio is augmented by Tim Berne and on Particula by soprano saxophonist Emile Parisien and violinist Dominique Pifarely. From my review: "...the core group offers an interesting take on the piano trio. In fact, with the sound they generate, “piano trio” doesn’t really come close to describing their approach. I really like the use of space on both recordings; it generates both tension at various points and a sense that the musicians are letting events unfold naturally, though not languidly." You can read the full post here.

Re: Perelman: I just don't get it, unfortunately. He records with musicians I admire, like Cleaver and Shipp, but he screeches way too much and he's not a very interesting improviser, IMO. I'm open to other points of view.

I try to take each recording from an artist on its own merits. I like Bloodcount's Unwound, and I like Snake Oil. To me, Snake Oil is the sound of an artist maturing, not necessarily mellowing, but finding a way of expressing himself that is in some ways richer than what came before.

I've only heard it once, and to me it sounded lifeless and a retread of his earlier stuff

I agree with your assessment, Tom, although I've always liked Turner. The best thing I've heard from him in a long while is a European radio broadcast of a concert with him, Kenny Werner, Scott Colley and Bill Stewart.

My review of Samuel Blaser's follow-up to his Consort in Motion release from 2011 is now up on my blog. Like the earlier CD, A Mirror to Machaut blends early music forms with jazz improvisation, this time around the late medieval music of French composers Machaut and Dufay.

I've posted reviews on my blog of two releases from the artists collective Setola Di Maiale: Empty Chair by Gianni Lenoci Hocus Pocus 4 + Taylor Ho Bynum, and the self-titled effort from Transition, featuring label founder Stefano Giust. I'll just say here that both are excellent, with Empty Chair a mix of composed and free tracks and Transition a totally free effort.

Steve Kuhn - Trance

My mind is reeling with the possibilities...

I'm enjoying that new Samuel Blaser as well. Good to know about the new Claudia Quintet as well.