Steve Reynolds

I had very high unreasonable expectations for this band and they were exceeded on all levels. still resonating with me but the odd aspect of it is I'm still not sure what I heard it was so often out of the ordinary. For listeners who have some experience with Mat or his father, you might have a bit of an idea of what I'm trying to express.

Fwiw Malaby did nothing that would have convinced the naysayers of anything as he was more extreme in pitch and unexpected seemingly incongruous phrasing on both of his horns. Unless one listens as a whole. Wake up in the AM realizing what one heard. With Mat it is immediately apparent to the listener that he is on a another planet. Bass tones, deep repetitive phrasing and heavy metalish riffs with Stewarts overtones on the tuba took the music beyond what is possible. The shortish encore to each set placed this music at the top of the class. Best show of the year without question for me

A fine line between madness and genius best describes the saxophonist in the band, Tony Malaby Compositions alternated between the co-leaders of the ensemble who performed for the first time last night. Surpisingly the great long thin room was packed. Mat is simply beyond Mat these days and he was in great spirits and once he started with 'here we go' they were off with an opening catchy piece by the pianist taking some time to morph into the improvisatory sections. Cleaver was low key throughout the first set but Mat and Tony played with, without and through each other and the intensity of their improvisations was at a level rarely heard by this listener. More later. Btw the crowd loved it And it swung like mad Still....... Coming Down the Mountain

Enjoy, BFrank Any moment and my wife and I are 3 feet from the viola and 4 feet from the tenor and soprano

Xybert has the chance to experience a sound that really only can truly felt live. When I last saw him in a church about 2 blocks from where I am right now it was the sound of God when he played unaccompanied

An hour plus from a great anti-swing band that will swing like mad when they choose. And without a doubt jazz music no matter what

and for so many, "swings like mad" means it MUST "swing" like it used to As the question or answer of what does it mean to swing cannot be answered? To my ears, Tarfala swings that mindset continues to codify the music as an anarchronism or at best current incarnations of the same old as simple imitations of what was once new music seeing one the saddest name his recordings with exactly the same names as classics of 50 years ago is a tacit admission of nothing happening here and now in their little narrow world of what is jazz Standing on a Whale Fishing for Minnows

Mat Maneri/Lucian Ban New Quintet with: Mat on viola Lucian on piano Tony Malaby on tenor saxophone Bob Stewart on tuba Gerald Cleaver on drums 2 sets @ Cornelia Street Cafe

Paging Xybert!!!!!!

I be there @ Vision Fest

One more thing See Novela live if at all posible

Well said Heart and soul with technique to spare and endlessly frustrating at times as there have been quite a few nights that the elbows never flap. Because the goal or the target is unknown sometimes it doesn't happen. But especially within 2 sets from a band like Open Loose the listener will be surprised and for me always wanting to hear more.

Saw Hill's sextet around 1998 with Ehrlich, Horton, Colley and Drummond I forget the tenor player Band was awesome due in large part to Marty Ehrlich and Billy Drummond

Once live is way not enough to know anything about the calibre of Tony Malaby's abilities. He is poorly served on his own recordings and he is wildly unpredictable live but when on, for me he is the most bracing, original and exciting tenor saxophonist on the planet. Come see in NYC 3/29 at Cornelia Street

Love this album, a real gem, a wonderful group. I'm starving for a new Moran leader date. This album made me want to check out some more Oliver Lake... hasn't happened yet, but the seed has been planted. Trio 3: Live in Willisau The one to search out among all others. 1992 concert of the great trio from when the band commenced

My favorite Intakt recordings are probably the Barry Guy LJCO and New Orchestra recordings

I ordered the Roebke. I'm getting the sax trio session with the great long time bass/drum tandem of Dresser/Hemingway

This is a great one

Is Mobley's Peckin' Time well regarded? To my ears, a very humdrum rote session with a substandard Charli Persip on drums And I've become a big admirer of Mobley - especially the classic dates like Workout, Roll Call and Soul Station I find his phrasing, tone and melodic sense more engaging than Coltrane's late 50's playing and even prefer him lately over Rollins of that era or Dexter. I really need to re-aquire the Blackhawk sessions with Miles Back to the blue notes, back in the day, I really ha a hard time with the later Lee Morgan blue notes. I found them formulaic and uninspiring.

Dragonfly Breath is one of favorite recent releases Plus one can the great Not Two sound quality at its finest

I actually don't think the problem is an underrating of BNs (and more straight-ahead stuff), but an overrating of avant-garde jazz and non-jazz improvisational music (on average). They are much, much more generous with ****s with the latter than with the former. Guy That may be. Do you have any good examples of that? IIRC, in the case of many BNs, they tended to review the results as formulaic or pedestrian, so maybe did value the avant stuff higher just for being different. I know I have my own bias in that direction. But I would be interested in egregious examples of overrating the avant-garde stuff too highly. Derek Bailey and Evan Parker are the first two examples that come to mind. Funny that I am not much of a listener to Bailey but my opinion of the Parker discs is often in line with Penguin. And over the years I have listened to Evan Parker probably more than any other saxophonist. If one gets past the sort of music he plays, their take on his music is quite measured. The reality is that he has recorded a lot of music and much of it is of a very high quality and high inspiration. It's tough when one is one of greatest saxophonists who ever lived. Sure there are some rote sessions and they rate a number of them 3 stars.

I have and like the first one above. I would like to hear the others

The other Bauer is mighty fine as well My first tier modern day trombonists start with Wolter Wierbos, George Lewis, Swell and a nod to Jeb Bishop. But let me tell you, live Ben Gerstein is quite the improvisor - probably somewhat in the mold of Swell.

The music that I see and hear live these days is far different from the music I saw and heard 20 years ago And much of it is less "out" if you will Then again, I think two of the great talents in this music have never come across as well as they should on record - and those two are Tony Malaby and Mat Maneri. And yes - both of them were fledgling musicians 20 years ago - but today they are masters of their universes and what they often create live is fresh, unpredictable and strikingly today. Fwiw Get Ready to Receive Yourself

The areas of form, rhythm and related nuances of music are being thoroughly investigated in the "downtown" scene. All of these musics are well within the confines of jazz to my ears. Capricorn Climber is a good example as are various Maneri led ensembles one of which I will experience on the 29th of this month. Certainly these experiments with form and or lack of such is a well worn area of many attempts going back to Air and other avant music of the 70's. I find that these are the most exciting current areas if exploration in current jazz. I am blessed to have opportunity to witness it often. Another great example was hearing the trio of Mat Maneri, Craig Taborn and Ches Smith. Easily fits under the jazz umbrella although it was almost doom metal in intensity when the trio locked into grooves and anti-grooves. Plus I go back to the William Parker quartet with Drake. Still no other band playing anything like it. Live it can be spectacularly exciting as it was on two nights this past October. Malaby's ever changing band with Monder and Waits is another prime example of something that doesn't sound like any other ensemble I've heard. Gerald Cleavers Black Host for another