Browse some recent OA2 Reviews.
Chris Amemiya & Jazz Coalescence - In the Rain Shadow
by Michael Davis, Founder/President - Hip-Bone Music, Inc., In the Rain Shadow
Jazz Coalescence's new release In The Rain Shadow gives the jazz-rich community of the Pacific Northwest something to hang its hat on and sink its teeth into. An abundantly solid release from top to bottom, Rain Shadow features a mix of spirited originals and solid jazz classics, beautifully crafted arrangements, dynamic solos and synergistic ensemble work. The rock solid front line of trumpet, saxophone and trombone hearkens back to the classic... read more
Kelley Johnson - Something Good
by Grady Harp, Amazon
5-STARS Consummate jazz vocalist Kelley Johnson offers her finest recorded performance to date - a recording that focuses on intimate jazz interpretations of favorites and makes them completely fresh and compelling. Or as others have said, 'She understands the music from the inside out, and with her spot-on phrasing and silky, rich timbre, she is certainly one of the finest purveyors of sophisticated lyrics on the scene... read more
Nelda Swiggett - This Time
by Dick Crockett, Bopndicks 10 Picks
Seattle-based pianist Nelda Swiggett has a bright smooth swinging quality to her mainstream approach and a minimalist almost bare knuckles attitude. Her key strokes are bold and assertive, as if she knows exactly the direction of her music. And you feel it, directional-determined and cool. She has written all original compositions and three with lyrics. Her vocals are care free and warm, juxtaposed to her driving style on piano. She's been... read more
Ben Markley Quartet - Slow Play
by Dave Rogers, WTJU
Pianist Ben Markley offers eight original compositions and his quartet extraordinaire, including Joel Frahm (tenor sax, soprano sax on one song), Marty Kenney (bass) and Jim White (drums) with guest Andy Wheelock adding congas on two songs. The songs swing and jump for all they're worth for beginning to end as the piano and sax intertwine and react to each other. The group is tight and when Frahm turns things loose, the music is swinging with... read more
Alex Goodman - Border Crossing
by Ted Quinlan, The Whole Note
Composition and improvisation flow freely into each other on guitarist Alex Goodman's Border Crossing. For his latest recording Goodman has assembled what can best be described as a jazz chamber group. His writing is ambitious and complex, making full use of the wide range of colours available from this outstanding ensemble. Andrew Downing, who doubles on bass and cello, and vocalist Felicity Williams contribute to the group's ability to cross... read more
Francesco Crosara - Circular Motion
by David Witter, Fra Noi Magazine
A GRAND MUSICAL JOURNEY
In the old days, when folks traveled by ship and train, passengers' trunks were adorned with colorful stickers indicating the cities and nations they had passed through. Jazz pianist Francesco Crosara's latest recording is a musical version of such a suitcase. Born in Italy, Crosara immigrated to the United States and has lived in Honolulu, Los Angeles, Chicago and other cities before settling in Seattle. At each stop,... read more
Tom Tallitsch - Perspective
by Kyle O'Brien, Jazz Society of Oregon
Tallitsch is a Philadelphia-based saxophonist with a sound that shows both restraint and passion. His tunes are modern jazz through and through, not adhering to genre or style in any significant fashion. The tune ?Conscious Contact? is an introspective minor melody that lets Tallitsch's soprano speak in cohesion with his group. Piano, guitar, bass, drums and reeds build to a crescendo, and Tallitsch doesn?t let loose until the tune is good and... read more
Ezra Weiss Big Band - We Limit Not the Truth of God
by Editor, Jazziz
New Music Monday Feature "Obergefell" is a track from composer/bandleader Ezra Weiss' big band album debut, We Limit Not the Truth of God. The LP features a 17-piece band of first-call musicians and is an impassioned suite addressed to Weiss' young children that attempts to make sense of a divided world. "Obergefell" is one of its most celebratory parts. Drawing inspiration from the 2015 Civil Rights case in which the... read more
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