Browse some recent OA2 Reviews.
The Taylor / Fidyk Big Band - Live At Blues Alley
by Ken Dryden, All Music Guide
The Taylor/Fidyk Big Band's second CD, taken from a performance at Blues Alley, captures the band on a peak evening, fueled by Mark Taylor's potent arrangements and instrumentalists who can build upon his charts without needless showboating. Taylor's originals include "Full Count" (which is a modern update on the old-fashioned tenor battle), the cool "Bradley's Bop House" and "The Gorillaman Blues," and the swinging "Full Count," which one could... read more
Afro Bop Alliance - Una Mas
by Adam Greenberg, All Music
Una M�s is an outstanding set of Latin jazz from the D.C. area's finest Latin big band. The band makes use of surprisingly complex arrangements of largely new compositions, both Latin pieces transformed into somewhat jazzier arrangements (as in the opening "Golpe de Cumaco") and jazz pieces given a Latin flavor (as in main arranger Vince Norman's "El Oto�o"). Rounded out with a few Latinized classic pieces from the likes of Cal Tjader and Benny... read more
Stephen Martin - High Plains
by Georges Tonla Briquet, Jazz'halo (Belgium)
With 'High Plains' the young American saxophonist Stephen Martin confirms all the qualities of his strong debut 'Vision' (2018), albeit surrounded by a completely new trio.
The title of the opening track ('Horizons') is perfectly illustrated by Martin and pianist Peter Schlamb . Together they thoughtfully draw out the contours of the decor, thoughtfully supported by bassist Ben Leifer and drummer David Hawkins . Step by step they introduce... read more
Mark Buselli / Claude Sifferlen - Take The Mitsu
by Scott Gotschall, Jazz Review
Those who believe that jazz can only originate on the coasts have never been to Indiana. Beginning with Hoagy Carmichael and continuing through the Montgomery brothers, Jimmy Spaulding and many others, Indiana has played an important role in jazz history. You may then add to the history the inspired teachers, such as Jerry Coker and David Baker, which have inspired thousands of students, including the likes of Jamey Aebersold, who has continued... read more
Ben Markley - Basic Economy
by Robert Ham, Downbeat
Ben Markley Moves Into the Spotlight
Pianist Ben Markley has quietly been making waves in the jazz world from his home base in Denver, Colorado. That was clear enough when he released Clockwise (OA2), his big band tribute to one of his musical idols, Cedar Walton, last year. The album netted Markley a healthy amount of critical praise, including a four-star review from DownBeat.
His latest release, Basic Economy (OA2), is a... read more
Kelley Johnson - Something Good
by Joe Lang, Jersey Jazz
Something Good is the fifth album from Seattle-based vocalist KELLEY JOHNSON. Given that she made her first album in 1998, it is a sad commentary on the current music scene that a vocalist as good as Johnson has had such a limited recorded output. This ten-song program finds her with backing from pianist John Hansen, bassist Michael Glynn and drummer Kendrick Scott, with a few contributions from Jay Thomas on soprano and tenor saxes,... read more
Gustavo Cortinas - Esse
by Gaby Sanchez, Couleurs Jazz (France)
Gustavo Cortiñas, Mexican drummer and composer, living in Chicago, thinks and therefore is... Inspired by the philosophers from Plato to Hegel, from Aristotle to Descartes, or even Nietzsche, his jazz has the nuances and Couleurs of Mexico, Latin America: melodies, harmony, and also the Chicago swing. In any case a positive music and philosophy, joyful and septic sometimes. An ode to life ... I listen to Jazz therefore I am...
Gustavo... read more
Paul Tynan & Aaron Lington - Bicoastal Collective: Chapter Two
by Phillip McNally, Cadence Magazine
On (1) the piano is replaced with guitar, and Aaron Lington in the "tenor chair" is sporting a baritone. He's got a rude, rich sound on the instrument that plays well off the delicacy of the rest of the 5tet. The heart of the recording is "The Ravenspurn Collection," a suite of six English folk tunes arranged anew by trumpeter Paul Tynan. This suite is based on Ralph Vaughan Williams's composition "Six Studies in English Folksong for Cello and... read more
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