Browse some recent Origin Reviews.
Michael Dease - Found in Space: The Music of Gregg Hill
by Michael van Gee, Jazz'N'More (Switzerland)
5-STARS Trombonist and baritone saxophonist Michael Dease (*1982) was last featured in JNM 05/23 on his album "Soft Shoe." Now he follows up with "Found In Space," in which he once again presents the highly sophisticated compositions of 78-year-old Gregg Hill, who has been honored musically on many albums in recent years. For his album, Michael Dease has assembled an eleven-piece ensemble with seven exquisite wind instruments and a... read more
Matt Jorgensen +451 - Hope
by Adam Greenberg, All Music Guide
The fourth album from Matt Jorgensen's 451 group continues the line of somewhat traditional modern jazz (if that can be considered a proper name for the style) with a definite forward-thinking aspect built in. The album introduces itself with a groove-laden (and aptly named) "Slinky," powered in part by Phil Sparks' powerful bass, before moving into an interesting cover of a Coldplay song. The first part of the "Hope" series (a trio of title... read more
Benjamin Boone with the Ghana Jazz Collective - Joy
by Chris M. Slawecki, All About Jazz
4-STARS Benjamin Boone's set with this band born and grown in Ghana is a genuine cross-cultural jazz Joy.
The seeds of Joy were planted when composer-saxophonist Boone spent a year as a US Fulbright Scholar in Ghana in sabbatical from his professorship at California State University (Fresno), to study the country's music and musical traditions. The music Boone found made him feel at home: "These guys know American jazz inside and... read more
David Friesen - A Light Shining Through
by Ferdinand Dupuis-Panther, Jazz'halo (Belgium)
In Down Beat we read about David Friesen: "Though a major international jazz figure for decades, it wasn't until 2015 that a tour allowed bassist-composer David Friesen the opportunity to visit his mother's ancestral home of Ukraine for the first time. Welcomed by a camera crew and introductions to pivotal musicians and cultural institutions, his journey was first documented on 2020's critically acclaimed Testimony, recorded live at Kyiv's... read more
Mimi Fox - This Bird Still Flies
by Elzy Kolb, Hot House Jazz
Mimi Fox has called Northern California her home since 1980, but the New York-born guitarist still has a special place in her heart for the Big Apple. "I love the vivacity, intensity and energy. There's a straightforwardness that I really miss, it feels honest and real, it's not artifice and BS. I love that you can buy a New York Times without the guy selling it telling you to have a nice day—sometimes I don't want to have a nice day, I don't... read more
Benjamin Boone - The Poets Are Gathering
by Skip Heller, All About Jazz
BEST OF 2020 Saxophonist Benjamin Boone's The Poets Are Gathering (Origin) was maybe the most interesting new disc this year. Ever since Ken Nordine crossed swords with Chico Hamilton sideman Fred Katz to spawn the long-loved Word Jazz albums, the two disciplines have had mutual respect but an uneasy coexistence. Boone thrives on the uneasy, and here he is joined by eleven of the finest Central/Northern California poets for a... read more
Joe Locke - Subtle Disguise
by Editor, JazzTimes
JazzTimes Track Premier Locke is joined on "Subtle Disguise" by guitarist Adam Rogers, keyboardist Jim Ridl, bassist Lorin Cohen, and drummer Samvel Sarkisyan. Elsewhere on the album, there are appearances by guitarist/singer Raul Midón, alto saxophonist David Binney, and singer Alina Engibaryan. Seven of the album's nine tracks, including the title cut, are originals; the two remaining songs are Bob Dylan's "Who Killed Davey Moore?"... read more
Geoff Stradling - Les is Mo'
by Tom Hull, www.tomhull.com
First album by a pianist whose CV starts off with increasingly long lists of film, tv, and commercial work (Pampers, Swatch, Purina -- just a few that strike my fancy), then trails off into a couple of dozen album appearances (Alphonse Mouzon, Jane's Addiction). Nothing there prepares you for this album, an easy swinging concoction with Rick Keller's saxes adding warmth and a bit of edge, nicely seasoned with a bit of Latin percussion.... read more
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