Browse some recent OA2 Reviews.
Rich Pellegrin - Passage: Solo Improvisations II
by Tom Haugen, Take Effect
The esteemed pianist Rich Pellegrin recorded this batch of tunes at the Whidbey Island's Langley Methodist Church, and he certainly embraces the aura of the setting where he connects with water, mountains and forest across these solo pieces.
Set One leads with 9 warm, graceful segments that lay the foundation for a very reflective mood, as much intimacy is present versus swifter moments of adventurous manipulation of the keys.
Set Two... 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
Gail Pettis - Here in the Moment
by Carol Banks Weber, Examiner.com
"Nature Boy's" been done to death in jazz clubs by everyone from Kurt Elling, Bobby Darin, and James Brown, to Celine Dion, Natalie Cole and of course, most famously by Nat King Cole in 1948. The 1947 Eden Ahbez tune - similar to Antonin Dvorak's 1887 Piano Quintet No. 2 in A, Op. 81 - is a curious, all-too-short, mysterious and possibly scandalous tome about a strange, enchanted boy who seemed to have grown up in isolation, far from society,... read more
Kristen Strom - Moving Day: The Music of John Shifflett
by Tamar Sella, Downbeat
Countless words have been plied in the pursuit of articulating the entangled connection between music and community. On reedist Kristen Strom's album devoted to late Bay Area bassist John Shifflett, the connection appears in full force. Shifflett's quartet members for 25 years (Strom, drummer Jason Lewis and guitarist Scott Sorkin), as well as a host of other collaborators, gather to give life to the tunes composed by their late friend. The... read more
The Kora Band - Cascades
by Kyle O'Brien, Jazz Society of Oregon
Portland pianist Andrew Oliver takes on the music of west Africa with this ambitious project. The band fuses western styles and influences with the music of The Gambia, Burkina Faso and the Ivory Coast. The opener, "Sinyaro," features the band's kora (a 21-stringed instrument of the Mandinka people) player, Kane Mathis. While Mathis is a western musician, he learned the kora and the accompanying language he occasionally sings in The Gambia, and... read more
Jun Iida - Evergreen
by Arts Editor, Times Standard
"Evergreen" showcases Iida's modern, edgy originals and imaginative re-workings of other compositions off the beaten path.
Iida has lived in Seattle, St. Louis, Pittsburgh, Cleveland and Los Angeles, and recently relocated to New York City. Iida has internalized the different styles of music from each region, making his approach to composing and arranging appealing and unexpected with his subtle amalgamation of contemporary jazz, blues, pop,... read more
Dan Trudell - Fishin' Again: A Tribute to Clyde Stubblefield & Dr. Lonnie Smith
by Cedric Hendrix, Cirdec Songs
If this album doesn't make you move, check your pulse. Keyboardist Dan Trudell has assembled a set of jams heavy on groove and "vocal" exposition. There's never any doubt that Trudell has captured the spirit of organ legend Lonnie Smith with his use of soulful single-note runs and Leslie-driven chords. But he also fires off killer dissonant chords in conjunction with synthesizers, giving the album a very modern sound. The horn section is more... read more
Jun Iida - Evergreen
by Nicholas F Mondello, All About Jazz
Evergreen from trumpeter/flugelhornist Jun Iida is a textural panorama of multi-cultural jazz flavors, offering original and known fare. Each of the ten tracks is a portrait, and they display fine solo and ensemble playing. To describe Evergreen in one word is to call it "intriguing."
"Gooey Butter Cake," one of six originals from Iida, opens things in a jovial, hippity-hop, New Orleans-esque groove which develops into a trumpet-bass solo... read more
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