Browse some recent OA2 Reviews.
Paul Tynan & Aaron Lington - Bicoastal Collective: Chapter One
by Ric Bang, The Davis Enterprise
During the past year or so, I've noticed a significant increase in the number of albums released by musicians who have 1) earned advanced college degrees; 2) played with numerous "name" artists during and subsequent to, their educational years; 3) returned to colleges to become professors; and, finally, 4) formed bands and then recorded with them.
This release features just such a pair. Paul Tynan, born in Ontario, Canada, moved to Houston,... read more
Paul Tynan & Aaron Lington - Bicoastal Collective: Chapter Three
by Jim Dupuis, !Earshot (Canada)
TOP TEN RECORDS OF 2014 Combine a hot trumpet, with a groovy organ, a racing bass and the bari sax and you get a fun CD with plenty of bop and blues. Trumpeter Tynan from Canada's east coast and bari sax player Lington from the US west cover all the bases in this very enjoyable... read more
George Cotsirilos - Mostly in Blue
by Tom McCarter, KZSU, 90.1, Stanford, CA
With his perfectly round solo and chordal tone, Cotsirilos weaves a tight, swinging fabric that is fully integrated and readily digestible. Bop, beautifully performed. Sounds like it is straight out of Blue Note in the 60s, but all tracks are original, and there isn't a dull track amongst... read more
Idit Shner - Tuesday's Blues
by Adam Greenberg, All Music Guide
An outstanding debut from Israeli-cum-Texan-cum-Oregonian sax player Idit Shner, Tuesday's Blues showcases her take on jazz as a catalyst for innovation on beloved pieces. The majority of the compositions are traditional Israeli works of various stripes, all reworked heavily to embrace the post-bop aesthetic with modern touches -- given enough room to grow their own grooves, as it were. Shner takes seeming inspiration from Coltrane and Parker... read more
George Cotsirilos - Past Present
by Jerome Wilson, Cadence, Oct-Dec 2010
Past Present is a no-nonsense, straight ahead Jazz guitar trio session that even is described as "blue collar" in the liner notes. Cotsirilos is a supple guitar player who hits all his notes chords, and melodies with little fuss. He can do blazing Bebop runs, work a smart bossa nova rhythm and, as he shows on Past Present, even has decent acoustic folk chops. His rhythm section, Fisher and Marabuto, really interacts well with his... read more
Charlie Apicella & Iron City - Groove Machine
by J Hunter, Nippertown
There are guilty pleasures that you duck your head and mumble about when pressed, and then there are pleasures that make you stand straight & tall and say, "YEAH, I like that! Wanna MAKE SOMETHING out of it???" For me, the latter category includes any jazz disc where electric guitar and Hammond B3 organ come together. From the moment I first heard Grant Green's 1962 Blue Note disc Grantstand (featuring Brother Jack McDuff on the B3, and Yusef... read more
Danny Green - After the Calm
by Dan McClenaghan, All About Jazz
San Diego-based pianist Danny Green's 2012 CD release, A Thousand Ways Home (Tapestry Records) was too much of a good thing. A lot of fine music, but the album as a whole was over the edge on the shuffle in-and-out guest artistic slots for those who prefer a more focused and cohesive recording.
After the Calm, Green's debut on OA2 Records doesn't have that problem. It is a straight through trio outing that showcases the pianist's... read more
Randy Napoleon - The Door is Open: The Music of Gregg Hill
by Nolan DeBuke, The Jazz Word
Randy Napoleon has brought another excellent album to the verdant landscape of today's jazz, The Door is Open: The Music of Gregg Hill. The nine-song set emerges like a meticulously cultivated garden, with each of Hill's compositions blossoming under the care of Randy Napoleon and his ensemble of virtuosic musicians. This album, released by OA2 Records, represents a confluence of musical minds, where the fertile soil of Hill's compositions meets... read more
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