Browse some recent OA2 Reviews.
Unhinged Sextet - Don't Blink
by Robert Rusch, Cadence Magazine
DON'T BLINK is the name of the latest recording by the UNHINGED SEXTET [Vern Sielert-tpt/flg, Will Campbell-as, Matt Olson-ts, Michael Kocour-p, Jon Hamar-b, Dom Moio-drm]. Recorded 10/7&8/16, here are 8 originals by different members of the group except Moio. This is a group playing ballads and hard driving hard bop with solid charts and harmonization much in the mold of the Jazz Messengers and that is their most distinguishing characteristic.... read more
Grupo Los Santos - Clave Heart
by Raul Da Gama, Latin Jazz Net
Grupo Los Santos is a small ensemble that melds together a number of idioms and metaphors that are culled from jazz to Afro-Caribbean in a powerful, muscular mix of music that is original and memorable.
On Clave Heart this music emerges with much swagger and rhythmic intensity as each song unfurls narrating the story of a journey that is flush with melodic invention, harmonic complexity and rhythmic excitement. Most interesting of all is the... read more
Michael Zilber - Billy Collins Project: Eleven on Turning Ten
by Dick Crockett, Bopndicks 10 Picks
This new Michael Zilber CD is so Beat! So cool. Saxophonist Michael Zilber with the voice of Andy Kirshner interpret the poetry of Bill Collins, poet laureate, teacher on both coasts.
Poets are the antithesis of hyperbole, those with pencil and note pad, create a moment of Ecclesiastes.
My teacher David Gitin at Monterey Community College, who taught how Marcel Proust was so relevant in his moment. Gitins poetry is minimal and not... read more
Michael Kocour - East of the Sun
by Dave Rogers, WTJU
Michael Kocour is an Associate Professor and the Director of Jazz Studies at Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona. Hailed by the Chicago Tribune as "one of the most sophisticated pianists in jazz," Kocour has performed at venues around the world and has been a guest on Marian McPartland's internationally syndicated NPR program "Piano Jazz." Among the many artists and ensembles with whom he has appeared with are Dizzy Gillespie, Eddie... read more
Michael Kocour - East of the Sun
by Editor, MWE3.com
The 2019 CD release of East Of The Sun by Michael Kocour will strike a positive chord among fans of jazz piano. For the ten-track release, the artist's third album of solo piano, Michael cracks open the Great American Songbook and the results are both surprising and quite ear-opening. The liner notes by Mark Stryker are quite illuminating as it speaks of the art of jazz improvisation and how the best improvisers take the listener on a... read more
Ben Markley - Second Introduction
by John Barron, All About Jazz
Denver-based pianist Ben Markley, winner of the 2007 ASCAP Young Jazz Composers Award, is a well-studied musician whose achievements thus far demonstrate a willingness to stand apart from the multitude of talented young artists graduating from music colleges across the country.
Second Introduction is Markley's second recording as a leader with rhythm section pals Evan Gregor (bass) and Jordan Perlson (drums). Added to the front-line of the... read more
Svetlana and the Delancey Five - Night at the Speakeasy
by Dr. Oscar Groomes, O's Place Jazz
Svetlana Shmulyian is a vocalist and songwriter who is ushering the traditional Dixie/New Orleans Jazz of the early 1900s into what is now is now called Hot Jazz. Her sweet soft vocals are prominent on top of the music from her swinging ensemble the Delancey Five including all-star guitarist Vinny Raniolo and bassist George Delancey. Special guest Wycliffe Gordon adds trombone, vocals and a few arrangements to make this Night At The Speakeasy a... read more
Stephen Jones & Ben Haugland - Road to Nowhere
by Tom Haugen, Take Effect
The saxophonist Stephen Jones and pianist Ben Haugland bring their inimitable talents to 9 standards and originals, where a very creative approach and fluid interaction characterizes the listen.
"Without A Sound" opens the listen with Jones' bright sax and Haugland's flowing keys for the rich, melodic tone, and "Silhouette" follows with Kevin Whalen's contributions on trumpet that cultivates mesmerizing and exciting jazz textures of... read more
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