Browse some recent OA2 Reviews.
Afro Bop Alliance - Revelation
by Steven Cerra, Jazz Profiles
Everytime I think I've heard it all in terms of Latin Jazz in Big Band configurations along comes something new and different to dazzle and surprise me. Such was the case with the latest from Grammy-award winning drummer Joe McCarthy and saxophonist Vince Norman who co-lead the Afro Bop Alliance. Their forthcoming CD is entitled Revelation and it was just that as it moved my ears in new directions concerning Latin Big Band Jazz. One of the... read more
Shawn Maxwell - New Tomorrow
by Dan Healy, Chicago Jazz Magazine
Maxwell's latest disc with his New Tomorrow Quintet is an exciting extension of his edgy group approach that we have heard on previous albums. On Maxwell's last album, Alliance, he used a larger ensemble complete with an unusual collection of instruments, including guitar, voice and French horn. On that work Maxwell used the larger ensemble to explore envelope-pushing odd meters in the context of interesting compositional textures and hues. The... read more
Randy Napoleon - Puppets - The Music of Gregg Hill
by Roger Fabrey, Jazz Journal (London)
Apart from his pleasingly accessible playing, redolent of Wes Montgomery, Grant Green and Kenny Burrell, the real secret weapon on the album is the prodigiously talented vocalist Aubrey Johnson. A teacher in the voice department at Berklee College of Music, she made her debut as leader with Unraveled (Outside in Music, 2020), which was received with critical acclaim. Proof, if it were needed, of her virtuosity is evident on the final note of... read more
Jihee Heo - Are You Ready?
by Paul Rauch, All About Jazz
4 STARS Since arriving in New York from Incheon, South Korea, via studies in Amsterdam, pianist/composer Jihee Heo has made a name for herself through a broad spectrum on the jazz scene in Gotham. Heo's debut album, Passion (Heonah Music, 2015), featured strong compositions and arrangements for large ensemble, with experimental elements sprinkled in the mix. With her new release, Are You Ready? , she breaks down her artistic voice to the... read more
Amy Stephens - My Many Moods
by Alain Londes, All About Jazz
Amy Stephens released her debut album in �98, yet My Many Moods offers a better sense of her piano talents. This is her first recorded statement following her move to Seattle, among other changes in her life. The overall feel is eclectic yet smooth.
One could imagine driving along the West Coast with the easygoing sound of the group dominated by the interplay of Stephens on piano and Tom Clark on tenor or soprano sax, supported by Jack... read more
Nathan Borton - Each Step
by George W Harris, Jazz Weekly
Classy sounding guitarist Nathan Borton mixes hints of Wes Montgomery and Grant Green on this winning session in quartet and beyond format with a core of Xavier Davis/p, Rodney Whitaker/b and Keith Hall/dr with guests Diego Rivera/ts and Chris Glassman/btb.
There's an easy swing reminiscent of Montgomery's halcyon days on the Riverside label on the clean and melodic "Each Step" and the supporting team shows how to dig a sharp groove on the... read more
Mike Steinel Quintet - Song and Dance
by Chris Spector, Midwest Record
We don't get to hear from the Lab Band teachers as often as we hear from the students, but this is one of the places the kids get it from. With four decades of big band charts under his belt, Steinel opts to go combo here with the music doing the talking for most of the set. Tasty playing that seems like effortless jamming, this is almost a busman's holiday set except the underlying vibe is so tight and right on that you're in good hands... read more
Matt Olson - 789 Miles
by Mark Sullivan, All About Jazz
Wisconsin-born tenor saxophonist/composer Matt Olson has traveled 789 miles from his childhood home to his current home in South Carolina, where he teaches at Furman University. His original compositions here aim to capture influences from his upbringing, but the present is well-represented by compositions from five Furman University students (graduates and current students). The format is a tight, funky organ trio with two of Olson's band mates... read more
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