Browse some recent Origin Reviews.
Josh Nelson - Exploring Mars
by Kirk Silsbee, Downbeat
Josh Nelson is the most accomplished of the younger L.A. jazz pianist-arrangers, and he has assembled a fine group of originals, along with Holst's foreboding "Mars, Bringer of War," on Exploring Mars. An opening reading from Ray Bradbury's Martian Chronicles sets the tone, with Nelson handling the relaxed recitation over Larry Koonse's discreet guitar chords. The small ensemble music in this collection is often lyrical, harmonically rich and... read more
Gwendolyn Dease - Beguiled
by Dan Bilawsky, All About Jazz
4-STARS While this fourth album from marimbist Gwendolyn Dease is rightly seeing release on the classical arm of Origin Records, it wouldn't have been completely out of place if it had landed on the jazz side of that imprint. Dease bypasses contemporary marimba fare and late twentieth century favorites from the usual suspects like Ney Rosauro, Casey Cangelosi, Joseph Schwanter, Keiko Abe, and Jacob Druckman, focusing instead on newly... read more
Dmitri Matheny - Cascadia
by Dan McClenaghan, All About Jazz
4-STARS Flugelhornist Dmitri Matheny and his quintet play perfectly on Cascadia. There is no surprise there—with a rhythm section of pianist Bill Anschell, bassist Phil Sparks and drummer Mark Ivester backing the front line of Matheny and saxophonist Charles McNeil— perfection is the expectation.
Matheny grew up in Georgia and Arizona, spent a formative and near-obligatory stint in New York City, and played for a time in the band... read more
Michael Zilber - East West: Music for Big Bands
by Bruce Crowther, Jazz Journal (UK)
Contemporary big band music is in short supply nowadays, and so for that matter are big bands. Canadian-born Michael Zilber ably compensates for the first of these deficiencies with his composing and arranging.
His compositions, of which there are eight here, are strikingly original, while his arrangements are very much of today yet remain accessible to listeners. When arranging the compositions of others, he seeks and finds stylistic... read more
Ben Patterson - The Way of the Groove
by Staff, Take Effect
The esteemed trombonist Ben Patterson tips his hat to legends like The Crusaders, The Brecker Brothers and Herbie Hancock across these 10 diverse songs, where Shawn Purcell (guitar, vocals), Luis Hernandez (tenor sax), Harry Appelman (Hammond B3, piano, synth), Paul Henry (acoustic, electric bass), Todd Harrison (drums, percussion) and Evan Reiger (vocals) accompany him.
"Anniversary Patio" opens the listen with frisky drumming, soulful... read more
Dee Daniels - Intimate Conversations
by George W. Harris, Cadence
Do you want to hear what a vocalist is supposed to sound like? Give this lady a try! Daughter of a minister, Dee Daniels gives a Spirit filled album where she is teamed with (mostly) one other musician on a Decalogue of tunes, ranging from Depression era Tin Pan Alley to R&B with some Baby Boomer tunes thrown in for a complete meghilla of cozy conversations. She pairs up with some of the best: Cyrus Chestnut/p, himself a worship leader at his... read more
Josh Nelson - The Sky Remains
by Scott Yanow, LA Jazz Scene
Josh Nelson's The Sky Remains is an unusual tribute to Los Angeles. It pays homage to L.A.'s rich architectural history, much of which has disappeared due to the demolition of historic buildings through the years. The title "The Sky Remains" refers to the fact that at least the sky has not been destroyed.
The pianist composed and arranged ten originals which form a suite. He pays tribute to the bridges of L.A., the architects, a Civil Rights... read more
Ben Thomas - Triskaidekaphobia
by Adam Greenburg, All Music Guide
An intriguing third release from vibraphonist Ben Thomas, Triskaidekphobia is rather exploratory, bouncing from tone to tone, but performing all with an inventive vibe-clarinet format, more to the combos of Bobby Hutcherson and Eric Dolphy than those of Benny Goodman and Lionel Hampton perhaps (more forward-oriented at any rate), but really not even within that vein. Here, the band takes on straightforward bop, post-bop, Brazilian idioms, and a... read more
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