Browse some recent Origin Reviews.
Upper Left Trio - Ulternative
by John Barron, The Jazz Word
Portland's Upper Left Trio continues to bring a contemporary leaning to the traditional piano trio format with Ulternative, their fourth release for Origin Records. With a fresh batch of hip tunes by pianist Clay Giberson and bassist Jeff Leonard, this like-minded collaborative relish in progressive improvisational splendor with the willingness to dig in to a deep groove.
Giberson moves back and forth from acoustic and electric piano,... read more
Marlene Rosenberg - MLK Convergence
by Matt Silver, WRTI, Philadelphia
Jazz Album of the Week: Bassist Marlene Rosenberg's MLK Convergence Captures Spirit of Protests
Inspired by the protest music of the '60s that helped dismantle the codified racism of that era, bassist Marlene Rosenberg's latest album, MLK Convergence, released almost exactly a year ago, presents a new catalogue of socially conscious compositions with the exigency of our current moment in mind, taking aim at the vestiges of... read more
Mark Colby - Reflections
by Jan P. Dennis, Audiophile Audition
****1/2 Why is it that some jazzmen never seem to get their due? Mark Colby strikes me as one of these. Possessor of a brightly burnished, round, full, warm tone on tenor, he perhaps sounds most like his mentor Stan Getz, but not in a slavish or overweening way. Indeed, over the years he has developed his own individualized approach and sound. Moreover, he has complete control of his instrument, the ability to play with conviction in almost... read more
Dan Cray - Outside In
by Filipe Freitas, Jazz Trail
Outside In is the title of the sixth album by the pianist/composer Dan Cray, his second recorded in quartet. Regarding the lineup, and in comparison to Cray's previous work, Meridies, the saxophonist Noah Preminger was replaced by Dayna Stephens, while the drummer Mark Ferber and his longtime bassist Clark Sommers keep laying down the foundation.
Favoring a laid-back posture and a liberating spiritual freedom, the recording... read more
Michael Zilber - Originals for the Originals
by Scott Yanow, New York City Jazz Record
Kikoski is a sideman on saxophonist Michael Zilber's Originals for the Originals, a tribute to seven of the leaders's favorite saxophonists (Michael Brecker, Sonny Rollins, Dave Liebman, Wayne Shorter, Joe Henderson, John Coltrane and Paul Desmond) via wittily-titled originals hinting at their musical spirits.
It is an intriguing set, with Zilber sounding like some of his heroes and not like others. Uptempo "Breckerfast Club" and more somber... read more
Emma Larsson - Sing To the Sky
by Chris Spector, Midwest Record
She might have moved from Sweden to New York just a handful of years ago but she transplanted her Euro winning ways to the big apple in fine form and serves up the kind of date that serves as an invitation to see her as many nights as possible in whatever venue she's bringing her jazz vocal chops to. The kind of stuff that was made to pack jazz rooms regularly, Larsson swings and swings like a native and knows what it is to deliver a gasser.... read more
Xose Miguélez - Contradictio
by Jane Kozhevnikova, All About Jazz
After an album of Spanish-flavored original tunes, Ontology (Origin Records, 2019), Galicia-based saxophone Xose Miguélez releases Contradictio. Alongside Miguélez, the album features Jean-Michel Pilc on piano, Carlos Barretto on bass and Marcos Cavaleiro on drums. Both Miguélez and Pilc are listed as the album producers. The forceful energy of this great French pianist comes out in every tune.
Unlike Ontology, Contradictio includes... read more
Hal Galper / Jeff Johnson / John Bishop - Furious Rubato
by Ken Dryden, All About Jazz.com
Hal Galper's aptly named Furious Rubato, finds the pianist opening the listener's ears by stretching the tempo of the tunes and frequently seeming to be playing independently of his rhythm section without ever losing sight of the harmony within each song, approaching free jazz but never abandoning post-bop. He's accompanied by bassist Jeff Johnson (who has worked with Galper regularly in the past) and drummer John Bishop, both of whom excel in... read more
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