Browse some recent Origin Reviews.
Phil Kelly - Convergence Zone
by Jack Bowers, All About Jazz
A 'convergence zone' is where winds from all over gather together to blow up a storm, which is an entirely appropriate metaphor for this tempestuous new album by composer/arranger Phil Kelly & the NW Prevailing Winds except that Kelly not only has those formidable winds at his command but muscular brass and rhythm as well.
The tornadic uproar begins with Kelly's tongue-in-cheek "Damp Brown Places" (apologies to Stephen Foster) and doesn?t... read more
Dawn Clement - Tandem
by Hobart Taylor, KUCI - Irvine, CA
Seattle's Clement is a pianist/composer/and singer who is so much her own self in her music that one can forget that one is listening and just sort of feel good all over for no apparent reason. Slyly humorous akimbo riffs cascade and gambol occasionally supplanted by dreamy interludes of charmed reflection. Each selection on this release is a duet. Julian Priester, trombonist, saxophonist Mark Taylor, drummer Matt Wilson, bassist Michael Glynn,... read more
Dan Cray - Meridies
by George Colligan, Jazz Truth
Every time I turn around, there is a another great jazz pianist. (I think we need to put a cap on the number of great pianists. Just kidding.....) Dan Cray is the latest to cross my path. His new CD, "Meridies", showcases his sparkling technique and intriguing musicianship. It's a disc that has some trio and some quartet. It's a very warm and balanced sounding album, and it's got some edge without being jarring. From the first track,... read more
Maddie Vogler - While We Have Time
by Scott Yanow, DownBeat
Alto-saxophonist Maddie Vogler's While We Have Time (Origin, 50:53 ***1/2) defies expectations a bit. Some of her music is dedicated to her grandmother who left Cuba for Chicago with her family when she was 16. While the opening number, "The Need To Be," is Latin-flavored jazz, the other pieces are modern hard bop with just subtle hints at Vogler's Latin background. She has an original sound on alto and takes fluent solos throughout this outing... read more
Scenes - ...But Not Heard
by C. Michael Bailey, All About Jazz
Of their second recording, Along The Way (Origin, 2006), guitarist and All About Jazz contributor John Kelman said, "There's an airy, ECM-like feel to much of the album... more in its aesthetic than any direct stylistic reference." That immediately frames the music of guitarist John Stowell, bassist Jeff Johnson and drummer John Bishop, giving it a definition and location. The "ECM sound" at once defies accurate definition while... read more
Andrew Rathbun Large Ensemble - The Atwood Suites
by Raul da Gama, JazzdaGama
There have been a few recordings of poetry and music over the years. However, there are none featuring the poetry of Margaret Atwood and certainly none that capture its angst-ridden power also encapsulating its imagery in the overarching passion of a musical argument. Andrew Rathbun has a clear and unified vision of key poems and has set them in a musical trajectory on these Atwood Suites that grabs you by the scruff of the neck and compels you... read more
Chad McCullough - Dark Wood, Dark Water
by Bill Milkowski, JazzTimes
Seattle-based trumpeter-composer Chad McCullough offers some fresh, thoughtful originals on his fine debut, along with a radically re-harmonized balladic arrangement of the Beatles' "Blackbird." He turns in some warm, lyrical flugelhorn work on the affecting opener, "Three Pillars," which also features an outstanding deep-toned upright solo from bassist Jeff Johnson. The uptempo burner "Nightmare's Dance" has McCullough blowing some fast, bright... read more
John Moulder - Decade: Memoirs
by Michael J. West, DOWNBEAT
The lovely Decade: Memoirs is as pastoral as the photograph on its cover - not exactly the expectation for a Chicagoan, like guitarist John Moulder. The heavy folk and country vibe, the spaciousness and high-note reaches of "About Us" and its separately tracked introduction are a natural fit for Moulder's flat-picked acoustic guitar; during the introduction, he even sounds like a dulcimer. "One Last Call" goes so far as to paraphrase the vamp... read more
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