Browse some recent Origin Reviews.
Bad Luck - Four
by Scott Murphy, Heavy Blog
Bad Luck - Four (ambient jazz, avant-garde jazz)
Man, what a great album to kick off the column with. The first of my two numerically-titled picks is also the most easily-labeled "jazz" album of all my selections from the past few months. This isn't meant as a knock against Bad Luck, the moniker of duo Neil Welch (saxophone, live electronics) and Christopher Icasiano (drums). I'm guilty of seeking out the most non-jazz jazz albums I can... read more
Ray Vega & Thomas Marriott - East-West Trumpet Summit
by Don Mather, MusicWeb-International.com
Throughout the history of jazz, trumpet players have pitted their ability to improvise against one another. My guess is it started with King Oliver and Louis Armstrong in New Orleans. In more recent times audiences have thrilled to the creative talents of groups that had Howard McGhee matched with Fats Navarro, Art Farmer with Donald Byrd and Freddie Hubbard with Woody Shaw. Although the competition is now more friendly, under the surface, the... read more
Todd Bishop Pop Art 4 - 69 Annee Erotique: Music of Serge Gainsbourg
by C. Michael Bailey, All About Jazz
Context can be everything or nothing. Listening to 69 Annee Erotique with no background will spark recognition of well-preserved lounge music of the 1960s/'70s, performed with modern sonics imitating those of the period: A bit of psychedelia wisping into the edges of post-war Western society right before the Summer of Love and the sexual revolution. The music is all well played and entertaining. Portland Oregon drummer Todd Bishop creates a... read more
Ira Sullivan & Stu Katz - A Family Affair - Live at Joe Segal's Jazz Showcase
by Ken Dryden, All Music Guide
Multi-instrumentalist Ira Sullivan spent a good while working around Chicago before leaving for Florida in the early '60s, though he retained a significant fan base in his old hometown. This live recording made in 2010 over four nights at Joe Segal's Jazz Showcase is a reunion, featuring vibraphonist Stu Katz, who while in his teens had regularly sat in with Sullivan over a half-century earlier before pursuing a law career. Joining them in the... read more
John McLean - Better Angels
by Brad Walseth, Chicagojazz.net
Guitarist John McLean opens up his sophomore effort as a leader sounding somewhat like Pat Metheny on the original title track. Grazyna Auguscik's lovely wordless vocals float through, accompanied by Jim Gailloreto's soprano sax, before Zach Brock enters with a choice violin solo. McLean answers with a burning solo of his own, while bassist Larry Kohut and drummer Eric Montzka tear up everything in their path underneath. Very cool stuff,... read more
Phil Kelly & The SW Santa Ana Winds - My Museum
by Edward Blanco, ejazznews
Recording his second album of contemporary straight-ahead blistering big band music, Composer/arranger Phil Kelly's My Museum swings with a swagger, sophistication and style that blows you away with some very powerful musical winds. His previous release, Convergence Zone, was recorded with a group of Seattle-based area musicians in a big band he called The NW Prevailing Winds. Now residing in Bellingham, Washington, just North of Seattle, Kelly... read more
Ryan Cohan - Originations
by Richard B Kamins, Step Tempest
Pianist, composer, and arranger Ryan Cohan has returned to the recording scene seven years since his last recording "The River." Not that the Chicago, IL-born-and-raised (and still lives) Cohan has been idle--he's appeared on a slew of recordings plus has been commissioned to write scores for several films, orchestras, and artists. Cohan, before the pandemic, still played throughout the United States as well as conducting clinics for high... read more
Michael Vlatkovich Tritet w/ Jonas Tauber and Ken Ollis - Queen Dynamo
by Dan McClenaghan, All About Jazz
It's hard to say how the average jazz fan comes to an appreciation of improvised music�and we're talking here spontaneous compositions, not merely an improvised solo in the middle of a mainstream song. One avid listener's introduction to the genre occured some years ago at a concert/lecture in a small state college auditorium. Two young musicians�bass and piano�held forth with a very interesting history of twentieth century jazz, from Louis... read more
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