Browse some recent Origin Reviews.
Matt Otto - Umbra
by Tom Haugen, Take Effect
The tenor sax extraordinaire Matt Otto has a lengthy history of live performances, and here he captures that energy with Jeff Harshbarger, John Kizilarmut, Hermon Mehari, Matt Villinger and Alex Frank for these 9 fusion filled songs.
'Little Things" wastes no time making an impression with Otto's radiant sax alongside Kizilarmut's agile drumming, and "Hawk" follows with a radiant demeanor that emits a calming intimacy that makes great use... read more
Cuong Vu - Leaps of Faith
by Steve Greenlee, Jazz Times
When not collaborating with top-ranking improvisers like Pat Metheny and Myra Melford, trumpeter Cuong Vu has spent the past 10 years making ethereal, languorous, cinematic music of his own writing. Standards? Not his thing. Not until now, anyway.
At first blush, Leaps of Faith appears to be an about-face for Vu, whose previous albums have featured original tunes and nothing else. But it takes all of a few seconds to realize that when... read more
Brent Jensen - Trios
by Dan McClenaghan, All About Jazz
Alto saxophonist Brent Jensen reinterprets seven classic, time-tested standards on Trios; and if the word "standards" makes you think "mainstream," don't be surprised if the sound here incorporates a free and elastic vibe.
The Idaho-based reedman -- the Director of Jazz Studies and Woodwinds at College of South Idaho in Twin Falls -- employs two very different trios on this, his fourth Origin Records release. Three tunes feature Jamie... read more
Emi Meyer - Monochrome
by Hobart Taylor, KUCI - Irvine, CA
Emi Meyer's phrasing and nuanced tonal control is clean and complete. This is a singer/songwriter whose intimate and compelling narratives and reflections are set in jazz pop arrangements. The melodies fall like the first snow. Her tune "If I Think of You" and her co-written tunes, especially one with Dawn Clement, "Flesh and Bones", resonate with sincerity. She covers an ironically understated version the blues classic "I'd Rather Go Blind",... read more
Richard Cole - Shade
by Forrest Dylan Bryant, JazzTimes, May 2008
Saxophonist Richard Cole's third disc as a leader takes a patchwork approach, varying hard edged bop romps with sunny standards and cool contemporary fusion. The personnel is equally varied, as over a dozen of Seattle's better jazz players drift in and out, casting Cole's soulful tenor and quicksilver soprano in ever-changing light. Randy Brecker adds star power and some tasty trumpet to four tracks, but the most effective setting is an... read more
Trio Linguae - Kevin Woods / John Stowell / Miles Black - Signals
by Frank Kohl, Cadence
A very pleasant surprise and joyful treat to hear this trio without bass and drums. Three of the most able-bodied, spontaneous communicators in Jazz converse through six originals and five covers. "Signals" begins with Kevin Wood's beautifully written "Few Regrets". A rubato opening with John Stowell's pristine nylon string melody statement leads to a strong chord progression intro. Kevin Woods takes over the melody and then takes the first... read more
Brad Goode - The Unknown
by Dan McClenaghan, All About Jazz
4 1/2 - STARS One of the joys attached to reviewing music is the exposure to artists who otherwise might not show up on the radar. For every Pat Metheny there are a hundred highly-creative, lower-profile, hugely-talented guitarists plucking the strings; for every Brad Mehldau plying the trade ten dozen marvelous, relatively unknown pianists show up in the mailbox or the downloads. And for every Ralph Alessi out there blowing their horns,... read more
Don Lanphere - Like A Bird
by Robert Spencer, Cadence
Don Lanphere recorded in the late Forties with Fats Navarro and Max Roach, and his tenor sound is rooted in the note choices and approaches of that era - which sounds as if he would be much more remote than he actually is, since most "mainstream" jazz players of our day play the same way. Imagine, by the way, what might have happened at Minton's when Lanphere was a kid if someone had come in with a tenor sound copped from Coleman Hawkins records... read more
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