Browse some recent Origin Reviews.
Jon Hamar - Idyl Wild
by Dave Sumner, emusic
Likable quartet session from bassist Hamar, who runs with the double saxophone attack of tenor man Rich Perry and altoist Todd DelGiudice. With Julian MacDonough rounding out the rhythm section, it?s a nice set of straight-ahead jazz. Some post-bop burn, some hard bop bounce, and tracks that keep throwing pitches within the strike... read more
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
Andrew Rathbun Large Ensemble - The Atwood Suites
by Tree Palmedo, Oregon Jazz Scene
With big-budget adaptations like The Handmaid's Tale catching the public eye, Canadian writer Margaret Atwood doesn't exactly need more publicity. But with this ambitious, large-ensemble double album, composer Andrew Rathbun seeks to highlight a lesser-known facet of Atwood's bibliography: her poetry. With vocalists Luciana Souza and Aubrey Johnson fronting the band, Rathbun transforms Atwood's emotive poems, which often deal with weighty issues... read more
EEA - The Dark
by Thomas R. Erdmann, Jazz Review
EEA is constructed of three members from the Program for Improvisational Music at the University of Nevada-Reno. Saxophonist Peter Epstein earned his Bachelor's degree at the California Institute of the Arts and his Master's degree was earned where he currently teaches. During his professional career he has worked with artists like Bobby Previte, Brad Shepik, Ralph Alessi, Michael Cain, Ravi Coltrane, Mike Stern and Jim Black, to name a few.... read more
Benjamin Boone - The Poets Are Gathering
by Paul Rauch, All About Jazz
4 1/2 STARS Saxophonist Benjamin Boone continues his ambitious foray into jazz and poetry, this time recruiting an impressive cadre of poets for his aptly entitled release, The Poets are Gathering (Origin, 2020). The union of poetry and jazz has never been so powerfly presented, reflecting the past year of the worldwide Black Lives Matter movement, the universal role of the poet, and the power of art and voice to raise awareness and... read more
Storms/Nocturnes - VIA
by Jerome Wilson, Cadence
Via features a more experienced British musician, saxophonist Tim Garland, working together as a trio with American pianist Keezer and vibes layer Locke, as they did a decade earlier. I've seen this group compared to the team of Gary Burton and Chick Corea, but of course there was no saxophone in that group. Garland adds an extra drive to the formal prettiness that Keezer and Locke set up whether he is dancing ceside them on soprano sax or... read more
Brian Gephart - Standing On Two Feet
by George W. Harris, Jazz Weekly
Here is the type of stuff that completely restores my faith in jazz. You get six blue collar workers like Brian Gephart/ts-ss, Tom Garling/tb, Neal Alger/g, Karl Montzka/p, Kelly Sill/b and Eric Montzka/dr. They're never going to headline the Hollywood Bowl or the Village Vanguard, but they all know their stuff and they've got the music in their collective marrows. All nine pieces are Gephart originals, and each on is a complete joy, filled... read more
Bruce Williamson - Standard Transmission
by George Fendel, Jazz Society of Oregon
Deep in the shed, New York alto ace Williamson teams up with the admired veteran pianist Art Lande in a quartet setting mainly devoted to favorite melodies of long standing. Hence, the clever album title. The quartet is completed by Peter Barshay, bass, and Alan Hall, drums. Among many high moments here, try "Just You, Just Me." A guy named Monk turned it into "Evidence" quite some years ago, and Williamson, Lande and company bring out that... read more
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