by S. Victor Aaron The thing that amazes me when exploring Brazilian music is that while there are usually a lot characteristics you can find in most music out of that country, overall the music is much more diverse than the Brazilians get credit for here in America. That reallyRead More

S. Victor Aaron Evidently, the word “constellation” in your CD title means you’re gonna stretch people’s ears. But while Roseman does it with trippy reggae-jazz, Eisenbeil gets it done with good old fashioned free (read: whack) jazz. Eisenbell is clearly influenced by that godfather of free form guitar, Derek Bailey,Read More

by S. Victor Aaron I remember trombone player Josh Roseman from his notable appearance on my favorite Charlie Hunter album. He had a certain sass in his sound that stood out and made me think he wasn’t content with being a run-of-the-mill bone player. But that thought never got muchRead More

by S. Victor Aaron From the first two words of this group, you already know that it’s a combo that features King Crimson’s all-everything rhythm section of Bill Bruford (drummer extraordinaire) and Tony Levin (bassist extraordinaire). This side project of theirs produced just a self-titled studio album in 1999 andRead More

by S. Victor Aaron A lot of hay has been made of Porcupine Tree’s 2007 release Fear Of A Blank Planet, and yes, I’ve joined in the fray. It’s a solid effort from a band that hadn’t stumbled much to begin with. But PT’s leader Steven Wilson is just tooRead More

by Pico When it comes to jazz crooners, Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett and Harry Connick, Jr. are the usual suspects most people think of. Do they all have to be the big, showy types, though? Do they have to have the big, swing orchestras, wear tuxedos, appear in movies andRead More

by S. Victor Aaron Chris Rea is something of a lingering figure in popular music. He had a top 20 hit way back in 1978 for “Fool (If You Think It’s Over)” and then a smaller one in 1986 with “On The Beach.” Both of these songs casted him asRead More

Rare groove merchant Karl Denson has been around since serving as a sideman to Lenny Kravitz during Kravitz’ peak Let Love Grow/Are You Gonna Go My Way era. But since that career-enhancing stint, Denson focused his sax, flute and singing talents on the acid jazz scene that was burgeoning aboutRead More

by S. Victor Aaron A few years ago I came across a list of the all-time “50 funkiest songs.” I remember an entry in there for The Meters, I think it was “Cissy Strut.” Pffft, what a useless excercise. Try coming up with “The Fifty Funkiest Meters Songs.” If youRead More

Once again, Robert Cray shows that he is reverent to the old masters – but yet wholly his own man.