Made up of three highly distinctive voices in the world of jazz and avant-garde music, Thumbscrew should probably collapse under the weight of its star power You May Also Like: Thumbscrew [Mary Halvorson, Michael Formanek + Tomas Fujiwara] – ‘The Anthony Braxton Project’ (2020) Thumbscrew – ‘Multicolored Midnight’ (2022) IllegalRead More

My first encounter with the dazzling whack jazz guitar wizardry of Raoul Björkenheim came via one of his many projects, the Norwegian-Finnish alliance power combo Scorch Trio (Luggumt, 2004). You May Also Like: Raoul Björkenheim / eCsTaSy – Out of the Blue (2015) Raoul Björkenheim / eCsTaSy – Doors OfRead More

Making the labored sound simple must be one of the tallest orders for any jazz musician, but that seems to come naturally to Philadelphia-based saxophonist Ian O’Beirne. You May Also Like: Ian Gillan basically drank his way into Black Sabbath: ‘Did that happen? What happened?’

Sylvester Uzoma Onyejiaka II is a jazz saxophonist you should get very familiar with, especially once his debut album Akuma hits the streets on February 11. You don’t have to remember that name though, “Sly 5th Ave” will work just fine. You May Also Like: How the Overlooked ‘Menlove Ave’Read More

Whenever I hear a sax/drums duet record, I can’t help but compare it to John Coltrane’s late career tour-de-force with Rashied Ali, Interstellar Space. You May Also Like: Kuzu (Dave Rempis, Tahi Dorji, Tyler Damon) – ‘Hiljaisuus’ (2019) Kuzu – ‘Purple Dark Opal’ (2020)

The thing about Matt Wilson isn’t that he leads a band from behind a drum kit…shoot, man, that’s been done at least since Chick Webb in the 1930s. You May Also Like: Matt Wilson Quartet – ‘Hug!’ (2020) Jeff Cosgrove, with John Medeski + Jeff Lederer – ‘History Gets AheadRead More

It is fair to say that Josephine Foster’s musical career has only varied slightly so far. Her songs are mostly based on poems by Emily Dickinson, children’s songs or traditional Spanish melodies. You May Also Like: Chris Potter – The Dreamer Is The Dream (2017) Why Supertramp’s ‘Crime of theRead More

Ensemble, Et Al. is a four-piece band that could have just as easily been named “Percussion, Unlimited” for its makeup of all-percussive instruments: marimba, vibraphone, glockenspiel, drums, Indian cowbells and Tibetan Bowls. You May Also Like: Mike Pride – ‘Marimba, July’ and ‘Drums, August’ (2019) Kate Gentile + International ContemporaryRead More

Rosanne Cash’s completely realized, stunningly detailed, profoundly touching new album isn’t just a journey through the American South. This is a journey through its soul, its heartbreak, its redemption — and her’s, too. You May Also Like: Johnny Cash’s American VI: Ain’t No Grave was a rustic, spiritual, unbent farewellRead More

That Archie Shepp’s newest iteration of this striking song cycle arrives in the wake of the death of LeRoi Jones (known later as Imamu Amiri Baraka) is fitting You May Also Like: Jon Irabagon – ‘I Don’t Hear Nothin’ But the Blues Vol. 3: Anatomical Snuffbox’ (2020) Ben Craven, “RevengeRead More