Here’s the part of the annual Best of 2017 lists that’s the most fun to pull together.

‘Err Guitar’ by Elliott Sharp, Mary Halvorson and Marc Ribot is three masters of the outside guitar pushing each other to go even further out, making this a notably delirious entry in the catalogs of all three.

feature photo: Bryan Murray Now boasting a remarkable ten albums over twenty years, Satoko Fujii Orchestra New York today takes another step forward with Fukushima (Libra Records), the first new recordings from Satoko Fujii’s American large ensemble project since 2014’s Shiki. The best big band leaders know how to exploitRead More

Dan Blacksberg’s ‘Radiant Others’ is a fresh, nontraditional take on traditional melodies that happens to be Jewish in origin. You don’t need to be an ethnomusicologist to enjoy this one.

Jason Stein’s ‘Lucille!’ is another fun-filled jazz history lesson on the connection between Charlie Parker and Ornette Coleman.

Though tim Berne’s Snakeoil band lives and thrives dangerously, ‘Incidentals’ never goes off the rails; there’s a constant sense of surprise but coupled with a sense of purpose.

Nicole Mitchell follows in the hallowed footsteps of spiritual visionaries like Sun Ra, Pharoah Sanders and the Art Ensemble of Chicago.

Mark Saleski makes the case for Arto Lindsay’s take on “Erotic City” as the best-ever cover of a Prince song.

Long known as jazz’s most mischevious covers band, Sexmob now takes deadly aim at its own material on new release ‘Cultural Capital.’