Taking the lead on harmonica is tricky. The instrument is prone to a chirpiness that doesn't typically sustain for a whole album. However in the right hands (and with the right lungs), it can be more than a special featured player. Grégoire Maret has often been that special featured player in assorted works, but here on his latest album on Sunnyside, Wanted, his second in front … [Read more...]
Charles Lloyd’s ‘Wild Man Dance’ EPK
Charles Lloyd’s Twitter byline reads as follows, “Jazz Sax, Composer, Musical Healer”, and the tenor man is nothing short of eccentric as can be attested by the EPK to his April 14th Blue Note Records release aptly named Wild Man Dance. This will be the second Blue Note album for Lloyd over a 30 year span, the last being 1983’s A Night in Copenhagen which featured a 21 year old … [Read more...]
Matthew Stevens – “Big Feeling” (Stream)
Matthew Stevens just dropped a new track off Woodwork, his debut as a leader. “Big Feeling” is a bonus track for the Japanese version of the album to be released in May. Also check out “Star L.A.” premiere by Nextbop last month. Woodwork features Stevens on guitar, Gerald Clayton on piano, Vicente Archer on bass, Eric Doob on drums, and Paulo Stagnaro on percussion. The album … [Read more...]
Matthew Stevens – “Star L.A.” (Stream)
Guitarist Matthew Stevens never fails to impress. For years, he's been a crucial part of Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah's quintet. In recent years, he's been a shining spot in Concord Jazz's NEXT Collective and gave some key touches to Harvey Mason's comeback album, Chameleon. There's undoubtedly many other credits to add to this list but the most important of these would be his … [Read more...]
Nextbop/The Art of Cool Project’s Favorite Jazz Albums of 2013, #20-12
One major reason why I so enjoy this time at the end of the year is not only to reassess what this past year has looked like musically, not only to be able to look at a multitude of truly great works from great artists and say stuff like "oh, wow, Darcy James Argue gave us another album this year" or "hey, Wayne Shorter came back to Blue Note" and "how do David Weiss and Point … [Read more...]