The Montreal International Jazz Festival kicks off its 40th edition this week, starting June 26th, with a line-up sure to delight the most diverse of musical tastes. Often jazz festivals can be criticized for not showcasing enough jazz per se, but this year’s Montreal edition is particularly fruitful and ripe with a great selection of actual jazz artists. We’ve highlighted a … [Read more...]
Linda May Han Oh – ‘Aventurine’ (Album Review)
Every time bassist Linda May Han Oh releases an album, it's always filled to the brim with beat and soul. Her compositions have the complex ideas one would expect of contemporary jazz, but there's always a sensibility that this is music it had to reach the audience, it has to make the toes tap. She never loses sight of how to reach people with all she has to say. It's this … [Read more...]
Linda May Han Oh – “Aventurine” (Stream)
Every time bassist Linda May Han Oh releases an album, we tend to fall head over heels in love with her work anew. From 2012's Initial Here to 2013's Sun Pictures to 2017's Walk Against Wind, she never makes a misstep, always making music with an intuitive sense of rhythm that can make even the most complex ideas into absolute bangers. For her new album, Aventurine, out May … [Read more...]
Stream “One for Honor”, the New Single by Johnathan Blake Featuring Chris Potter and Linda May Han Oh
With long stints in Kenny Barron and Tom Harrell’s bands and his recent appearance on last year’s Dr. Lonnie Smith’s All in My Mind, Johnathan Blake has established himself over the years as one of the premier drummers of his generation. Earlier this month, Blake released his third album as a leader on photographer and recording engineer Jimmy Katz’ new non-profit imprint Giant … [Read more...]
Stream Pianist Art Hirahara’s “Brooklyn Express” Off his New Album ‘Sunward Bound’ (Single Premiere)
Pianist Art Hirahara discovered jazz while studying Electronic and Computer Music at the Oberlin Conservatory in Ohio. During his junior year there, he began taking lessons from Cleveland jazz giant Neal Creque. He then pursued further tutelage at the California Institute of the Arts under the guidance of David Roitstein, Charlie Haden and Wadada Leo Smith. Hirahara moved to … [Read more...]