My goodness, this is perfect free improvisation for the Halloween season! The tension on this record is unmatched. The cover art complements the almost manically off-center playing of this impressive quartet, led by Canadian pianist Karoline Leblanc, American cellist Fred Lonberg-Holm, and two astounding Portuguese improvisers, Marcelo dos Reis and Continue Reading
Free Improvisation
Vyacheslav Ganelin – On Stage…Backstage
If I recall correctly, Slava Ganelin and his Ganelin Trio were my first foray into Russian free improvisation. He’s still kicking, and apparently living in Israel these days. This album was recorded in 1982 by the legendary Leo Feigin of Leo Records, and it sounds wonderfully inventive.
S.O.S. [John Surman, Mike Osborne, Alan Skidmore] – Looking For The Next One
![S.O.S. [John Surman, Mike Osborne, Alan Skidmore] – Looking For The Next One](https://musicyouneedtohear.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/a3485509043_2.jpg)
Last week, Cuneiform Records offered one of their half-price releases, and this recent one was a free jazz diamond in the rough. S.O.S. featured John Surman, Mike Osbourse, and Alan Skidmore, all masters of British improvisational music, and the record shows them at their peak.
Love Unfold the Moon – Hidden Promises In Joined Terrains, Apex Emerging
My old friend Mustafa Stefan Dill, a man whose work I once compared to a more metallic John McLaughlin (I still stand by that, and even more so these days) has a new project he is working with. Love Unfold The Moon is his latest band, with him on flamenco Continue Reading
Karoline LeBlanc, Paulo J. Ferreira Lopes – Frangible Seams of Lore
I wish to thank organist Karoline LeBlanc, who reached out to the blog and sent us her latest album with percussionist Paulo J. Ferreire Lopes. I was expecting improvised music, and I’m sure this is, but the feel of this album is more akin to modern classical music. The depth Continue Reading
Eddie Prévost & John Butcher – Unearthed
From the Cafe OTO website, including samples: “”Long-time collaborators and iconoclastic improvisers, drummer Eddie Prévost and saxophonist John Butcher, met at All Hallows Church, in High Laver, Essex in 2023, using the natural ambience of the space to capture these three improvisations, Prévost playing primarily on a drum kit and Continue Reading
Dollar Brand, Don Cherry, Carlos Ward – Third World-Underground
From our friends at Wewantsounds – yet another gem, this time featuring legends Dollar Brand, Don Cherry, and Carlos Ward. From the label’s Bandcamp site: “Wewantsounds is honoured to announce the first-ever international release of the legendary collaboration between Abdullah Ibrahim (Dollar Brand) and Don Cherry, featuring Carlos Ward. Following Continue Reading
Andreij Rublev & Zot Lukta – Limestone
Free improvisers Andreij Rublev & Zot Lukta bring together no-input mixers, clarinets, electronics, PVC tubes and even the stone-walled room the duo recorded in. Quite a fun listen.
Attila Gyárfás, Bálint Bolcsó – TABBIS
From Attila Gyárfás’ Bandcamp site: “TABBIS is an hommage to Mihály Babits, one of the most influential Hungarian poets of the first half of the 20th century. We chose nine of his poems that resonated with us the most and we used them as sources of inspiration while recording the Continue Reading
Jeff Gburek + Eryk Nowacki – Small Fires
Yet another sublime release by fellow expatriate Jeff Gburek: “Our title Small Fires derives from the practice among certain Indigenous American people of making small fires periodically, often enough to prevent the build-up of fallen wood that could fuel large forest fires. It is also said that one makes a Continue Reading