Gleb Kolyadin is the pianist of Russian progressive rock band iamthemorning, but in this release, he has no problem mixing prog rock with jazz fusion. The album is full of guests, but perhaps the biggest one is King Crimson’s legendary bassist and Chapman stick player Tony Levin playing upright bass. Solid.
Odessa is a city that both Ukraine and Russia, as well as its many Jewish and even Tatar inhabitants, claim to be its own. Never mind the political hideousness of today, and let me present you with one of the most fascinating releases I’ve heard in contemporary classical and jazz scenes. Vadim Neselovskyi is a pianist who hails from Ukraine, and has collaborated with giants such as Gary Burton, Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter and John Scofield, among others. This paean to the city of his birth is a magnificent blend of modern classical music and the sort of jazz which…
First, a debt of thanks goes to my friend, the “Last American Poet,” Shane Beck, for reminding me what a sublime album this is from Cousin Silas, who was a friend of my previous blog, and an artist whose work I respect immensely. This album is filled with wispy rhythms that let you relax and get lost in thought, something like melding George Winston with the Durutti Column, but with more of an edge to it. Our dear Cousin delivers yet again.
Going through Twitter contacts on my account (which will be changed soon, as I want an account that will only concentrate on music and not any other of my pursuits), I came across the name of a label whose work always left me impressed, but whom I had forgotten about, Erstwhile Records. Jon Abbey and Yuko Zama have run this label for years, but it looks like Yuko is branching out and running a new label called elsehwere music. Perusing the catalog, I found a release by Dutch pianist Reinier van Houdt which left me suitably impressed. From the release’s…
Dirk Fock was a Dutch-American pianist with a very interesting musical history, including working with Richard Strauss. From the Bandcamp site: Dirk Fock (1886-1973) In 1945 the Dutch-born conductor and composer Dirk Fock (also: Foch) became an American citizen. Before that – during the interwar years – he conducted many orchestras all over Europe. Living in New York from 1919-1924 he was first conductor to the New York City Symphony Orchestra and guest conductor to the New York Philharmonic. He also was co-founder and first conductor of the American Orchestral Society. In 1924 Richard Strauss requested him to work as…
Within the next few weeks, I will conduct an interview with pianist Alessandra Celletti, a dear friend and one of Italy’s most colorful musicians. This one is her latest, and its centerpiece is based on the Lemhi Shoshone teenager who not only led the American explorers Lewis & Clarke in their exploration of the Louisiana Territory but also became a symbol of women’s suffrage in the United States.
What a strangely beautiful album… From the duo’s Bandcamp site: Berlin and Reunion based duo, Amine Mesnaoui and Labelle are set to release their debut album on revered London independent imprint Lo Recordings on the 1st of April 2022. ‘African Prayers’ is a collection of seven new compositions, which includes lead single ‘Bleu Noir’, that aims to bring a contemporary and fresh interpretation to the Lila Ritual of the Moroccan Gnawa masters – also known as the Ritual of the Seven Colors. With a firm belief they can deliver a sound that finds its anchor in heritage and yet escape…
The Ukrainian pianist Valentin Silvestrov released this home recording in 2020, and though it might lack slightly in recording quality, the beauty of his Chopin-esque playing shines through. Beautiful music for dark times.
According to Midori Hirano’s Bandcamp site, “this album was initially released on staaltape by Rinus Van Alebeek in 2015 as a very limited edition of cassette tape.” It’s a gem of experimental music because Hirano’s background blends a classical music, a commercial music background, and what would end up being termed as “Japanoise,” the beautifully violent experimental music which exploded in Japan and worldwide throughout the late 80s and early 90s. Hirano crafts 24 sound vignettes on this album, and the end result is something akin to John Cage going mushroom hunting with Aki Takahashi while listening to Hijokaidan on…
Though his bio on Bandcamp calls him a superlative jazz pianist, I would have to add that Chris Conway handles modern classical music with as much aplomb. He has also worked with some stellar musicians, including Guy Barker, Andy Sheppard, Stan Sulzman, Martin Speake and the legendary Finnish sax player Sakari Kukko (leader of Piirpauke) amongst others. This album, released today, I believe, is a collection of improvisations and ambient electronic music he gathered while working with the United Isolation Ensemble, of which he is a member. How ECM Records hasn’t signed such a prodigious talent is beyond me, but…