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31 Days Of Album Reviews #18: Lawnmower, “West”
LAWNMOWER West (Clean Feed) This group is a collective that started out as a trio. Under the name New Salt, drummer Luther Gray and guitarists Geoff Farina and Dan Littleton released a self-titled...
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Joe Morris
Camera (ESP-Disk) by Phil Freeman Joe Morris‘s Camera was recorded on April 3, 2010. The group consists of Morris on guitar, Katt Hernandez on violin, Junko Fujiwara Simons on cello and Luther Gray on...
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Luis Lopes’ Humanization 4tet
Electricity (Ayler) by Phil Freeman Two Portuguese musicians, guitarist Luís Lopes and saxophonist Rodrigo Amado, are joined on this disc by bassist Aaron González and his drummer brother Stefan, both...
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Flow Trio
Set Theory: Live at the Stone (Ayler) by Phil Freeman Buy from Ayler This is the third release by Flow Trio—they’ve got one previous live disc on Ayler, and a studio album, Rejuvenation, on ESP-Disk,...
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SFE
Positions & Descriptions (Clean Feed) by Phil Freeman Buy it from Amazon The free jazz orchestra has a long and raucous history. (I analyzed some notable recordings for Perfect Sound Forever in...
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Wes Montgomery
Echoes of Indiana Avenue (Resonance) by Phil Freeman Buy it from Amazon I’ve only recently started listening to Wes Montgomery (who would have turned 89 this past Tuesday). My knowledge of jazz guitar...
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Interview: Joe Morris
by Phil Freeman Joe Morris has been a crucial figure on the global free jazz/free music scene since the 1980s. Starting out as a guitarist, he expanded to bass, and has worked with many of the major...
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David S. Ware 1949-2012
by Phil Freeman Tenor saxophonist David S. Ware died October 18, at 62, of complications from kidney disease. He’d suffered from it for many years, receiving a kidney transplant in 2009. I don’t want...
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Ivo Perelman
Brazilian-born, currently Brooklyn-based saxophonist and painter Ivo Perelman is a busy guy. He’s released about a half dozen albums this year alone on Leo Records, many of them with a small group of...
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David S. Ware Memorial, January 7, 2013
by Phil Freeman On January 7, 2013, a memorial for saxophonist David S. Ware was held at St. Peter’s Church in Manhattan. Friends and collaborators from the entirety of his career performed, including...
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Mike Pride
Photo: Eliseo Cardona Drummer Mike Pride has two new CDs out. This is not a surprise; he’s highly prolific, and has released two other albums this year already—The Exterminating Angel, a set of duos...
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The Metal Side Of Joe Morris
Slobber Pup: L-R Joe Morris, Trevor Dunn, Balázs Pándi, Jamie Saft New England-based guitarist Joe Morris is best known for playing fleet, clean lines that combine bebop speed and precision with free...
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The Matthew Shipp Trio
Pianist Matthew Shipp‘s current trio, featuring bassist Michael Bisio and drummer Whit Dickey, have two new albums out—neither of which is on Shipp’s longtime label, Thirsty Ear. Root of Things is on...
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Lawnmower
It’s always interesting when a band undergoes a major metamorphosis between albums, yet retains its name. Drummer Luther Gray has been a part of at least two such bands. He plays for guitarist/bassist...
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Wadada Leo Smith
Trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith has been extremely productive in recent years, issuing single- and multi-disc sets at a furious clip through a few trusted labels, Cuneiform, TUM and Tzadik in particular....
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Best Jazz Of 2014: 20-16
Our week-long countdown of the best jazz releases of the year continues with #s 20-16. Let’s go! 20. Wadada Leo Smith, Red Hill (Buy It) and The Great Lakes Suites (Buy It) Trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith...
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Stephen Haynes
Photo: Rob Miller Trumpeter and cornet player Stephen Haynes will release his new album Pomegranate next month, on New Atlantis. (Pre-order it from the label physically or on Bandcamp.) The album...
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Best Jazz Of 2015: 20-16
This is the second part of our five-part journey through the best jazz albums of 2015. Click here to read Part 1. 20. Henry Threadgill Zooid, In For A Penny, In For A Pound Amazon This double CD...
View ArticleInterview: Jamie Saft
by Brad Cohan It’s summertime in bucolic and peaceful Kerhonkson, New York, and Jamie Saft—the intrepid piano and electric keyboards titan and John Zorn and Bad Brains collaborator—is deep in his...
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BA Podcast 41: Whit Dickey
The latest episode of the Burning Ambulance podcast features an interview with drummer Whit Dickey. Drummer Whit Dickey is a well-known figure on the New York free jazz scene; he came to prominence as...
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