The same, yet different. That’s Rão Kyao in 2021. Unalterable, due to the identity matrix of his singular art, perennial, as he is. Renewed, due to the existence of new elements adding to his unwavering sound. “Respeito Pela Natureza'' (Respect for Nature) was released as a single. Now, the entire album is available, entitled Gandhi, that manifests a man connected to the environment, spiritually connected, and a humanist able to recognize a futuristic legacy, global and pacifistic, of the Indian leader Mahatma Gandhi (1986-1948). There is also the man behind the music, the composer and flute player, using all his resources, offering music with a sense of duality as a whole, that is not only universal but also Portuguese.
Night Ranger is an American rock band formed in San Francisco, California in the early 80's. A band that epitomized the mega-selling, big hair, soft metal sound, Night Ranger took a break at the end of that decade but reunited in 1996 and they continue to perform in various guises. Night Ranger had a string of best-selling albums with sales of more than 16 million copies fuelled by multiple hit singles—particularly their first hit, "Sister Christian"…
Terence Blanchard's 2013 return to Blue Note, Magnetic, built upon his decades-long history of post-bop dynamism with a forward-thinking approach that blended edgy, modal improvisation with a sophisticated, genre-crossing compositional style. It was a concept he had been investigating on his previous efforts Bounce (2003), Flow (2005), and Choices (2009), and, though it had been years since Blanchard was considered a young lion, the eclecticism of the album matched the work of many of his younger contemporaries like trumpeter Christian Scott and pianist Robert Glasper, the latter of whom even played on Bounce.
Rising star pianist/composer Noah Haidu’s resplendently expressive Standards (June 23, 2023, Sunnyside Records) celebrates the 40th anniversary of the release that launched Keith Jarrett’s great Standards Trio and arrives on the heels of Haidu’s two recent acclaimed Sunnyside albums, most notably 2021’s SLOWLY: Song for Keith Jarrett. Featuring Haidu with bassists Buster Williams and Peter Washington, drummer Lewis Nash and guest saxophonist Steve Wilson, Standards is, in part, the soulmate to SLOWLY, which DownBeat called “a stunning and heartfelt tribute.” After Haidu, Buster Williams and Billy Hart recorded its last two songs – “But Beautiful” and “Georgia on My Mind” – Williams said, “Those two standards were beautiful, got any more?”