New York Post December 9, 2020

The two tenors Chico Freeman and father Von Freeman had an opportunity to team up on this CD. Recorded live in concert, the Freemans are assisted by pianist Kenny Barron (Muhal Richard Abrams takes his place on "Paying New York Dues"), bassist Cecil McBee and drummer Jack DeJohnette. Von actually sounds the more modern of the two (due to his unusual tone) on a set mostly comprised of standards, plus McBee's "Undercurrents" and the lengthy jamming blues "Jug Ain't Gone," a tribute to Gene Ammons. The straight-ahead but sometimes eccentric music has its surprising moments, and the Freemans mostly battle to a tie.

Masabumi Kikuchi - Hanamichi - The Final Studio Recording (2021) {Red Hook Japan, KKJ 9010 rec 2013}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 120 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 100 Mb | Artwork | 5% repair rar
© 2021 King International / Red Hook Japan | KKJ 9010
Jazz / Modal Music / Post Bop / Piano Solo

Masabumi Kikuchi is not the kind of jazz pianist who just strikes the keys to produce a sound. He has a Zen-like approach to the instrument by making it an extension of himself, and thus both constructs and hears the music produced as a different form factor. There are and were other contemporary pianists such as Bill Evans, Denny Zeitlin and the late Canadian classical pianist Glenn Gould, musicians who perhaps may fit into this category, but Kikuchi was a one of a kind artist.

Charles Mingus' finest recordings of his later period are Changes One and Changes Two, two Atlantic LPs that have been reissued on CD by Rhino. The first volume features four stimulating Mingus originals ("Remember Rockefeller at Attica," "Sue's Changes," "Devil Blues" and "Duke Ellington's Sound of Love") performed by a particularly talented quintet (tenor-saxophonist George Adams who also sings "Devil Blues," trumpeter Jack Walrath, pianist Don Pullen, drummer Dannie Richmond and the leader/bassist). The band has the adventurous spirit and chance-taking approach of Charles Mingus' best groups, making this an easily recommended example of the great bandleader's music.

A lyrical and harmonically engaging pianist, Lisa Hilton is known for her enveloping original pieces and cover tunes that touch upon acoustic post-bop, blues, classical, and contemporary jazz. Along with music, the West Coast native is a trained fine artist and often draws inspiration from painting, sculpture, and nature for her compositions. Following her initial emergence in the late '90s, Hilton built a strong following, moving between atmospheric solo piano albums like 2007's After Dark, trio outings like 2013's Getaway, and ambitious small group dates like 2017's Escapism. She has continued to expand her approach, working with a bevy of top-tier players like Larry Grenadier, Christian McBride, Jeremy Pelt, J.D. Allen, Luques Curtis, and others.

Mixing well-read indie rock with joyful, Afro-pop-inspired melodies and rhythms, Vampire Weekend grew from one of the first bands to be championed by music bloggers into a chart-topping, Grammy Award-winning act that helped define the sound of indie music in the late 2000s and 2010s. After establishing the foundations of their bright, intricate style with 2008's Vampire Weekend, the band soon became hugely successful; they're the first indie rock act to have two consecutive albums (2010's Contra and 2013's Modern Vampires of the City) enter the Billboard 200 at number one. With each release, Vampire Weekend's music grew more diverse, incorporating ska, hip-hop, and '80s pop influences that nevertheless complemented their signature style. Similarly, the band weathered the loss of founding member Rostam Batmanglij to deliver some of their most polished and ambitious work with 2019's Father of the Bride, their third chart-topper.

The inspired pairing of guitarist Dusan Jevtovic and pianist Vasil Hadzimanov, mobilized by the convincing playing of Asaf Sirkis on drum kit, has resulted in a sound that cross-pollinates the most forward thinking aspects of progressive music with the excitement of post-jazz. Think ECM record label vibe filtered through Radiohead played at an intimate after-hours jazz venue and you’ll catch the vibe. Choosing to work without a bass player opens new dynamic possibilities and allows the guitar and keyboard voicing to dance and weave in a textural ballet. Vasil’s beautiful arpeggiated piano serves as delicate counterpoint to Dusan’s raw textured playing. Asaf alternates between the delicacy of Jon Christensen and the driving power of vintage Billy Cobham…

Pianist John Escreet, hailed by Time Out London as a “transatlantic jazz genius,” continues his artistic ascent with the bold, exploratory new album Seismic Shift (Whirlwind Recordings). It is Escreet’s ninth album as a leader but his first at the helm of a trio, and also one of the first to see release since his move to the West Coast in early 2020.

Cannonball Adderley - Domination (1965) {Capitol Jazz ‎77561 rel 2005}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 343 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 131 Mb
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© 1965, 2005 Capitol Jazz | 7243 4 77561 2 2
Jazz / Bop / Big Band / Saxophone

A key meeting of Cannonball Adderley and David Axelrod – and one of the pair's first larger collaborations together! The album features Cannonball solos over larger backings by Oliver Nelson – with some occasional help from brother Nat Adderley – all produced with that dark Axelrod edge that we love so much from the Capitol years. The tunes have just the right amount of space to keep things interesting – but also enough soul to link the work nicely to the other Adderley albums of the time. Nelson himself brings in some captivating modern moments to the set – and titles include "Interlude", "Mystified", "Gon Gong", "Shake A Lady", and "Introduction To A Samba".