Jazztimes 2015

For Immediate Release – Jeff Lorber Fusion, whose previous release Hacienda was praised for its “impeccable musicianship and deep grooves” by JazzTimes and its “funky, rollicking jams” by All About Jazz, returns on September 25, 2015, with Step It Up on Heads Up, a division of Concord Music Group. The fourth consecutive collaboration between GRAMMY®-nominated keyboardist/composer/producer Jeff Lorber and GRAMMY®-winning bassist/composer/ producer Jimmy Haslip since the two virtuosos reactivated Jeff Lorber Fusion five years ago, Step It Up features 11 new Lorber compositions, several co-written with Haslip. The longtime colleagues also co-produced the recording.

Tim Berne s third ECM album, You ve Been Watching Me, sees the saxophonist-composer again leading his ultra-dynamic New York band Snakeoil, but with the quartet now a quintet with the arrival of guitarist Ryan Ferreira, whose sound adds textural allure. The group s 2013 release, Shadow Man, garnered Berne some of the highest praise of his career as a composer and bandleader, with JazzTimes marveling over how his work grows wilder and deeper. The four-star DownBeat review said: This music rocks and thinks, explores, deconstructs and, yes, it swings, in its own identifiably angular, Berne-ian way. Just as Berne has hit a new peak with his writing on You ve Been Watching Me, his band has reached a heightened state of collective interaction, realizing the compositions to a tee. Snakeoil with the leader on alto sax alongside pianist Matt Mitchell, clarinetist Oscar Noriega, percussionist Ches Smith and Ferreira on electric and acoustic guitars can still be bracingly kinetic. But there is new space in these compositions and more lyrical focus to the improvisations, leading to a dramatic, even cinematic experience in such tracks as Embraceable Me. Put simply, Berne s music has never been richer or more arresting.

Michael Musillami Trio - Zephyr (2015) {Playscape Recordings PSR#040115}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 273 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 121 Mb
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (jpg) -> 33 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 2015 Playscape Recordings | PSR # 040115
Jazz / Post-Bop / Modern Creative / Guitar

Playscape Recordings is proud to release Zephyr(PSR #040115), the latest release from veteran guitarist/composer Michael Musillami with his flagship trio, featuring bassist Joe Fonda and drummer George Schuller. Zephyr is the Michael Musillami Trio's eighth release in the group's 13-year history.

Produced by Mitchell Froom (Crowded House, Paul McCartney), and featuring Davey Faragher and Pete Thomas from Elvis Costello and the Imposters, Stop Time finds Regen at the peak of his songwriting and pianistic powers, with ten original tunes that brim with humor and heart. Songs like “I Will Wait,” “Morning Papers” and “Stop Time” prove Regen a master of the sticky lyric and the penetrating piano hook, recalling the work of forbears like Billy Joel and Randy Newman while simultaneously showcasing Regen’s singular take on modern love…