The theme of the first residency of the Montreux Jazz Festival at London’s South Bank was the legacy of Nina Simone. The choice of Soweto Kinch for the second night of the programme seems particularly appropriate, given both his musical [...]
honey from a winter stone is Ambrose Akinmusire’s second album on the Nonesuch label. The first, ‘Owl Song’, was an acclaimed album described as having ‘great beauty, haunting melody, heightened sensitivity’ (Philip Watson, The Irish Times). The music is almost [...]
This intriguing album came about as a result of drummer/percussionist Thomas Strönen having time at the end of a recording session to record a series of percussion and drum solos. It was at the time of the Covid pandemic so, on the advice [...]
Lilaila Records, the new record label set up by saxophonists Maria Grand and Camila Nebbia plus pianist Marta Sánchez, is dedicated to work that brings musicians from different backgrounds together. The label’s first release, Altered Visions, features the three founders [...]
The opening track of Tullis Rennie‘s Safe Operating Space, Sometime Too Hot, opens with a striking sound, the source of which it is difficult to pin down; it is a dramatic opening that gives us an excellent idea of what [...]
Lilaila Records is a new record label set up by saxophonists Maria Grand and Camila Nebbia plus pianist Marta Sánchez and which is dedicated to work that brings musicians from different backgrounds together . Its first release, Altered Visions, features [...]
Raul Midón is a singer-songwriter steeped in the jazz and Latin traditions, who received Grammy nominations in 2017 and 2018 in the Best Jazz Vocal Category. His latest self-produced album, Lost & Found, adds elements of ‘alt-pop and smooth folk’ [...]
This year JazzFest Berlin marked its 60th anniversary with an outstanding programme and a couple of special strands to mark the anniversary. These celebrations focused on the Berlin community, in particular on that in the Moabit district, an area in [...]
Object Of Unknown Function is multi-intrumentalist Brandon Seabrook’s second solo album coming ten years after his first, Sylphid Vitalizers. It features Seabrook on an array of instruments, electric and 12-string guitars, vintage banjos and even cassette recordings used as [...]
Tapestry is Vazesh’s second album following on from their 2021 release The Sacred Key. It is a totally charming album that brings together three very distinctive instrumentalists and juxtaposes different musical cultures, notably Iranian music and contemporary improvised music. It [...]
