Jazz /
Jyotis
2007 release ** Packaged in oversize cardboard sleeve.
7Books
2004 release ** "If you dig just a little deeper into experimental acoustic guitar music, the name Steffen Basho-Junghans should come up. A German-born guitarist and performer, Basho-Junghans stands out amongst others with his unique guitar style. Implementing elements of American folk with Indian raga for a unique sound, he has created a strong catalog that spans nearly 15 years. On 7Books, Basho-Junghans goes all out with a double-disc collection of extended tracks, in the range of ten to fift…
Synopsis
2016 release ** "In pessimistic times of murky imminence, the alchemy of improvisation transmitting an explicit lucidity arrives as the proverbial unexpected gift. On a second thought, by analyzing Ute Völker and Udo Schindler’s curricula one does not anticipate anything less than that. Both proficient instrumentalists (on accordion and reeds, respectively), the former is a teacher and the latter an architect. The formal aspect of playing – and we don’t mean “academy”; rather, “respect of impli…
Extensions
"Languishing off-catalogue for many years, McCoy Tyner's Extensions may be the pianist's most unjustly neglected album. Strange days, for not only is the music ineffably vibrant, but Extensions is the only recording ever to feature Tyner alongside pianist and harpist Alice Coltrane, who replaced him in saxophonist John Coltrane's group in 1966. The album has one foot in the echoes of John Coltrane's "classic quartet," of which Tyner was a member from 1960-65, and the other in the astral jazz sty…
Night Dreamer
“Night Dreamer is an album that finds Wayne Shorter in a state of transition as he was still rooted in the hard bop style that started his career, but also starting to lean toward the more abstract style that will serve for the greater part of his remaining career. It’s a talented, and somewhat unusual ensemble that Shorter has assembled here. McCoy Tyner and Elvin Jones, at that time, were mostly known for their famous work with Coltrane, but in 1964, when this album was recorded, Tyner and Jon…
Schizophrenia
"Wayne Shorter’s Schizophrenia found the legendary saxophonist at the pinnacle of post-bop with a sextet of like-minded musical explorers including James Spaulding, Curtis Fuller, Herbie Hancock, Ron Carter & Joe Chambers performing Shorter originals like ‘Tom Thumb’, ‘Go’, and ‘Miyako’. Recorded on March 10, 1967, at Van Gelder Studios, Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey." - HHV
Poly-Currents (Blue Note Tone Poet Series)
After his six years with the seminal John Coltrane Quartet, the master drummer Elvin Jones signed with Blue Note in 1968 and began building his own career as a bandleader. His first two albums for the label were spare trio outings—Puttin’ It Together and The Ultimate—both featuring saxophonist Joe Farrell and bassist Jimmy Garrison. For his next album—1969’s unfettered post-bop exploration Poly-Currents—Jones expanded his ensemble with additional woodwinds and percussion while still maintaining …
Rivbea Live! Series, Volume 3
Track 1 recorded May 21, 1976 at the Wildflowers festival
Track 2 recorded June 20, 1974
Jimmy Lyons - alto saxophone
Karen Borca - bassoon
Hayes Burnett - bass
Henry Letcher - drums
Syd Smart - drums
The Lost Session, Paris 1979
Recorded August 22, 1979 at Campagne Premiere, Paris, France
All compositions by Dave Burrell and Monica Larsson, unless otherwise noted
Dave Burrell - piano
Sam Woodyard - drums
Way of the Breeze
Recorded on 8th September, 1993 at Café Amores in Hofu City, Yamaguchi, Japan
Motoharu Yoshizawa - homemade electric vertical five strings bass
Kim Dae Hwan - percussion
The Analects Of Confucius
Recorded on 21st October, 2000 at Aoshima Hall, Shizuoka City, Japan
Misha Mengelberg - pianoSabu Toyozumi - drums
Horizon
Imagine it’s late afternoon, you’re outside by the lake, and there’s sunlight on the water. This is the peaceful and contemplative scene that Matt Gold and Resavoir set on their collaborative LP Horizon. Across 10 lush and exploratory tracks, it’s the product of two Chicago-based musicians—Will Miller, the acclaimed trumpeter, composer, and producer who’s worked with SZA, Whitney, and more, and Gold, a seasoned multi-instrumentalist and accomplished guitarist—effortlessly combining their distinc…
Jorden Vi Ärvde
In 2023 the Swedish bassist and composer Vilhelm Bromander turned heads with the stunning debut album of a new large ensemble, which has now adopted its name— Vilhelm Bromander Unfolding Orchestra—from that recording: In this forever unfolding moment. That album, which earned him the prestigious Gyllene Skivan and Manifest Awards, was an auspicious premiere, that braided many of the passions of the young musician, including his devotion to Indian dhrupad music, the politically charged folk-jazz …
It Could / If I
A joint release from US label Astral Spirits (Austin, Texas) and Thanatosis Produktion (Stockholm), It could / If I is the first album from Stockholm-based, longstanding duo Johan Jutterström (saxophone) and Alex Zethson (piano). In addition to the duo’s own reimaginations of a few so-called jazz standards, it contains songs by artists such as Leonard Cohen, Pet Shop Boys, John Lurie, and German 19th century composer Alexander Fesca.
"On this record what tunes are played somehow matters less tha…
L'Invisible
Christer Bothén’s artistry transcends genre, tradition, and the tangible. A key figure in avant-garde jazz and global improvisation, he has spent decades exploring sound’s spiritual depth. From playing in Don Cherry’s groundbreaking Organic Music Society to leading expansive projects, Bothén has embraced the unknown, continuously reshaping his musical language.
At 83, Bothén remains deeply engaged, crafting L'Invisible, a trio album with vibraphonist (and drummer) Kjell Nordeson and bassist Kans…
Picnic
Rare Original A little-known gem of Dutch free music, Picnic is the brainchild of cellist Tristan Honsinger, who composed all but one of its 12 compositions. Brilliant and whimsical, the tracks bring to mind Honsinger's work with ICP Orchestra, for whom he has also composed extensively. Here he's working in an incredible ensemble, with trumpeter Toshinori Kondo, saxophonist Sean Bergen, Jean Jacques Avenel on bass, Michael Vatcher on drums and percussion, and Tiziana Simona Vigni on voice. Decep…
FATHM
*100 copies limited edition* "Fathm isn’t so much an album as it is a question—a pause in the middle of a conversation no one’s having, but everyone’s pretending to understand. It asks nothing of you, but demands your presence, your ear, your breath. The flute, a tender and fragile instrument, becomes almost otherworldly—like a butterfly in another dimension with teeth, or a marsh wren that screams only in windings. It speaks in fragmented thoughts, tracing edges of longing, absence, and memory.…
Oasis
Buenos Aires or any city in the world. Daniel Melingo is in a rehearsal room. The musicians accompanying him have left, exhausted. The instrumentalist musician has been playing all the instruments, which for him are extensions of his body, for hours. The piano, the drums, the guitar, the bass, the xylophone, the saxophone, the bouzouki. He conducts an orchestra made up of himself. As if he was looking for the secret formula in his laboratory where every sound - even if it is not instrumental - i…
Yowzers
Yowzers is a new album by Chicago composer, improvisor, instrumentalist and musical folklorist Ben LaMar Gay. The twelve track collection is a leap forward in the lexicon of Gay’s recorded output, and a veritable masterwork of ancient inner-body rhythms and intuitive melodic storytelling. It’s worth mentioning that a leap forward for Gay is no small feat. The musical ground he has covered in the last decade, both as a bandleader and collaborator, is immense. His de facto debut album—the 2018 com…