Jazz & Improvisation / All styles

Karma is Pharoah Sanders' third recording as a leader, and is among a number of spiritually themed albums the Impulse! Record label released in the late 1960s/early 1970s. Although it is followed by the brief "Colors", the album's main piece is the 32-minute-long "The Creator Has a Master Plan", co-composed by Sanders with vocalist Leon Thomas. Some see this piece as a kind of sequel to Sanders' mentor John Coltrane's legendary 1964 recording A Love Supreme (whose opening it echoes in a muscular…

After 6 albums re-imagining the work of Ahmed Abdul-Malik, أحمد [Ahmed] turn to the material of Malik’s bandmate Thelonious Monk in the group's ongoing search for future music.

Happy Today, the third album from guitarist/bandleader Jeff Parker’s long-running ETA IVtet, was recorded live at Lodge Room in Los Angeles on August 20, 2025. This fresh entry into the IVtet’s catalog captures Parker and the band – including drummer Jay Bellerose, bassist Anna Butterss, and saxophonist Josh Johnson – on record outside of the now-shuttered Highland Park micro-club ETA for the first time. The performance also captures a distinctly joyful night of togetherness set against the back…

Italian saxophone, cornettophone, and bansuri flute player Gianni Gebbia makes his debut on Minority Records with Sleep, released on LP and Bandcamp on May 1, 2026, the same day that marks the artist's 65th birthday.Sleep can be considered an introspective and ambient meditative work, whose structure does not correspond to traditional jazz compositions, but rather consists of extensive improvised hypnotic soundscapes without precise boundaries, using soprano saxophone and cornettophone with elec…

**3rd pressing with letterpressed insert** “Peace is not the word to play” rapped Large Professor on Main Source’s 1991 debut album. His plea to stop abusing the word “peace” simply for rhetoric flair sounds just as valid in today’s genocidal world as it did in the streets of New York over 30 years ago. For Oiro Pena to name this album Béke, meaning peace in Hungarian – or white people in French Caribbean creole – it seems like they finally have something to say. With this group/concept/project …

A cooperation between the two protagonists had been announced for some time. The first musical collaboration as a duo on October 18th, 2025 in Munich was unfortunately cancelled due to unfortunate circumstances. Our alternative was for Sergio to send me 5 vibraphone solo pieces, to which I would communicate with a selection of my wind instruments. Some identical ‘basistapes’ are interpreted by me with different wind instruments. Since a real encounter has not yet taken place, a virtual connectio…

The performance and recording are one continuous set. Track markers have been added for convenience:. 
Liner notes:

 "This project began as Centrifugal Trio, with Bishop, Borghini, and Griener, recorded in the studio zentri-fuge in Berlin in September 2019 and released on the Astral Spirits label.

 For my visit to Berlin in 2022, I wanted to expand the group, and invited the wonderful Mia Dyberg on alto, who I had played with earlier at Sowieso in Berlin, and whose recording Ticket!  (Clean Fe…

What an opportuunity ! On the suggestion of Maciej Karlowski, percussionist Ramón López invited me to play in Lublin Jazz Festival. From a list of great musicians who might join us to form a trio the name of Trevor Watts was one that immediately excited me for quite a few reasons: Firstly, he along with John Stevens , Paul Rutherford , Evan Parker and Derek Bailey allowed me as a novice to enter into the rarified world of The Spontaneous Music Ensemble. I was a total greenhorn in free improvisat…

"A small gift for a great Cecil Taylor history. On 23 April 2016, Jay Sanders organised and recorded a concert whose significance at the time was impossible to estimate. The great Cecil Taylor was accompanied by the wonderful musicians Okkyung Lee, Tony Oxley, Harri Sjostrom and Jackson Krall. After the concert, Cecil announced that it was time to return to the legendary formula he had used several times in his career, which served as an emblem of what was particularly important in his work.   U…

The Kármán Line is the threshold - the precise altitude at which the Earth's atmosphere ends and open space begins. Outer Worlds Jazz Ensemble understood the metaphor immediately. This is music made at that exact boundary: grounded in groove and breath, but pulling steadily toward something without ceiling. The story begins in Tokyo. Neil Innes - bassist, producer, the animating force behind ATA Records and its consistently remarkable Leeds-centred roster - and woodwind voice Chip Wickham were n…

Masayo Koketsu and Nava Dunkelman met for the first time in this studio session. Koketsu’s inventive use of extended techniques and breath-infused wails filled the space with an experimental intensity. Dunkelman responded with a finely woven tapestry of percussive textures, her delicate rhythms binding their sounds together. Her sensitivity to nuance allowed Koketsu’s raw cries to blend effortlessly, as if the two had long shared a musical language. Their exchange was both electric and restraine…

Julius Hemphill was a visionary saxophonist and composer whose music fused avant-garde exploration with deep blues and gospel roots. Marty Ehrlich, one of Hemphill’s close collaborators and protégés, is a multi-reedist and composer known for his lyrical improvisation and commitment to extending Hemphill’s legacy through performance, composition, and curation. This archival release of the duo from Julius Hemphill and Marty Ehrlich offers a rare, deep-listening window into their long-standing crea…

"When Freysteinn Gíslason sent me the raw recordings from Sundlaugin in Mosfellsbær, I heard immediately what he and his ensemble had captured: a group of musicians operating at the outer edges of what jazz can contain. My job wasn't to shape these performances in the traditional sense—they were already fully realized—but to bring clarity and force to a vision that refused easy categorization. Thoughts is an album that exists in extremes. Not the extremes of volume or aggression alone, but of em…

*2026 repress!!* Amazing re-issue on Outernational Sounds of the Indio Jazz Fusion rarity from 1968! Never before reissued, this legendary 1968 EMI recording is a revered Indian jazz rarity; a collectors’ holy grail. Raga Jazz Style is an original Indian excursion into Indo-jazz fusion. A one-away recording from the almost unknown Bombay jazz scene, it is among the few jazz LPs to hail from the subcontinent. Closely contemporary with the UK-based explorations of Amancio D’Silva, John Mayer and J…

British Jazz Explosion Series! Recorded in '69, Greek Variations & Other Aegean Exercises is irresistible on two counts. First, for its daringly conceived and brilliantly performed music, inspired by Greek folk songs and instrumental textures and deep enough to reveal all its treasures only after many repeated listenings. Second, for being recorded at the moment when the Don Rendell/Ian Carr Quintet, a major force in British straight-ahead jazz since '62, had broken up and Carr's equally influen…

Specially priced bundle drawn from the catalog of Nimbus West, the American label widely regarded as the greatest single depository of West Coast avant-garde jazz. With the label's future uncertain and no represses planned, this is a final opportunity to explore one of the most vital and visionary corners of recorded jazz before it disappears from circulation for good. The bundle also includes The Tapscott Sessions Vol. 8, a touching tribute to Adele Sebastian and one of the most beautiful entri…

* Art Edition issued with different art work and sleeve design. * On a Sunday in the early 70s in South LA, you could easily find yourself standing in a high school auditorium, watching Horace Tapscott conduct the Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra as they poured out music like a benediction. No tickets, no VIP list—just the community, gathered. This was music as civic duty, as spiritual practice, as revolution by other means. Live at Widney High December 26th, 1971 captures one such afternoon, previo…

On The Heart Is A Lotus, The Michael Garrick Sextet with Norma Winstone trace a quietly radical path through British jazz: modal, spiritual and poetically inclined, with Winstone’s voice drifting inside the ensemble like vapor rather than standing in front of it.

Released in 1979, Tete Mbambisa's Did You Tell Your Mother delivers the ultimate blend of African groove with American modal grace, making it one of the all-time classic albums of South African jazz. With Mbambisa presenting original compositions at the piano alongside Basil "Mannenberg" Coetzee on tenor sax and flute, the acoustic quartet featured here is rounded out by Zulu Bidi from the band Batsumi on bass locking in with Dollar Brand drummer Monty Weber. This 2026 reissue presents a flat tr…

Awarded an honorary doctorate from the University of Cape Town in 2023, pianist Tete Mbambisa (84) is a legendary figure in South African jazz. Supported by the cream of the local scene, his albums from the 1970s are among the most cherished vinyl documents from this golden era. A monumental archival undertaking, African Day compiles unreleased recordings from 1976 to resurrect a "lost" Tete Mbambisa double album that falls between his seminal works Tete's Big Sound (1975) and Did You Tell Your …

On My Spare Time, Isao Suzuki steps out front on piccolo bass in a luminous set of standards and ballads, wrapping bossa, Ellington and songbook classics in a warm, conversational post‑bop glow with some of Japan’s finest players.

On Cadillac Woman, Isao Suzuki steers his bass into sleek crossover territory, blending jazz‑funk, fusion and soulful vocals into a polished, club‑ready ride that still carries his unmistakable sense of groove and melodic finesse.

On Daguri, Kosuke Mine Quintet channel early‑70s Coltrane fire into a distinctly Japanese voice, fusing spiritual intensity, modal lyricism and subtle exotic color into a taut, forward‑rushing statement that stands among Mine’s finest recordings.

Originally released in 1965, Fuchsia Swing Song marked the powerful debut of saxophonist Sam Rivers on Blue Note Records. Recorded at Van Gelder Studio with a stellar band—Jaki Byard on piano, Ron Carter on bass, and Tony Williams on drums—the album reveals Rivers' innovative take on post-bop and hard bop styles. With its balance of structure and freedom, this session showcases the saxophonist’s adventurous spirit and deep harmonic intelligence. Part of the Blue Note Classic Vinyl Series, this r…

Complete Communion marks the stunning 1965 Blue Note debut of Don Cherry, the visionary cornetist best known for his work alongside Ornette Coleman in the late 1950s. This landmark session captures Cherry at a creative peak, leading a fiery quartet featuring Gato Barbieri on tenor saxophone, Henry Grimes on bass, and Ed Blackwell on drums. Together, they explore the outer edges of post-bop and free jazz, building long-form compositions that seamlessly weave multiple themes into unified, evolving…

Savvas Christodoulou was born in Cyprus in 1949 and moved to Melbourne in 1950 as part of the great wave of Greek immigration following WW2. His story is long, involved and fascinating, and the liner notes and interview contained within the LP's 4-page insert tells the whole story. Perhaps more briefly, what you need to know is that he released the Savvas studio LP in 1974 in an edition of 300 copies, and enjoyed such a strong local following that he sold out the 2,000-seat-capacity Dallas Brook…

Themes For Dreams marks another left turn, finding Chicago-born and based musician, composer, and producer Will Miller at his most meditative, patient, and intentional. Across 13 gorgeous and strikingly cohesive tracks, the album eschews drums in favor of immersive melodies that float, dissipate, and linger. It's an album meant for rest, with arrangements so welcomely enveloping they feel like a warm blanket. While it's Miller's sparsest record yet, it still keeps his wildly collaborative ethos,…

Uphill Game is an acoustic contemporary jazz quartet based in Bristol, UK, led by double-bassist & composer Riaan Vosloo. Uphill Game play open, dynamic, driving, delicate, exploratory, groove and melody focused music, inspired by the likes of the William Parker Quartet but with its own distinctive collective voice. Currently one of the UK's best-kept jazz secrets, the band is delighted to release its first album this spring, recorded live in the sumptuous acoustic of St George's Bristol. Riaan …

"The shock and awe that Bitches Brew produced within and without the jazz world on its release in March 1970 was largely unexpected, the result of the music’s uncompromising power and what many felt to be its perplexing, eccentric sound and structure. In retrospect, we know how Miles’ unconventional studio methodology and Teo Macero’s subsequent compositional editing of the voluminous taped material innovated the remarkable finished product. But what has only marginally been discussed is the ext…

Books have been written, recordings analyzed, colleagues questioned, and nevertheless Bix Beiderbecke remains as much an enigma today, ninety-five years after his death, as he was to friends and fellow musicians during his all-too-brief, personally and professionally erratic odyssey through the 1920s. The body of work he left behind both reveals and conceals crucial aspects of his creative reality and unfulfilled potential, while innovating a subtle, eloquent manner of expression that would sugg…

*100 copies limited edition* First ever reissue, remastered by the band. Long recognized as a one-off gem among Europrog collectors, Coma’s debut Financial Tycoon reflects the proclivity of Danish peers such as Secret Oyster and Burnin’ Red Ivanhoe for producing outstanding jazz-fusion, albeit uniquely blended with prog textures, and a sardonic sensitivity that was engraved across Europe in the releases of the likes of Kandahar, Supersister, Banzai, Brainstorm, Plastic People of the Universe, Pa…

Altercat proudly presents the definitive reissue of one of the crown jewels of South American jazz. Essentially the brainchild of Argentinian jazz’s leading figure Jorge López Ruiz, the project Viejas Raíces marked Lopez Ruiz’s departure from the traditional forms of jazz.

*2026 repress* Alice Coltrane had an enormous legacy to overcome in her late husband- her debut album, "A Monastic Trio" stuck pretty close to what John Coltrane's last bands were doing the studio, "Huntington Ashram Monastary" finds her branching out. Recorded in mid-1969, a year after her debut and two years after the death of her husband, Coltrane performs on piano and harp and is backed by bassist Ron Carter and drummer Rashied Ali.Musically, it's a bit more relaxed than before, with Coltran…

*300 copies limited edition* Mats Gustafsson meets Jan St. Werner in 2019 when they both perform with Peter Brötzmann and a group of prolific improvisers for three days at Flutgraben in Berlin. Mats and Jan notice their mutual passion for performing not just inside spaces, but also with them, activating environments and shaping sound through diversion. Mats introduces Johan Berthling, whose complex bass explorations complement the frantic jitter of Mats’ saxophone and pedals, and Werner’s digita…

Louis Matute unveils Dolce Vita, a bold and vibrant album. Recorded at the legendary La Frette Studio, this record blends Honduran heritage with Brazilian influences, merging jazz, groove, Caribbean rock and vintage textures into a poetic and deeply committed work. Having gained recognition at prestigious festivals, Matute collaborates here with remarkable artists such as Joyce Moreno, Dora Morelenbaum, Gabi Hartmann and Rico TK. In March 2025, Louis set up camp at La Frette, a rock-tinged, vint…

Pioneering, magisterial compilation, which turned many of us here onto Mustafa Ozkent, Fikret Kizilok, Erkin Koray, Temiz and co, a decade ago. Still dazzling, fresh, essential.

Zyggurat is Pete Grimshaw's experimental jazz project, in this iteration featuring him on synths and Nathan England-Jones on percussion. Formed in Birmingham, Zyggurat has over 8 years of cosmic electronic wrangling under it's belt. Releases and live shows have featured a charmingly eclectic range of collaborators ranging from tap dancers to sax/flute players, taking in the accordion along the way, with the lyrical drumming of England-Jones the constant and steady accompaniment. Recorded over tw…

Opaque Pink Vinyl An immersive percussion-led meditation from Los Angeles-based composer and producer Carlos Niño, Bubble Bath for Giants is at once an ode to oceanic vastness and a celebration of the quietly powerful - what Niño describes as the same energy expressed in different vessels. Recorded in Topanga, California and across the homes of the artists involved, the album unfolds through an extraordinary density of acoustic material: bells, bowls, ceramics, chimes, cymbals, bass drum, sakar…

First ever vinyl reissue of "Postones", an astounding body of recordings by Vito Ricci with Rashied Ali and Byard Lancaster, originally issued as a tiny cassette on Ricci's own Creation imprint in 1984. Moving between free jazz fire and percussion-driven theatre scores, this document of downtown New York in the early 1980s pulls the rug from beneath the expected historical narratives. One of the most revelatory releases of 2026.

Quite literally one of the most original and influential guitarists on the planet, Derek Bailey has completely revolutionized the language of guitar music in the twentieth century. His work has been championed by almost every cutting edge guitarist: Pat Metheny, Bill Frisell, Marc Ribot, Buckethead, Jerry Garcia, but his influence reaches far far beyond the insular world of guitar freaks, to classical composers such as Brian Ferneyhough and Karlheinz Stockhausen, creative musicians Anthony Braxt…