Jazz & Improvisation / All styles

"There are many illusive or ephemeral descriptions that are often part of how words seek to elucidate the listening experience. In the music we have on this recording from Florestan and the trio he has formed to venture his musical initiatives, words such as space, transparency, suspension, stasis, momentum, tension, multiplicity, flow, cohesion, dimension, release are some of the ingredients that come to mind to articulate the musical experience this recording offers. To me, Florestan’s musical…

Time to start the new year. Legendary trumpeter and jazz great, runner-up for the Pulitzer Prize, winner, Guggenheim Fellowship winner, NEA Jazz Masters recipient, Wadada Leo Smith and one of the greatest authorities on improvised music, educator, our friend, guitarist, and double bassist Joe Morris together! The album is a recording of a concert the two artists gave earlier this past year, on 12 February, during the famous ImprovisatioNOW concert series at Real Art Ways in Hartford, where audie…

2024 stock. This performance is a second coming together of a rather unusual but wonderful pair; Dame Evelyn Glennie, a household name in percussion, and Szilárd Mezei, a prolific free improviser, multi-instrumentalist, and composer. In 2018, these two artists came together in the Core-tet Project, one of Dame Evelyn’s significant forays into free improvisation. Since then, she also worked with TRIO HLK, but this live performance with Mezei and his quartet is a much different kind of performing…

CD edition, comes in mini LP replica with obi & Japanese insert. Art Yard continues their voyage into the omniverse of unreleased Sun Ra tapes with I Roam The Cosmos, an unreleased, previously unheard 1972 live session recorded at Slug's Saloon in New York. Fronting a stellar 18-piece incarnation of the Arkestra, I Roam The Cosmos finds Sun Ra taking the listener on a poetic journey to the outer limits of planetary awareness. While the captain of the space-ship declaims his message with Arkestra…

Originally released on Saturn Records in 1979, both Sleeping Beauty and On Jupiter are studio recordings by the large Sun Ra ensemble (including electric guitar and electric bass) and, for the most part, feature the first recordings of the titles included on them (though most were played live a few months earlier). These two releases belong together, since they were recorded and released in close proximity and are both long, groove-based, pieces that range from proto-disco to relaxed groove-driv…

Placebo's debut album "Ball of Eyes" is a remarkably focused Soul Jazz record, without the experimentation or Free Jazz moments which were still in vogue during the first half of the '70s. Excellent covers of Marvin Gaye's "Inner City Blues" and Sam & Dave's "You Got Me Hummin'" as well as his own compositions make "Ball of Eyes" a perfect example of the genius of Marc Moulin and his incredible band.

The "1973" album continues in the same vein as "Ball of Eyes", though it's definitely funkier and head boppin' than the debut. The real-ear grabber is the superb Moog soloing by Moulin. Placebo is grooving your socks off in the first half of the album and a more concentrated jazzy swing can be found on the second half

** mini LP replica with OBI & Japanese insert ** First time ever on CD around the world. Marc Moulin (1942 - 2008) was a Belgian musician and journalist. In the early '70s, he was the leader of the Jazz-Rock group Placebo. Moulin was one of Belgium's jazz legends, making jazz-influenced records for over 30 years. Marc Moulin's three Placebo albums are the 'Holy Grail' for the rare groove crowd, a sector of music fans who love that unique '70s style of cool.Placebo's eponymous third album is glos…

"Disco é Cultura, 2" Brings 15 tracks of the funkiest Brazilian music from the 70s and 80s. Soul and Funk were taking the world by storm in the 1970s. Brazilians developed their own sound by combining influences from Funk and Soul music from abroad to create something uniquely Brazilian.

Gatefold sleeve. Includes download code. Many artists achieve greatness but very few produce work that is so moving it's considered sacred. Whether you choose to call them hymns, psalms or spirituals, their songs are a healing force for troubled times. Jazzman's Spiritual Jazz series would not exist without the inspiration and leadership of the spiritual messiah that is John Coltrane. It can therefore only be right and proper that a whole album is dedicated to his legacy and lasting influence. S…

LP ltd to 315 copies. An’archives is proud to present the latest album by Japanese free saxophonist and vocalist Harutaka Mochizuki, Doppelgänger ga boku wo. Since the early 2000s, Harutaka has quietly, yet steadily, released a string of solo and collaborative releases that have allowed multiple perspectives on one of the most singular voices in modern music. In collaboration, he seems to prefer the duo format, and digging through his discography, you’ll find releases where he pairs with Tomoyuk…

2024 repress. Azimuth was the blueprint for the band's own 'samba doido'/ 'crazy samba' sound. Released in the summer of 1975, the album was a minor commercial success selling around 200,000 copies, but it's now recognised as an essential piece of Brazilian music history. Surely the rawest and funkiest of Azymuth's albums, every track exudes the brimming energy of three exceptionally creative young men from Rio, with incendiary results. Opener ‘Linha do Horizonte’ – a sublime piece of melancholi…

Back in print with new artwork !

*2024 reissue. 300 copies limited edition* In January 1999, after years of continuous daily rehearsals, Zu entered the studio to record Bromio. The album was released in October of the same year to immediate and enthusiastic feedback from the press and the public, and a few months later Zu began to play on stages all over Europe. But the band's inexperience in recording work weighed on them, because the impact they had live was not present in the sound of the CD at all. So it was that during the…

*300 copies limited edition* Since 1995, orphaned by their previous project, the three founding members of Zu (Jacopo Battaglia, Luca Mai and Massimo Pupillo) had been hanging out in the historic small room in Piazza Degli Zingari in Rome, every day, all day long, working nights and sometimes sleeping directly in the basement so as not to waste time. Looking for their own voice, without excluding any direction: electronics, tapes, sequencer (Film Nero) cello (played by their friend Francesco Chi…

The Miles Davis historical second quintet with Wayne Shorter - tenor sax, Herbie Hancock - piano Ron Carter, bass and Tony Williams - drums. A perfect coalition of young, creative individuals under Miles' direction. A turning point in the whole history of American Jazz. Recorded live in Germany in October 1964 this double album features hiper- adventurous renditions of classic tunes including Davis originals like "All Blues". "Milestones" and "Walking" and standards like Rollins' "Oleo" and Cole…

2024 stock. Claude & Ola return to the Steep Gloss label with Immara. Recorded from autumn of 2021 into 2022, this collaboration introduces new sounds and textures into each artist's catalog, while retaining and amplifying the varying degrees of abstraction inherent in their unique approaches. Claude and Ola Aldous are experimental musicians residing in the northern reaches of New York state in the US. They have previously released music on the Steep Gloss, TQN-Aut, Tone Burst, and Noise á Noise…

"This overdue duo record by longtime colleagues Tashi Dorji (guitar) and Dave Rempis (saxophones) is a monument to the endless musical curiosity that links them. These two come at it from remarkably different backgrounds – Dorji combining his Bhutanese ethnicity with a love for metal, punk, American blues and folk, and anarchist political theory, with Rempis riding the outer edges of the jazz world throughout his career, while also inspired by his Greek ethnicity and a longstanding interest in f…

** 333 copies, one-time pressing ** Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra in concert at the Immanuel United Church of Christ - September 30, 1979. This is the seventh concert that Tom Albach recorded at Immanuel United Church of Christ.  A wild and beautiful performance from beginning to end. Opening with an angelic take of Coltrane’s ‘Equinox’ which turns into a Coltrane medley, this recording is obviously a special one from the start… the existence of an unheard Sabir Mateen composition from 1979 (‘A C…

** 333 copies, one-time pressing ** Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra in concert at the Immanuel United Church of Christ - March 25, 1979. This is the third concert that Tom Albach recorded at Immanuel United Church of Christ.  This recording finds the Arkestra on new feet following the departure of bandleader Jesse Sharps. Featuring two of Jesse’s classics, including a totally different take on ‘Mykowski’s’, and the now iconic live version of ‘Desert Fairy Princess’, this concert also marks the debu…

** 333 copies, one-time pressing ** Pan Afrikan Peoples Arkestra in concert at the Immanuel United Church of Christ - April 29, 1979. This is the fourth concert that Tom Albach recorded at Immanuel United Church of Christ.  Featuring fiery takes of ‘Village Dance’ and ‘Mykowski’s First Fifth’, this concert also marks the only known recording of Tapscott’s ‘Song of Emanon’. Rounded out with the Jesse Sharps tune ‘Sea Wife’ and Tapscott’s homage to David Bryant ‘Dee Bee’s Dance’, this recording ma…

Sun Ra, notorious for his aggressive keyboard attack and seemingly schizophrenic stylings, here offers a unique selection playing the celeste-like Fender Rhodes electric piano, which has a distinct sound (think Doors' "Riders on the Storm") and an interesting history. This is Ra sound at his most relaxed and contemplative state.This Sun Ra 1980 solo set at Haverford College has been kicking around the internet and in the digital libraries of Ra collectors for years, though it has not previously …

A sonic odyssey of extreme brilliance! Computer musician Tom Mudd and Hungarian percussionist/violist Áron Porteleki navigate the liminal space between the virtual and the corporeal with ferocious intelligence. Recorded live at NEXT Festival 2022 in Bratislava, this rambling and consistently surprising collaboration bridges divergent sonic landscapes with rare intensity. Mudd's impossible virtual instruments - simulated guitar using the NESS physical modelling code - intertwine seamlessly with P…

Silent, Listening is a major addition to ECM’s distinguished line of solo piano recordings, featuring one of the outstanding improvising pianists and jazz masters of our time: Fred Hersch. The album features seven original creations and a handful of well-chosen standards, including Billy Strayhorn’s “Star-Crossed Lovers”, Sigmund Romberg’s “Softly, As In A Morning Sunrise”, Alec Wilder’s “Winter Of My Discontent” and Russ Freeman’s “The Wind”, all played with the focus, sensitivity and gracefuln…

Joining their newly launched Luminessence audiophile vinyl-reissue series, the legendary imprint, ECM, digs deep into their own vaults and comes up with an absolute gem: the guitarist John Abercrombie, the bassist Dave Holland, and the drummer Jack DeJohnette’s groundbreaking 1975 LP “Gateway”. Rooted in approaches drawn from free jazz and unquestionably springing from both Holland and DeJohnette’s time working in Miles Davis’ electric fusion band at the end of the 1960s and early '70s, it’s a r…

“Destined to go down in history as a jazz classic” was the verdict with which The Guardian greeted this album on its release in 1997, saying, “Wheeler’s compositions and four of the world’s greatest improvisers make for a tranquil set that rewards with every listening. This is beautiful, golden music.” Angel Song is among the apexes of the label’s catalogue, uniting four master-improvisers – each with a unique artistic identity – in an intimate, drummer-less quartet session. Kenny Wheeler is the…

"We wrote “Accept When” between 2022 and 2023, after a long, beautiful period improvising together intimately in the safety of a friend’s practice space. Our friendship, the quality of attention that colored the light of that and all our other practice spaces, became the basis for our activity and growth as songwriters and our relationship as improvisers. Friendship, how we relate to each other, is our nucleus: the central and essential part of our movement; the positively charged central core o…

2024 stock. Valuable of 1975 reissue of Finnish Jazz. Day is Over, an album often credited to Esko Linnavalli Quintet but without any mention of performing group on the cover, was born during a series of Finnish Jazz Music Workshop events, led by Heikki Sarmanto and Esko Linnavalli, out which the New Music Orchestra UMO was born. A UMO-anticipating 14-headed workshop band gathered to rehearse at the rock club Tavastia in 1974. Out of that group emerged a quintet, who took a trip to Stockholm to …

Eye of the Universe" is the latest offering from Finnish sax player and composer Markus Holkko. Grounded in his musical heritage, the album explores a range of influences, from straight to Latin and spiritual jazz, with subtle hints of west coast cool and psychedelia.

The Finnish/Italian improvisational collective makes a comeback after the acclaim of 'Gan-Ri-La.' This time, they grace Pelto Studio with their presence, offering a groovy free jazz encounter filled with unexpected twist

*2023 stock* Everyone’s Children is the stunning debut album of spiritual avant-garde music from keyboardist, composer Surya Botofasina, out on Spiritmuse Records. The record combines deep jazz excursions with expansive synth passages and intimate piano turns to create a hypnotic, meditative and devotionally expressive suite that soothes, enriches and uplifts the soul. Botofasina’s upbringing at the Sai Anantam Ashram in the Southern Californian hills involved daily bhajans (traditional Hindu de…

Mad About Records officially reissues super rare private press Quintessence’s 1981 LP. With every famous jazz recording, many others remained on the shelf of oblivion without ever receiving the recognition they deserved, and this is the case of Quintessence. Led by Ron Ancrum, with George Sovak, David Gaedeke, Winston Johnson and Steve Muse recorded an exceptional and fundamental album of 80's jazz. If you are into Fender Rhodes, this is an LP to be collected.

Paradigmatic yet forward-looking township jazz from 1975. Braiding Wes Montgomery into Marabi, the legendary guitarist leads a stellar line-up of musicians including Kippie Moeketsi, Barney Rachabane, Gilbert Matthews, Dennis Mpale, and Sipho Gumede.The opener glances sideways at the commercial success of Abdullah Ibrahim’s recent Mannenberg — but the real magic follows on, when the players cut loose in their own, new directions.This is the first vinyl reissue. Sleevenotes by Kwanele Sosibo feat…

2024 Stock. Atto is one of Vladimir Tarasov's long evolving experimental music projects. Tarasov's percussion merges with the hypnotically repetitive synth sequence into one long piece. All instruments are played by Tarasov himself. Originally dispensed by state label Мелодия (Melodya) in 1989, the 4th ‘Atto’ volume features Vladimir effortless rolling out on a 35 minute piece in two parts built from pranging percussion, hunting horns and electronics. It’s a hypnotic study in sublime tension and…

** 140g "Pot of Gold vinyl." Edition of 444. With insert. **I travelled to Los Angeles and the USA for the first time in 2019. Although I had not met Carlos Niño in person, we connected via Instagram where he saw a video of me playing a piano motif (titled ‘The One’ in this sequence) that he really liked and expressed a wish to record. This was around 2017. We tried a few times to get me over to Los Angeles, but the timing was always off. Through a performance organised by a creative collective…

Black vinyl Cape Town, South Africa-based drummer Asher Gamedze explores relationships of time between music and history on his new album Turbulence and Pulse, out May 5th 2023. Gamedze’s critically-acclaimed debut album Dialectic Soul was released at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic in July 2020. Around the release of that record, with friend and writer Teju Adeleye he organized and participated in a joint online discussion “Poesis,” with historian Robin D.G. Kelley and others. One of the no…

Japanese edition.  180 gram vinyl, comes with Ob A fantastic electric album from one of the most unique bassists of the 70s – Blow Up is one of the most sough-after titles from the acclaimed Three Blind Mice catalog. Isao Suzuki's Blow-Up is virtuosity and class all rolled up into one. A great combination of upbeat blues and mellow grooves! The album was awarded "Jazz of Japan" Award and the Jazz Disc Award of "Swing Journal" in 1973."This adventurous set finds Suzuki and his band mates (drumme…

In 1975, the New York City alto saxophonist Alan Braufman released his debut album, Valley of Search on the India Navigation label. Recorded at the now legendary 501 Canal St. loft, the album was heralded by Village Voice jazz critic Gray Giddins, who wrote, "These are the musicians who are taking the chances today and their gifts and commitment ought to be attended." Braufman went on to record and tour with everyone from Carla Bley to The Psychedelic Furs, and didn't release another album under…

*2024 stock* "One can only imagine what the reaction of the average jazz fan was in 1960 when this session was recorded. This is a wonderful document from early in Taylor's career, when he was midway between modernist approaches to standard material and his own radical experiments that would come to full fruition a few years hence... What's extra amazing is how deeply entrenched the blues feel and pulse are in this music, already bound for the further reaches of abstraction. They never left Tayl…

The seventh album from Splashgirl, “More Human” is made in collaboration with singer/sound artist Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe, and producer Randall Dunn. The album title, “More Human”, explores the role of humanity in a society increasingly reliant on technology, where artists face direct competition from artificial intelligence.