Jazz & Improvisation / Avant-Garde Jazz

The newest installment in Unrock’s ongoing Saraswati Series is the most rebellious and wildest to date. Again an intercontinental output. A dangerous, electric brew filled with exotic aroma from Cairo’s sound guerilla, Alan Bishop (Sun City Girls), Maurice Louca (Karkhana) and Sam Shalabi (Land of Kush, Karkhana). The always changing face of Dwarfs of East Agouza, shows them  in a feverish mode and adrenalin rush. Massive eruptions fight genuine flow. Sultans of Unrock. Chris Corsano and Bill Or…

*In process of stocking* In Motions, Vol. 1, Francisco Mela and Shinya Lin create an album of improvised textures and thrilling exploratory sounds. Using drum sets and prepared piano, they create a lush soundscape of textures, imagining a scene reminiscent of a jungle, full of life, resources, and possibility. “It was a huge pleasure to have Mela’s presence and his mentorship was amazing, free of selves, the music came out just naturally from our souls,” says Shinya about their first collaborati…

'Amiri Baraka (LeRoi Jones) spoke the truth (and the truth under his tongue was sometimes a hammer, sometimes an anvil, sometimes a sickle, sometimes just a breath or a blast). Baraka had no tongue in cheek. Sometimes he drew his language (his thought) and in the barrel of his language (his thought), there was the cartridge of criticism, the cartridge of ranting, the cartridge of analysis, the cartridge of sedition, the cartridge of poetry, the cartridge of music. Heroes Are Gang Leaders have th…

'The Uproar in Bursts of Sound and Silence is a sort of emergent collage that came together over four years of composition, improvisation, and production. The foundations for this album were initially recorded in 2018 by producer/engineer Jack Endino (Nirvana, Soundgarden, Mudhoney, Skinyard) at Soundhouse in Seattle, WA with myself (Evan Strauss, electric bass and upright bass), 5-Track (Guitar) and Sheridan Riley (Drums). The initial foundations of this music consisted of my long-form graphica…

Live was mostly recorded on November 1st, 2019, at Haus der Berliner Festspiele in Berlin, Germany, during the 2019 edition of JazzFest Berlin. For Angel Bat Dawid and her band Tha Brothahood – which includes Deacon Otis Cooke, Viktor Le Givens, Xristian Espinoza, Norman W. Long, Dr. Adam Zanolini, and Asher Simiso Gamedze – it was the first stop of their first European tour.  Forty-eight hours before the show, Angel and members of the band were on their way to the airport in Chicago when they r…

*2022 stock. In process of stocking* 'Fred Anderson is from Chicago, a city like Detroit known for the strength of its music scene. High time that he was shown in the light of this great quartet session, Birdhouse. Anderson’s association with Hamid Drake has germinated here with Anderson’s quartet giving a searching performance of his [Anderson’s] compositions. Birdhouse reflects that kind of powerful play where the roots are so strong, the music can evolve farther without losing the thread of i…

*2022 stock. In process of stocking* AALY Trio (Gustafsson, Nordeson, Flaten) on left channel; DKV Trio (Vandermark, Kessler, Drake) on right channel.Recorded September 23, 1999 at Airwave Studios, Chicago.Track 2 is a long performance with an index point at the start of the Awake Nu theme.

*2022 stock. In process of stocking* 'Recorded live during the “Women of New Music” festival in Chicago, [this] OkkaDisk set is marred — Crispell-wise — only by having the piano mixed down too low and occasionally swamped by saxophone and percussion. Otherwise it finds her in thoroughly sympathetic company. Anderson’s diction is Coltrane-influenced but generously... This seems like a relationship written in the stars, and it allows them to build up whole areas of interaction in which the exchang…

*2022 stock. In process of stocking* Fred Anderson & DKV Trio is an excellent jazz album that captures the high level of musicianship possessed by these top Chicago players. Heard here are saxophonist Fred Anderson (founding member of the AACM), percussionist Hamid Drake, bassist Kent Kessler, and reeds man Ken Vandermark. With this group, there is no "warming up"; they're hot from the opening notes. "Planet E" is the first cut, and within no time the fire is stoked and the musicians move, wail,…

*2022 stock* "The rhythm section is thunderous in general with Nilssen-Love providing polyrhythmic barrage fire to Brötzmann’s assaults. It is a vortex of sounds – some shrieking, others almost torn, spat, even puked – owing credits both to hardcore and to Dadaistic sound poems, sharing their free rhythms, their devoted declamation and their rejection of conventional form and content. Trio Roma is a supremely passionate and committed group." -Martin Schray, Free Jazz Blog

'Both bassists had made regular appearances in Victo over the past two decades, but no one in the audience could have guessed that it would be Kowald's last. The German improviser died in New York City four months later. The French-Canadian radio was not recording this concert, but the mixing desk engineer kept a tape rolling, just in case, and negotiations toward the release of this performance were already in progress when fate struck. There is magic on this record, especially in the last minu…

*In process of stocking* Spectacular mystical jazz infused psychedelics from Canary islands cult band GAF. Adopting a series of different addendums to their names (Love Supreme Arkestra, La Estrela de la Muerte, etc) to illustrate what mutation or influence they are feeding through at the time of recording, the Love Supreme Arkestra here being the more Coltrane-ish (Alice more than John) and Sun Ra-esque influenced the matic of the project. Over a series of 7 huge sounding themes, we can hear sa…

“We’re improvisers first and we’re bringing “moment music” into these other zones of hip hop and electronic music, drum-machine music, sound-system culture… Acoustic musicians sun-kissed by electro-magnetism, flowing out into everything. This is the shit that we want to be playing on big ass systems. Omnivorous, energy space time, mosh pit dance-music. Get it in the subwoofers so you can feel it hit, cuz the music has to begin in the body!” – jaimie branch jaimie branch and Jason Nazary are Ante…

**Last Copies** Edition of 300. A long and profound relationship between two radical improvisors has transformed into a multiverse of sound in three pieces. On a curious day in Paris, John Butcher fell into his saxophone and ventured deep into its farthest corners. At the same time Rhodri Davies and his harp slowly merged into an otherwise unknown creature. As always John and Rhodri were adventurously exploring their respective instruments, and in its own singular fashion ‘Drunk on Dreams’ shows…

Recently rediscovered while digging through our vaults, this is the original 1984 vinyl edition of the album. It doesn't get any better than this! This is an album featuring octet led by the Milanese musician Giorgio Gaslini.

Lefto presents Jazz Cats volume 2, features a balance of known and obscure artists. From the thrilling frenetic grooves and innovative soundscapes of Bandler Ching and the electronic influenced Stellar Legions (Andrew Claes from (STUFF.), to the jazz fusion collective LũpḁGangGang and weaving musical odyssey that is M.Chuzi, ‘Lefto presents Jazz Cats volume 2’ is a melting pot of the best musical talent coming out one of the smallest countries in Europe. In addition, there’s the beautiful unease…

“Orbit of Sound” is the new release from composer/double bassist Max Johnson’s newest trio, with Anna Webber on tenor saxophone/flute, and Michael Sarin on drumset. Formed in 2018, the trio traverses tightly knit composed music and patient, sprawling improvised textures, highlighting all three individual voices as improvisers. The trio completed their inaugural tour of Europe in February & March, having to cancel their final concert and subsequent recording due to the pandemic, delaying the reco…

The music on this album was not preconceived or premeditated in any way whatsoever. The ensemble's method of collaboration has been to begin playing without any discussion of what is to be played or how the music should be approached. The group was formed after a number of informal, but fruitful sessions. It was unanimous among the group that the musical chemistry and dynamic we shared was fertile enough to merit further exploration. « We went into the recording studio after several years of enj…

'The musical lineage within the small circle of bassist Max Johnson's trio is unquestionably among the finest in cutting-edge jazz. The leader has played with bassist William Parker, alto legend Anthony Braxton, trombonist Steve Swell and drummer Tyshawn Sorey. In the case of Johnson's current trio, his drummer, Ziv Ravitz, is also a member of the Lee Konitz Quartet and has performed with Joe Lovano, Tomasz Stanko, Aaron Parks and many others. Kirk Knuffke ranks as an equal to Rob Mazurek and Ta…

Toronto-based octet Eucalyptus has been steadily gathering a devoted cult following since the release of their debut 10” Eeeeeuuucaaaaaaallyyypppptus in 2012. Led by acclaimed saxophonist and composer Brodie West, the band's languid, kaleidoscopic jazz is very much a collective endeavour, the product of an internal network of improvisational synergy they've built over more than a decade together. Moves is their sixth release, and somewhat of a milestone. In addition to it being the octet's most …

The members of the all-star Artifacts Trio – flutist Nicole Mitchell, cellist Tomeka Reid and drummer Mike Reed – have long been recognized as torchbearers of Chicago’s innovative jazz scene, as well as the most prominent performer-educators in the third generation of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Music (AACM), the historically vital, leading-edge Chicago arts organization. The trio served on the organization's executive board from 2009–2011, and their music advances the organi…

'Sometimes a piece of music seems to trigger a sense of déjà vu. I had that experience listening to the Nick Mazzarella Trio’s new recording. It was as if all the things that had caught my sincere attention for some years was suddenly distilled into one set of compositions. That was an illusion, as déjà vu always is; however, it was not without some substance. I heard traces of traces of Andrew Cyrille, Steve Lacy, and Fred Anderson. This recording hit me like some of those did. The beginning of…

'Obstacle Illusion is born out of my love for a wide array of musics that I've experienced and studied over the years. The album includes edited live concert recordings from my 3-month European tour at the end of 2021 (Centro d'Arte in Padova, AngelicA Festival in Bologna and the Rassegna di Nuova Musica in Macerata). The first and fourth tracks are solo acoustic piano. The second and third tracks are solely with the Korg Wavestate: all live, no overdubs. This music is the result of a collaborat…

*All tracks previously unreleased. Stereophonic sound. In process of stocking* Featuring the classic KTG frontline of Marc Charig, Nick Evans and Elton Dean with rhythm section appearances by British jazz luminaries Jeff Clyne, Trevor Tomkins, Roy Babbington and Bryan Spring. These six previously unreleased live studio tracks were recorded for broadcast purposes in January and August of 1970, between the group’s two now seminal British jazz/rock releases for the Polydor and Vertigo labels respec…

"A true music lover typically has dreams that their favorite musicians, who do not normally work one with another, will meet and perform together. I had a dream many years ago that the two Giants of contemporary improvised music, Joëlle Léandre and Barry Guy play a double bass duo together. And my dream became true at the 2017 Ad Libitum in Warsaw in Festival, and was released by Fundacja Słuchaj! on a phenomenal 3 CDs box “Blue Horizon ● Barry Guy@70”. Here is another dream realized by Fundacja…

*In process of stocking* "This is the first release in a series of albums on Smalltown Supersound with Norwegian freeform pianist Anja Lauvdal. On All My Clothes, Lauvdal teams up with her friend, the reclusive and now retired(?) Norwegian drummer Joakim Heibø for a session in the great tradition of piano and drums at Flerbruket Studios, Hemnes outside of Oslo. Anja (born 1987) is from the small town of Flekkefjord in the south of Norway (where Smalltown Supersound was founded) and from the age …

The complete session finally back on CD! Recorded in Stockholm on October 25th, 1962, this session marks one of Ayler's earliest recordings, featuring a European backing group he assembled during his brief stay there, before returning to the States in 1963 and beginning his legendary run with ESP-Disk and Impulse! Though his genius was not yet fully formed, one can easily hear he's headed that direction, and this rare and long out of print recording is an essential piece of the history of one Am…

'There is a beguiling sense of simplicity in the complexity of le temps. In the scale of its orchestra - containing at least samulnori, clubs, bicycle bells, and bathtub plugs - that could be confused for just the kit. In the breadth of technique, in opening, closing, rubbing, and other gestures that confront the ear with a blown snare but could otherwise pass as traditional play. In the seemingly singular focus on one aspect of the kit in each vignette, the metal of rims and cymbals in “ouvertu…

Trost presents: Ame - Live At Artacts 2020 by Uruk. Recorded live at Artacts, Alte Gerberei, St.Johann, March 7th 2020. Mastering by Martin Siewert released April 8, 2022 Isabelle Duthoit – clarinet, voice Franz Hautzinger – quarter-tone trumpet Hamid Drake – percussion, frame drum, voice Michael Zerang – percussion, frame drum

Sdban Records presents Utopic Cities: Progressive Jazz in Belgium 1968-1979 featuring twelve essential compositions from a highly creative period in Belgian jazz. The release follows Sdban's critically acclaimed Let's Get Swinging: Modern Jazz in Belgium 1950-1970, released back in 2017. Utopic Cities is an eclectic selection of forward-thinking jazz from the Belgian underground, including the left-field fusion of Marc Moulin's Placebo, Koen De Bruyne and Solis Lacus; the intense post-bop of Jac…

Reissue. Originally released in 1981. "A two-LP set on Theresa, Rejoice features Pharoah Sanders in excellent form in 1981. Sanders sounds much more mellow than he had a decade earlier, often improvising in a style similar to late-'50s John Coltrane, particularly on 'When Lights Are Low,' 'Moments Notice,' and 'Central Park West.' The personnel changes on many of the selections and includes such top players as pianists Joe Bonner and John Hicks, bassist Art Davis, drummers Elvin Jones and Billy …

'Ra to the Rescue was initially pressed in limited quantities in 1983, but several of its tracks subsequently were reissued with incongruous tracks on the albums (commonly referred to as) When Spaceships Appear, Cosmo-Party Blues, Somewhere There, and Children of the Sun. Those album "titles" are in many cases simply the names of the first track on a particular side (these were scribbled in pen on otherwise blank labels). To complicate matters, some tracks were retitled for reasons that shall fo…

We Jazz Records presents "Pu:", the boundary-breaking solo debut of bass player Ville Herrala. Herrala utilises only the double bass but approaches the instrument from various different perspectives. The end result is an inspired set of 14 miniatures, each pushing the concept forward in a highly personal way. The first single "Pu: 12" presents a rhythmic approach with echoes of from the world of minimal classical music and electronic music. Bowed tracks such as "Pu: 2" offer another perspective,…

We Jazz Records presents the debut album of AINON, a Helsinki-based ensemble founded by cellist-composer Aino Juutilainen, released 4 September. On "Drought", the four-piece plays music influenced by jazz, contemporary music and classical music, all morphed together into a highly inspired musical vision. The music of AINON might be best described as "spiritual avantgarde jazz", with original compositions and the individual voices of the four players both playing an integral part in the music. In…

Gothenburg trio Dark Horse present their new album "Listen", released by We Jazz Records. The band, comprising of John Holmström (piano), Alfred Lorinius (bass) and Mårten Magnefors (drums) recorded their second album in a remote cabin by the ocean in Norway, owned by Holmström's family. The natural sound of the album owes a lot to the relaxed surroundings and the result is some high degree of improvised music turning into collective composition as the music unfolds.  The album recording took pl…

*50 copies limited edition* Unlearned free jazz recorded to magnetic tape in an oblong, steel box. Storage Music Unit is: Derek Dunn - guitar, contact mics Zachary Hickerson - alto saxophone, game calls Syoma Klochko - drums, percussion, miscellaneous instruments. Recorded on reel-to-reel tape by Derek Dunn in October 2020

An exciting live performance recorded at the festival Konfrontationen Nickelsdorf in 2006, featuring six early compositions by Anthony Braxton arranged for the band by Pat Thomas. When Discus Music asked Pat what recording he had in his personal archive that he would most like to see released, this one was the first choice. Pat’s arrangements of these angular melodies allow Alex Ward’s stratospheric clarinet to fly over the band’s churning grooves, and much excitement was generated in the proces…

'During the first lockdown of the Covid era in spring 2020 my creative fire was still burning. All concerts were cancelled, but I still wanted to play and improvise. That's were the idea for long-distance improvisation came up. I sent emails to some of my friends and other musicians who I admired and hoped that they might be interested in doing such a project. I'm really happy that some of the best improvisers in Europe were happy to participate in this project. I'm such a fan of all these playe…

A live (first class quality) recording of the duo from 2002 - from the personal archives of Tony Oxley.

Mycorrhiza is the term describing the symbiotic relationship between mycorrhizal fungi and a plants root system. The fungi forms networks between the trees, allowing them to communicate. Often nicknamed the ‘wood wide web’, the network allows trees to send each other nutrients and warn each other about predators such as bugs, deer, or harmful pathogens. This album is inspired by natural systems like this and is concerned about the human impact and the corruption surrounding it. The album flows l…