Jazz /
Play Mary Lou Williams
It's very rare that Discus Music commissions the actual musical content of a new release from the artists. In this case Martin Archer enjoyed a live gig by the duo so much, which had included one Mary Lou piece, that he suggested to Adam and Johnny after the gig they put together an entire programme of her music for this CD/DL. MLW is, after all, one of Martin's favourite artists.
Adam and Johnny both understand and demonstrate in their playing that new music does not appear out of nowhere. Any …
Babs Robert & The Love Planet
*2025 repress* Despite its modest role on the world stage, Belgium has produced a number of internationally renowned musicians and composers. There is the iconic gypsy jazz guitar maestro Django Reindhart, whose position remains unassailable, and guitarist/harmonica player Toots Thielemans, who became an internationally renowned artist performing and recording with Bill Evans, Oscar Peterson, Ella Fitzgerald, Peggy Lee, Shirley Horn and Quincy Jones. The other key Belgian figure is composer/arra…
Sings With Strings
*110 copies limited edition* Everyone knows Swedish free jazz legend Sven-Åke Johansson kills it on the dancefloor, making Michael Jackson look petite in his three piece suit and killer moves! Nobody flips a cymbal with more style and patience than Sven-Åke! Whether it's a carboard cymbal, a rumbling tractor, Kippenberger's events, a brassband, a fire extinguisher or a lead pipe, anything turns into a stylish instrument in his hands.We've heard him croon before as well, though never as sugary as…
Enos
“Exceptional UK jazz” Gilles Peterson (BBC Worldwide)
“A wonderfully expressive group who have a superbly fresh sense of tone and timing” – Dusty Groove Chicago
The second album by this critically acclaimed jazz quintet from Leeds continues to mature in their newest offering “ENOS” File under UK Modal/Melodic jazz.
Just Us
Two legendary souls, one timeless rhythm—Just Us celebrates the enduring bond between Heikki Sarmanto and Juhani Aaltonen. Born from spontaneous sessions and inspired compositions, these eleven tracks capture their unmatched musical chemistry. A testament to six decades of creative mastery.
Colliding Layers
Multi-talented Alex Figueira is back with a vibrant fusion of tropical rhythms layered with a dazzling array of synth driven psychedelia. A collaboration between Jazzaggression and Music With Soul’s Alex Figueira, Colliding Layers blends his raw tropical sound and psych touch with Pelto Studio’s distinct vibe—resulting in a dynamic, genre-defying library album.
Onilu
Onilu is an all-percussionist trio utilizing the extensive family of drummed and tuned percussion instruments to deliver beautifully composed, arranged and executed small ensemble music. Nothing about this all-percussion band feels rarified, or missing anything musical. To the contrary, Onilu create a soundworld where nothing is missing, and everything is musical -- defying the stereotype of modern percussion ensembles as esoteric or academic pursuits, reaffirming the powerful social and sacred …
Houseplant
Jim Black may be one of the most respected avant jazz drummers on the planet, but when leading his AlasNoAxis quartet, jazz often seems to be the farthest thing from his mind. Perhaps one need only consider the title of the fifth AlasNoAxis CD, 2009’s Houseplant, to realize there’s probably not a lot of jazz here; the title itself doesn’t exactly suggest swinging exuberance or, given the history of Black’s “jazz” output, even crisp and incisive grooves. After all, when contemplating the nearest …
The Ancients
Bomb! The debut recording by The Ancients, the intergenerational coalition of Isaiah Collier, William Hooker and William Parker formed by Parker to play concerts in conjunction with the Milford Graves' “A Mind-Body Deal” exhibition at the Institute of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, and now a working group. Across 2LPs of side-length long-form improvised sets recorded at 2220 Arts & Archives in LA and The Chapel in San Francisco, The Ancients bring the free jazz trio languages first explored by t…
In Between
*2025 stock* Thomas Florin's 2nd solo piano album "In between" released by Konnekt in 04.2020. With the desire of having a free an open-minded approche of music, Geneva based piano player Thomas Florin is working with different kind of Jazz and improvised musics.
Following a first solo release focused on a repetitive and resonating sound research, "In Between" captures the result of a process of hybridization, a minimalist and open-ended approach to a jazz oriented material, leaving a lot of roo…
In The Moment
Makaya McCraven’s International Anthem debut 'In The Moment' is the album that properly introduced the then-burgeoning drummer/producer to the world. In many ways, it also laid the groundwork for a working method that both McCraven and the label have returned to again and again over the years: nearly 48 hours of live improvised performance recorded by IARC house engineer Dave Vettraino at 1 venue over 12 months and 28 shows - culled, cut, rendered, and remixed into 19 potent pieces of organic be…
Alternate Moon Cycles
Rob Mazurek’s 'Alternate Moon Cycles' was International Anthem's first release. The incredibly spare single-note-centered cornet, bass and organ chant was recorded to tape at pint-sized Chicago bar Curio as part of a performance series that predates any notion of our label’s existence. Documenting this performance – highly unique even within the depths of Mazurek’s vast catalog – stirred those notions, and soon talks began of releasing the recording on a fresh imprint. Performed by Mazurek with …
A Blade Because A Blade Is Whole
Tip! Across A Blade Because A Blade Is Whole, DePlume’s reflections on healing, dignity, and struggle are communicated through a stirring assemblage of disparate musics: ghostly and ancient folk melodies, groove-anchored maelstroms of swirling folk-jazz, elegant string arrangements that strike a midpoint between Ravel and Gainsbourg (courtesy of Macie Stewart), disembodied voices reconfiguring into the shape of a post-modern Greek chorus, noir atmosphere, and allegoric, troubadouric song. Throug…
Zlatko Kaučič @ 70 Inklings
If it can be said of someone that he is more than a musician, more than an improviser, more than an artist then it can certainly be said of Slovenian drummer Zlatko Kaucic. Zlatko is a good spirit, he is a man who not only goes down in musical history as a partner of the greatest artists of improvised music, but also as a good spirit. As someone who, when he plays and when he enters a room, the world becomes brighter, wiser and arranged as it should be. This year Zlatko Kaucic turned 70 and his …
Doble Mano
Doble Mano a two-way street, or anything with opposite directions within one road. One-way and two-way roads, imperceptibly moving in one and opposite directions. Similar instruments but from different geographies mirror each other, evoking ambiguity and unlike realities. Likewise, composer, conductor and performers all mirror each other, reflecting the shifting sounds. Laura Andel: "One of the focal points in my search as a composer is the concept of identity linked to the search of ambiguity. …
Temple of Muses
Norwegian guitarist Stian Larsen joins London-based musicians Colin Webster (alto sax), Andrew Lisle (drums), and Ruth Goller (bass) for an exciting collision of energetic free jazz, post-rock and noise that is dynamic, playful and hard-hitting.
The Foreign In Us
After a wonderful concert at the Elastic Arts Foundation, Chicago, the ES Trio (Kwan/Zerang/Steyer), decided to record their music to document this inspiring collaboration. In their trio work they focused on sound oriented pieces, that were nurtured by the individual approaches to their instruments. The duo works of Zerang and Steyer also reflect the work of Steyer concerning instrumental ornamentation, that is inspired by the multi-ethnic, mostly near eastern sounds of the streets in Berlin.
The Dennis Egberth Dynasty
Respected Swedish Drummer and Composer Dennis Egberth Introduces New Sextet in His First Album with 577 Records. If you love the era in which electronic elements began to enter contemporary jazz, you’ll LOVE what Sweden’s Dennis Egberth has been creating. The esteemed drummer/composer introduces us to his hand-chosen ensemble, The Dennis Egberth Dynasty, in the artist’s first album with 577 Records. The self-titled release highlights his creativity, painting a hypnotic soundscape that soothes th…
Colla Voce
What if the blue that I see is different from the blue that you see? This question is an infrastructure for my Afro-Surrealist Anti-Opera, Colla Voce. Often, when we think of Surrealism, we think of subconscious mental states, dreams, nightmares-those unexplored corners of our psyche. But Afro-Surrealism protests: what if that which one calls a ‘dream' is a nightmare to another? What if that which one calls ‘rational' is completely baseless to another? And surely, we must have varying ideas of w…
Polska
*2025 stock* A musical visionary, some outstanding instrumentalists, the 10th anniversary of the collective’s founding, a reflection on Polishness, and finally – a 4,000 km-long walking pilgrimage of 100 solo concerts in 100 temples. These events, symbols, experiences and facts have somehow been combined into one coherent whole – the Polska LP, the first release by Piotr Damasiewicz & Power of the Horns Ensemble since 2013.“Power of the Horns have the ability to captivate audiences of any festiv…