2017 jazz

What are the best jazz releases from this year?

I can't tell you that. I can only tell you what I like.

Matt Chandler - Astrometrics
Toufic Farroukh - Villes Invisibles
Lars Danielsson - Liberetto III

Really wanted to like that since I enjoy his studio stuff but the band is pretty meh.

Miguel Zenon - Tipico
Tigran Hiramayan - An Ancient Observer

For this 2017 release Puerto Rican alto saxophonist Miguel Zenon returns to the quartet lineup that he has not explored on an album exclusively since 2009's "Esta Plena." For those unfamiliar with the Miguel Zenon quartet, it consists of Zenon, Venezuelan pianist Luis Perdomo, bassist Hans Glawischnig, and drummer Henry Cole. Recorded in 2016, the album is a self-released project, funded by a Kickstarter crowdsourcing campaign.

Zenon's music largely follows the aesthetic he has previously established with his previous quartet releases. The compositions are riddled with complex polyrhythms and knotty counterpoing, always handled nimbly by the rhythm section. The opening track, "Academia" is a good example, beginning with an ostinato piano pattern before Zenon and the rest of the band let loose with a roller-coaster of a melody that seems to push and pull at the underlying current of the music. A standout track, "Entre las Raices" is no less complex, but finds the quartet exploring melody in a much less structured form. Beginning with a free improvisation, a rhythmically-driven written melody eventually reveals itself, but soon the band delves back into interactive free improvisation territory.

Though the music can probably be most accurately identified as post-bop, Zenon's (and Perdomo's) roots in traditional Latin music shine through often. The title track hints at a clave feel with another ostinato piano pattern harmonized in thirds and reminiscent of a traditional montuno. The track is an excellent example of how Zenon blends the complexities of modern jazz with his folkloric roots. Another obvious example of the folkloric aspect of Zenon's music is the closing track "Las Ramas" which begins with a simple piano progression and a whistled melody that has an air of tradition to it.

Also included are several lovely ballads. On "Cantor" Zenon's earnestly expressive tone is the highlight, though Perdomo's sensitive and richly colorful voicings add the perfect compliment. "Sangre de mi Sangre" begins as a delicate ballad with a Latin tinge but slowly develops to an exciting and energetic climax. Throughout the album Zenon and Perdomo shine in their solos, easily guiding the rest of the band through tricky rhythmic and harmonic material, but Glawischnig's and Cole's contribution should not be overlooked. They play with a close sense of interaction, referencing the form of the tune, while also remaining flexible and attentive to both main soloists.

Overall, it's another very strong statement from this quartet which long ago proved itself to be one of the best working groups in American jazz. Despite the complexity of many of the compositions and the subsequent improvisation, the music remains accessible and rooted in a folkloric tradition. Zenon's compositions serve as a strong canvas for the band, but in the end, it's the incredible chemistry of the quartet and their close musical interplay that push the music beyond "good" and make it exceptional. Highly recommended.

Intriguing but accessible avant-garde compositions, that are mostly very successful
Alto saxophonist Michaël Attias continues his association with the Clean Feed label with his 2017 release, "Nerve Dance." For this program of original compositions Attias has assembled a quartet of luminaries in the avant-garde jazz world: Cuban pianist Aruan Ortiz, bassist John Hebert, and drummer Nasheet Waits.

This music can best be classified as free jazz, though it's also clear that a good bit of the music is also carefully composed. It's not always clear where composition ends and improvisation begins however. An obvious example of composed material comes in "La Part Maudite," when Attias and Ortiz combine on an slippery, angular melody for the majority of the track, with Hebert and Waits following carefully, but by the end of the track all four players have split apart, creating a disparate but interestingly layered sound. Other tracks take the opposite approach. "Dark Net" begins with what appears to be an open improvisation, but at some point the players merge and it becomes clear that they are now playing written parts.

In general the interplay of the group is excellent. The quartet proves able to handle a loose, but corporeal groove on "Rodger Lodge," but also able to move beyond rhythm and harmony in "Le Pese-Nerfs" as Attias builds to an emotional climax that the rhythm section matches. The intensity of the track is nice, especially since the bulk of the album tends toward a more reserved dynamic level. The music often favors rich, thick harmony (thanks to Ortiz's lovely voicings) and sonic, textural color (from Attias's extended sax techniques) but occasionally the pieces lack a strong melodic intent. Luckily, "Boca de Luna" brings a nice melodic approach, with a spacious duet between Attias and Ortiz that serves as an intro for the subdued, but harmonically colorful "Moonmouth." The closing track, "Nasheet" also has a simple and effective melody which, though short, seems to inspire Attias to some of his most melodic improvising on the record.

It's a very successful album overall, and a relatively accessible approach to avant-garde compositions that is nonetheless deep enough to merit plenty of repeated listening. The generally subdued tone of the pieces give the quartet a nice starting point and let them build to meaningful peaks, which they do quite well. The four musicians seem to share a single mind as they come and go from the composed material and seem to be building towards a singular goal musically. Melodic intent is not the quartet's strong suit, but thanks to the generally well-crafted compositions and the highly dynamic playing of his chosen rhythm section, this easily stands out as some of Attias's best work yet.

thanks senpai.

Saxophone giant Chris Potter's third release on the ECM label scales things back somewhat from the ambitiousness of his first two releases, 2013's "The Sirens," and 2015's "Imaginary Cities." This time around Potter records within a simple quartet format including pianist David Virelles, bassist Joe Martin, and drummer Marcus Gilmore.

The album starts off in a mostly subdued tone with "Heart in Hand," a mostly rubato piece that focuses largely on Potter's graceful melodic stylings and Virelles deep harmonic sensibilities and how these two combine. A strong beat emerges quickly on "Ilimba" with Potter opening the piece by playing the underlying rhythmic structure on the Tanzanian instrument for which the piece is named. Here the full power of the quartet is on display, with Martin and Gilmore keeping the driving rhythm going behind Potter's and Virelles' loose and highly interactive improvisations. Potter picks up his bass clarinet for the beautiful melody of the title track. The piece is surprisingly simple harmonically, but the quartet manages to expand nicely on the theme as Potter eventually switches back to tenor to finish out the tune.

"Memory and Desire" builds slowly, beginning with pure sonic abstraction, then a spacious duet between Potter (now on soprano) and Virelles before the colorful and impressionistic tune itself is revealed. "Yosadhara" is possibly the compositional highlight of the program, with a long form that continues to develop over its ten minutes, interspersed with bouts of free-leaning improvisation that really highlight the flexibility and interactivity of the quartet. Virelles shines throughout the piece, with particularly nice comping behind Potter's playing, but also a wonderfully abstract solo of his own that seems to challenge and inspire the rhythm section. "Sonic Anomaly" continues the mood with a loosely funky feel that feels stylistically similar to Potter's prior compositions. Once again the interplay of the quartet is spot-on, and the piece works well, ending the album on a triumphal note.

Potter's compositions on this album are less grand in their scope than on his two previous ECM releases, though this allows him to focus more on the improvisation and interaction of the small group, which is one of his (and the other three members of the quartet's) main strengths. The quartet succeeds in this aim throughout the album, though Potter and Virelles in particular take the spotlight quite often, and Martin and Gilmore occasionally feel slightly neglected. A greater focus on the quartet as a whole could have made this a more interesting listen, but the album is still very successful and once again confirms Potter's place as one of contemporary jazz's most important players and composers.

For this 2017 release cornetist Kirk Knuffke carries on his long association with the SteepleChase label with a trio album dedicated to trumpet and cornet legend Don Cherry. The program mixes pieces by Cherry and Cherry's long time colleague, Ornette Coleman. Joining Knuffke in the trio are label regulars, bassist Jay Anderson and drummer Adam Nussbaum.

Though Cherry's (and Coleman's) oeuvre consisted of quite a bit of free and avant garde jazz, Knuffke focuses in on the post-bop end of the composers' works with irrepressibly grooving pieces like the opener, "Roland Alphonso," and "Jayne." With the minimalist trio format, Knuffke's fluid tone is at the forefront of the music and he proves able to expertly handle everything from delicate ballad lines, to bluesy bop riffs, to the more extreme sonic excursions that Cherry was known for. Anderson and Nussbaum handle the compositions well, often with well-defined grooves and a clear knowledge of Cherry's melodies, but they also offer a pleasing sense of flexibility, shifting between funky grooves, to tight swing, to more loose, floaty feels seemingly at will.

Even though the trio focuses on more groove-oriented interpretations of the pieces, the abstract sides of the composers are represented as well. Cherry's "Song in D" is played with a spacious, minimalist feel that offers the trio a chance to explore pure melody and color in free time. Even at their free-est however, the trio still puts an emphasis on melody. "Mind and Time" finds Knuffke and Anderson doubling a loose interpretation of the Coleman melody while Nussbaum adds percussive undercurrent of texture rather than a strict time feel and the improvisation quickly delves into free territory. Coleman's "Lonely Woman" is probably the most well-known song on the program, and the trio's short rendition of the tune is little more than a meditation on the haunting melody by the entire trio. "Cherryco" closes out the album on a high note, with the trio doing some of their most intense playing, especially Nussbaum who outdoes himself with some really fantastic drumming.

It's a very nice album overall. The trumpet trio format is a slightly unusual one, and one that leaves all the players very exposed, but these three players prove they are more than up to the challenge and the Cherry/Coleman compositions prove to be perfect for the setting. The trio takes a fairly varied approach to the tunes, though they emphasize melody and groove, making the album fairly accessible, but also musically deep.

This 2017 release by pianist Matthew Shipp for the hatOLOGY label consists of a complete live performance, recorded May 19, 2016 at the Taktlos Festival.

The 11 pieces flow from one to the next with no space in between, giving the 49 minute concert a very unified and cohesive feel. Shipp's abstracted style of solo playing is immediately recognizable from his trademark low, rumbling bass accents and the shorter pieces in this set are often melodically abstracted and more rhythmically focused. Despite his tendency toward hammering the low end of the piano, Shipp actually manages quite a bit of dynamic contour, especially on the longer tunes.

The longer tunes also feature a surprising level of structure and development in terms of melody and harmony. "Instinctive Touch" presents a simple, but memorable theme, which keeps recurring throughout the piece. "Gamma Ray" finds Shipp simplifying his ideas and focusing on melody and harmony for a hauntingly beautiful effect. The only non-original piece on the program is a heavily deconstructed version of the jazz classic, "Tenderly," which leads nicely into "Monk's Nightmare," drawing inspiration from Monk's playful rhythmic feel and angular melodic sense, but taking the dissonance to the next level. "Blue in Orion" is another high point of the set, with Shipp setting a mood that is almost Baroque in nature.

"Fairplay" serves as the encore to the set, but it's odd that Shipp didn't include the piece as part of the main body of the program. He dives into it with an intensity and focus that make an excellent closing statement, encore or not.

Shipp is certainly experienced in the art of solo piano performances, and this one is definitely up there among his best. The familiar characteristics of his solo playing are all there, but he seems especially focused on flow, structure, and development in this performance, giving the music an accessibility and depth. We're lucky this excellent performance was recorded and released.

why is this user spamming rym reviews??

Considering his prolific work as a sideman, pianist Craig Taborn has put out relatively little material under his own name. "Daylight Ghosts" is his third release as a leader for the German ECM label after his 2011 solo album "Avenging Angel" and 2013's trio outing "Chants." This time around Taborn convenes a quartet with tenor saxophonist Chris Speed (also doubling on clarinet), bassist Chris Lightcap, and drummer Dave King for a program of original music.

As fans of Taborn's previous albums might expect, a central facet of this music is a blending of free improvisation with carefully composed structure. Most of the pieces have progressive forms, which move through several moods and sections that are sometimes clearly defined and marked, and other times blurred and gradual. Most of the tracks have an underlying sense of groove, at times even overt, and dance-like, and even occasionally even builds around repeated ostinato and vamp figures. The title track is a good example of these characteristics. The piece begins as a delicate duet between Speed and Taborn before the rest of the quartet layers in to reveal a written tone-poem played in unison by Taborn and Speed. An interactive and improvisation by the band around the melodic theme leads gradually back into the statement of the theme which in turn leads into a bright and surprisingly simple ostinato pattern from Taborn that serves as the anchor for the second half of the piece.

This idea of repetition also shows up on the final track, "Phantom Ratio," this time with Taborn and Lightcap playing a darkly funky pattern underneath most of the song. It feels slightly out of place with the rest of the album and makes for a somewhat odd ending to the album, but luckily the rest of the album is consistently strong. One especially strong point comes during the extended and highly interactive improvisation by the entire quartet on "Abandoned Reminder," where each member of seems to be contributing in equal measure. Another standout is "Ancient," in which the band begins with an improvisation and builds slowly into the written section. As the piece continues to grow, the band layers knotty melodic lines together with impressive dramatic effect.

It's another very strong release from Taborn, showing a slightly different side of his musical concept; one that is very subtly influenced by modern electronic and dance music. At the heart of the music though are Taborn's distinctive harmonic colors and strong compositions that incorporate interactive improvisation.

To answer the question posed by OP

>jazz
>2017

wat

This 2017 release is trumpeter Josh Lawrence's third as a leader and his first for the Posi-tone label. In it, he explores a suite of original compositions with bandmates alto saxophonist Caleb Curtis, trombonist Brent White, pianist Orrin Evans who alternates with Adam Faulk on Fender rhodes, bassist Madison Rast, and drummer Anwar Marshall.

The theme of the suite is "colors," with most of the titles taking their names and apparently, their inspirations from colors. These pieces draw largely from the post-bop tradition, though Lawrence's elegant and understated horn arrangements also give the compositions a modern edge. The program divides up fairly equally between Orrin Evans' acoustic piano and Adam Faulk's Fender rhodes, but the two can be heard together on the chilled-out "Purple."

Evans lends his typically adventurous sound to the tracks that he plays on and seems to bring out some of the best playing from Lawrence, especially on the energetic, post-boppy swing of "Presence," and the vaguely Latin "Red!". This is contrasted nicely by Faulk's colorful harmonies on rhodes for the more restrained pieces. "An Uptown Romance" is one of the better ballads, with a laid-back waltz feel and expressive trumpet playing underscored perfectly by the electric piano. "Green" is slightly more upbeat, but still played with a relaxed manner with Lawrence using a mute to achieve the distinctly 'cool' sound.

Curtis proves to be a good match for Lawrence, countering his somewhat restrained playing with a slightly more adventurous approach. Curtis takes a very nice extended solo and adds a dramatic edge to "The Conceptualizer," but he probably sounds at his best while trading phrases with Lawrence on the high-energy "Presence," with both of them spurred on by Evans' aggressive comping.

It's an excellent album overall, presenting a cohesive suite of strong original music and building on the compositions with expressive and nuanced improvisation. The alternating of electric and acoustic pianos gives the music a nice sense of contrast and balance that works well for Lawrence's "colors" concept. Recommended.

Saagara- 2

really refreshing jazz fusion that brings western and eastern together in a pretty novel fashion.

For his 2017 release, bassist Mario Pavone returns to the Clean Feed label for his second release under their banner. This time around, Pavone explores a four-horn sextet format fronted by trumpeter Dave Ballou, saxophonist Tony Malaby, clarinetist Oscar Noriega, trombonist Peter McEachern, while drummer Mike Sarin joins Pavone in the rhythm section.

The set is comprised of eleven original pieces which vary widely in length, and whose titles seem to outline a geometric theme that winds through the album. The four-horn frontline yields a wide palette of possible colors and textures, (especially with Malaby doubling on tenor/soprano and Noriega on soprano/bass clarinets) and Pavone's compositions take advantage of these possibilities, sometimes voicing a single melodic line colorfully between all four horns, like in "Ellipse," or "Start Oval," and sometimes using the four horns to create dense, knotty counterpoint, like in the excellent "Cube Code."

Pavone assumes the leadership role in the group with thick, commanding basslines that are thankfully high in the mix. The compositions of the tunes are often structured around the potent grooves that he and Sarin create together and as the horns improvise, the grooves liquify and become less defined, (though no less potent,) forming a conversational dialogue that creates a shifting canvas for the colorful horn solos. The soloists join the interplay at times, though they also seem comfortable in the role of adding sonic color to the more interesting improvisation going on between Pavone and Sarin.

There is a fair amount of variety among the compositions, though even more variety could have yielded a better album overall. One composition in particular that stands out is titled "Horizontal." The piece introduces two distinct themes, first a brightly dissonant chorale from Ballou, Malaby, and Noriega, then a blustery march from McEachern and the rhythm section. The two themes bounce back and forth, before they combine to finish out the short, but exceptionally well-crafted composition.

Overall the album is a very nice meshing of composition and free improvisation. The four horn players all have plenty of opportunity to solo (both individually, and in various combinations) and explore some interesting melodic and sonic territory, but what really makes the album work is the excellent rhythmic backdrop that Pavone and Sarin provide. It's deep music that will definitely reward close, repeated listening.

Personal favorite, and I've heard a few dozen, but nothing that's actually in this thread.
Does anyone have a link for the new Orchestra of the Upper Atmosphere album?

"December Avenue" is the second album by legendary Polish tumpeter Tomasz Stanko to feature his "New York Quartet." That quartet includes pianist David Virelles, and drummer Gerald Cleaver, with Reuben Rogers filling the bass chair for Thomas Morgan who played on the quartet's previous release, 2103's "Wisława." This new album, released in 2017, continues Stanko's long association with the ECM record label.

The program consists entirely of original compositions that vary in nature from sparse, free minimalism, to more composed pieces, often based on simple melodies or rhythms. The ECM style is perfectly accommodating of the quartet's approach, and the lush, reverby soundspace of the album often highlights Stanko's dark, breathy, and fluid tone.

The rhythm section supports Stanko impeccably, playing with careful restraint and subtlety on pieces like "Bright Moon" and introductory/conclusory nature of the opening and closing tracks. Meanwhile they also prove capable of simmering grooves on tracks like "Burning Hot" or "Yankiels Lid." Most of the pieces have repetitive themes and rhythms that draw the listener in, but the band relies on subtle variations and abstractions in these themes to keep the music engaging. Virelles' piano playing is a highlight throughout, and his thick, modernistic harmonizations are responsible for a large percentage of the music's characteristic dark beauty. Rogers' bass work also deserves commendation; his tastefully melodic playing often seems to be the connecting link between the other three members of the quartet, whose playing at times becomes quite disparate.

One of the more interesting tracks that serves as a good illustration of the duality of the quartet's music is "Sound Space." The first half of the piece is an exercise in aggressive minimalism, with low-volume improvisation by Virelles and Rogers creating a dark, desolate soundscape. In the last minute of the track however, Virelles erupts into a loud, furious dance across the keyboard that stands in surprising contrast to the beginning of the piece.

It's interesting music that takes its time to get where it's going, but once it's there, attentive listeners will find the journey worth it. Stanko's compositions are simple, but effective and have enough variety to keep the album engaging. His rich and unique tone give the pieces a palpable sense of feeling and emotion and the rest of the quartet plays with impressive sympathy and ingenuity. Fans of minimalistic jazz who have plenty of patience will find this a very worthwhile listen.