By Ross Boissoneau, Something Else! Then there’s the disc from the 8-Bit Big Band: Released on Jan. 8, Backwards Compatible explores the further reaches of the so-called Great Video Game Songbook. The third such album from Tony-nominated Charlie Rosen, his inspiration is some of the most beloved video game franchises of all time: Sonic the … Read More
EVENT ANNOUNCEMENT: Svetlana and The New York Collective To Tour NIGHT AT THE MOVIES This February
Touring Amidst The Pandemic Svetlana and The New York Collective Receives Jazz Road Touring Grant; Will Tour New Project Night at the Movies This Year and Introducing Night At The Movies – on Vinyl First leg to bring award-winning singer through North and South Carolina in February Second leg this Fall; details announced soon Svetlana … Read More
NEW RELEASE: Jihye Lee Orchestra’s Sophomore Album DARING MIND Due Out March 26, 2021
Motéma Welcomes Jihye Lee Orchestra; Sophomore Album Daring Mind out on March 26, 2021 Motéma Music is proud to announce the release of Daring Mind, the sophomore album by the Jihye Lee Orchestra, which streets on March 26, 2021. Produced by Lee, in collaboration with the innovative composer and Secret Society bandleader Darcy James Argue, and … Read More
REVIEW: ‘Live from the Prison Nation’ by Alonzo Demetrius – Occhi Magazine
By Jonathan Blackman, Occhi Magazine Whoever says jazz is dead clearly has not heard Alonzo Demetrius. The young trumpeter not only has language on the instrument and paired it with electronic effects, but he is also an amazing composer. His live recording “Live from the Prison Nation” is as real as it gets. The performance … Read More
INTERVIEW: Thana Alexa – Jazz London Radio
By Laurie Burnette, Jazz London Radio Laurie Burnette interviewed vocalist and composer Thana Alexa to discuss her excellent CD ONA, released in spring 2020 and nominated for a Grammy for Best Jazz Vocal Album. Listen to this interview here.
REVIEW: The 8-Bit Big Band’s ‘Backwards Compatible’ – Lucid Culture
by Delarue, Lucid Culture The 8-Bit Big Band are one of the most improbably successful brands in music. They own the franchise on lavishly orchestrated, jazz-oriented arrangements of video game themes. They have more of a following in the video game world than in jazz circles, maybe because much of what they play is closer to action … Read More
REVIEW: Santi Debriano’s ‘Flash of the Spirit’ – Making a Scene
by Jim Hynes, Making a Scene “..The album title seems especially apt as Debriano and bandmates seem to glide in and out of many grooves and styles rather seamlessly. At times, just as you feel you might be missing something, you as a listener are placed in a new and different context, flashing from one … Read More
BEST OF 2020: Andy Milne’s ‘The reMISSION’ Ranked By PopMatters
by Will Layman, PopMatters “Andy Milne is a pianist who has often been in the thick of experimentation with form and with jazz collision with hip-hop in certain forms. It’s cool, then, to encounter The Remission, on which he leads a piano trio (with John Hebert on bass and drummer Clarence Penn) assaying two jazz standards … Read More
REVIEW: Leon Lee Dorsey’s ‘Thank You, Mr. Mabern!’ – Glide Magazine
by Jim Hynes, Glide Magazine “Recorded in July 2019, just two months before the passing of great pianist and composer Harold Mabern, Thank You, Mr. Mabern! features the leader, bassist Leon Lee Dorsey, and drummer Mike Clark in a trio. This posthumous release is not only Dorsey’s personal farewell to the beloved Mabern, but marks six decades of music from the pianist … Read More
ANNOUNCEMENT: Dee Daniels’ New Release: ‘Let Freedom Ring (The Ballad of John Lewis)’ Video Now Available
Cellar Music Group is proud to announce the January 18th release of the music video for “Let Freedom Ring (The Ballad of John Lewis)”, the powerful forthcoming single from vocalist Dee Daniels. Filmed at the Christ Church Cathedral in Vancouver, British Columbia, this evocative tune was inspired by the life of US Civil Rights Leader … Read More