RIP Jay Reatard

As you may know by now, Jay Reatard, née Jimmy Lee Lindsey Jr., passed away in his sleep last night. He lived (and played) fast, that's for sure, but I didn't expect him to die so young. More here.

MOPDtK's Forty Fort is a winner

I have to say that Mostly Other People Do the Killing is fast becoming one of my favorite bands of recent times. 2007's Shamokin!!! won me over with it's high energy and catchy tunes (and remains one of my fave albums of the noughties), the follow up This Is Our Moosic confirmed that here we had a unique and magnificent band with a refreshing take on the jazz idiom, and the new Forty Fort hammers down that they are truly a great band. The record is currently top of my (admittedly early and short) 2010 list.

Forty Fort is available at Dusty Groove America and SquidCo, with more merchants to follow.

Ben Ratliff on NYC Winter Jazzfest

Go read Ben Ratliff's piece on the NYC Winter Jazzfest, which featured Perfect Sounds favorites such as Vijay Iyer, JD Allen Trio, Mike Reed's People Places & Things and others. It drew a crowd of about 2.500 on Saturday. That's a creditable turn out, I think.

2009 Voice Jazz Critic's Poll + Happy New Year

My personal fave jazz records of 2009 with comments will be posted sometime over the weekend. My apologies for the delay. Until then, a happy new year to all readers & music fans (jazz and other), plus a few thoughts on the 2009 Voice Jazz Critics' Poll results that were posted on Tuesday (29th of Dec.).

The list turned out to be pretty interesting. The top two of Vijay Iyer's Historicity and Henry Threadgill's This Brings Us To, Vol. 1 are both great records and near the top of my list, too. Darcy James Argue's on 4th (winner in the debut category) and Steve Lehman's on 5th are also enjoyable releases. My fave of the year, Darius Jones Trio's Man'ish Boy made it into the top 20 (17th, 2nd best debut), while J.D. Allen Trio, David S. Ware and Tyshawn Sorey also made the list. Nice to see Allen Toussaint, Bill Frisell, Wadada Leo Smith and Ben Alison there, too. I've yet to hear the latest Bill Dixon as well as the FLY record.

Dissapointing, though, not to see personal favorites (and great records) such as Fully Celebrated's Drunk On the Holy Ones, Matthew Shipp's Harmonic Disorder, and Mike Reed's About Us anywhere. Perennial entries by Joe Lovano (ok-ish record) and Keith Jarret (yawn) makes me think too many Jazz critics have lazy ears, don't search hard enough for good music anymore, or are plainly just too conservative. Fair enough, I just wanted to have a pop there.

Xgau on Monk

The only thing disappointing thing with this piece on Monk is that Xgau fails to mention Wilbur Ware. For me, Ware's distinct, percussive approach to the bass fit Monk more than any other bassist he worked with. He is all over Monk classics such as Monk's Music and Thelonius Monk with John Coltrane. For more, see Ethan Iverson's piece on Do the Math from 2006 (via Wayback Machine). Other than that, the Dean is spot on.

Listmania, Nate's a mate, & more

NY Times' Nate Chinen's 2009 list proves that the expressions of values, emotions and attitudes he looks for in music is not found merely within one "field" (I'm loathe to use "genre") of music. This is a view that seems to be a rarity among jazz-based music writers, who perhaps are just being protective of their field of expertise, which is understandable. We wish to make the point that jazz can be and still is a relevant music today. However, I think Chinen's juxtaposition of different types of musical expressions in his 2009-list argues that point in a more convincing way than "genre" specific ones.

Nate's picks are interesting in their own right, too. The only record I don't like particularly well is the Grizzly Bear one, though I'm yet to hear Fly's Sky & Coutry. Brad Paisly's "Then", Sonic Youth's "Antenna" and Miranda Lambert's "Making Plans" are all my favorite songs off their respective recent records, too.

The only other jazz-based writer I can think of off the top of my hat who seems to think about music in a similarly "all-inclusive" way is mr. Tom Hull (see e.g. his Pazz & Jop ballot).

Ironically, just to regress to the genre specific, I plan to post my year in jazz here in a few days time. I don't think I'll bother with a decade overview. My much touted 25 anniversary celebration of 1984 will have to wait a bit because of technical issues, but it's pretty much finished.

'Til then, happy holidays!

Perfect Sounds - in Norwegian is alive

Perfect Sounds - på norsk is up-and-running again, but will only be used for the purpose of linking to or posting articles I have written for publications in Norway. Many of the articles I've now put up there are taken from the free music mag FAN Fanzine, and have been posted on the blog as they were when I sent them in, sans editing (more info at the bottom of each article). Since FAN is a paper only magazine, the idea is that once a new issue is published, I'll post the article from the previous issue on PS - på norsk.

New This Moment in Black History: Public Square

This just in: the new record from frantic hard core rhythm 'n' blues-punks This Moment in Black History, Public Square, can now be ordered from Smog Veil Records. This is ahead of schedule, it seems, as it was originally slated for release February 2., 2010. Preview sound bites of the album here (from Amazon.com). It sounds, quite literally, like a blast. A picture of the cover art is posted below below.

Mostly Other People Do the Killing live videos and new album

University work and end of the aughties writing have kept me away from blogging, but there are projects in the pipeline. In the meantime, let me point you to the fine chaps in Mostly Other People Do the Killing, who a week or so ago posted their entire concert at Moers Jazz Festival on You Tube. I take the liberty to embed the videos below here. Note the Ornette Coleman-"quote" in video nr. 6.

MOPDtK also have a new album, Forty Fort, coming out soon. Enjoy!

Henry Threadgill link-a-thon & box set

Henry Threadgill's return to recorded music, with the excellent This Brings Us To, Vol. 1 (Pi Recordings), has gladly lead to a renewed interest in the great man and his music. Not only is there a long piece and interview in the latest issue of The Wire, Nate Chinen has written a profile for the New York Times (pub. Nov. 6th, 2009) (and add to those, my piece in the previous issue of the quality fanzine FAN).

The increasing interest in Threadgill and his music is of course welcome and long overdue. The really good news, though, is that Mosaic Records have announced that they have a Threadgill box-set scheduled for release in early 2010. I'm sure they'll allow me to copy/paste from their site:

"Henry Threadgill: The Complete Novus & Columbia Recordings of Henry Threadgill & Air
(Release Date: Early 2010)

Henry Threadgill was among the first wave of distinctive and utterly original artists to emerge from Chicago’s Association for The Advancement of Creative Music along with Muhal Richard Abrams, Anthony Braxton and the member of the Art Ensemble Of Chicago.

As a saxophonist, he delivers his unique style with a big, dry sound and precise articulation. As a composer, he was an American original, influenced by the entire spectrum of music. He creates distinctive sonic canvasses for a variety of ensemble. And his work is infused with a wonderfully dry, almost absurdist sense of humor.

This set covers three important eras in Threadgill’s career, beginning with the three albums that Air made in 1978-79 for Arista Novus including the celebrated “Air Lore” with unique reinterpretations of the music of Scott Joplin and Jelly Roll Morton. Air was a remarkable co-operative trio formed by Threadgill, bassist Fred Hopkins and drummer Steve McCall in 1975.

In 1979, Threadgill made his first album as a leader for Arista Novus. “X-75. Volume 1” featured the unique ensemble of four reeds, four basses and the voice of Amina Claudine Myers. A volume 2 was made and never issued. It is released for the first time in this set.

In 1981, Henry formed his Sextett, which consisted of seven musicians! This unique ensemble consisted of trumpet, trombone, cello, bass and two sets of drums as well as Threadgill. Beggining in 1986, the group recorded three albums for RCA Novus all of which are included here.

Threadgill closed out the century with three albums on Columbia (“Carry The Day,” “Makin’ A Move” and “Where’s Your Cup”) recorded between 1994 and ’96 with varying ensembles of unusual instrumentation.

This set cover three distinct and fertile peak periods in Threadgill’s long and ever creative career."

The albums included in the set should thus be Open Air Suite; Air Live at Montreux Suisse; Air Lore; X-75 Vol. 1 (all prev. on Arista Novus); X-75 Vol. 2 (prev. unreleased), You Know the Number; Easily Slip into Another World; Rag, Bush and All (all prev. on Novus); Carry The Day; Makin’ A Move and Where’s Your Cup (all three prev. on Columbia).

Most of these have been out of print for a while, although I've come across second hand copies on various occasions and web sites. Allthough all are great records, the availability of classics Air record Air Lore as well as the Sextett releases Rag... and Easily... are especially welcome.

Side note: my jazz list/grades has not been updated for ages, but both Air Lore and Rag, Bush and All receive top grades (10/10). I may have underestimated Easily..., I think it's better than the 8/10 I gave it a few years back, but I will wait until I have time to update the whole list with new records and grades before I decide whether to change it.

Catching up... Darius Jones & post-summer jazz records

I really should set, and stick to, a goal of writing at least one post a week, preferably on a specific day. Lately, other projects have prevented me from wiritng much here, and it's not been for lack of want or lack of music or topics to write about. A more structured time table should allow me to juggle various tasks more easily, and give me time to write more regularly here. There's been no "Music of the Week" for a while, and my much touted update of the 2009-list has not come to fruition.

So, I'd thought I'd use some space to do some catching up with a couple of the best jazz records I've come accross since sometime this summer (a few of them have been included on previous MotW posts). I'll only write a few lines about most of them, but the first certainly deserves extra space.

• Darius Jones Trio: Man'ish Boy (A Raw & Beautiful Thing)

Darius Jones is an up-and-coming saxophonist living in Brooklyn in New York having arrived form Richmond, Virginia in 2005. The Southern heritage is apparent in much of the music on this stunning debut. The record is bluesy, and (like the title says) both raw and beautiful, with Mr. Jones often using simple melodic lines as the basis of the music, much like Albert Ayler used to. There's a similarity between Jones and Ayler in the physicality of their playing and the wailing tones as well, 'though Jones can certainly hold his own and more often switches to softer themes than similar players tend to do. The band - with elder statesmen Cooper-Moore on the bass-like (and ancient) diddley-bo(w) as well as piano, and Rakalm Bob Moses on drums completing the trio - swithch between fairly loose structures and stricter blues based rhythms. Cooper-Moore has a knack for blending the seemingly simplistic and potent, as he does with his own band Digital Primitives.

On "Cry Out", for example, Cooper-Moore plays a rough blues walk on the piano, Bob Moses shuffles and Jones plays a slightly plaintive melodies on top. The tune has a certain noir quality to it. "Chasing the Ghost" is another highlight, with Cooper-Moore playing vibrating low bass notes on the diddley-bo(w), Bob Moses skitting over and under, while Jones plays variations and improvised lines over a strong melodic theme. The "chasing" of the title sends ones thoghts to one of Coltrane's classic work-outs, while the "ghost" part, well, it certainly opens up to other interpretations of what the piece is about. The result is nonetheless both beautifully disturbing and powerful. Having been roughed up by much of the music on the album, the simplistic loveliness of the closing "Forgive Me" becomes extra heartwrenching by the juxtaposition alone. Cooper-Moore plays a Satie-like chordal theme, with Jones seemingly exorcising his demons with a softer, almost weeping tone. It is simply one of the most beautiful pieces of music I've heard all year. A bonus track with Adam Lane on bass Jason Nazary on drums is more in line with a rougher blues-bop tradition, but it's still a collaboration I'd like to hear more from, Lane himself having a similar knack for roughing things up.

• Digital Primitives (Cooper-Moore, Assif Tsahar, Chad Taylor): Hum Crackle & Pop

Bluesy, slightly funky, free and with a hint of eastern and African melodic sensibility. Much like their previous record, but equally good.

• Quartet Offensive: Carnivore

Baltimore band, improvising over rock riffs and beats, made more apparent by the inclusion of a fuzz driven guitar. "Rock" means both Led Zeppelin and Fugazi here, and the result is often quite rivetng.

• Henry Threadgill Zooid: This BringsUs To, Vol. 1

The great man in a playful mood (when has he not been?) with what is probably his most interesting and flexible group since the amazing Sextet(t) of the 80s.

• J.D. Allen Trio: Shine

Tenor saxophonist J.D. Allens best record yet, a slightly more traditional post-bop sax, bass & drums trio, but one that has not gone untouched by later musical strains. The rhtyhm section blends simplistic power with great mobility, and Allan plays strong melodic themes as well as flying improvised solos. The track "Sonhouse" in particular is a favorite.

• Marcus Strickland Trio: Idiosyncracies

Another sax, bass, drums trio. Strickland plays tenor and soprano. The music is slightly soulful jazz, and rhythmically the music has tinges of modern R&B and hip-hop. The album includes reworkings of music by Björk, OutKast and Oumo Sangare, to name a few interesting choices. "Set Free", though, has a Coltrane-like quality.

Mike Reed's People, Places & Things - About Us

While we're waiting for the official release of exciting young drummer/composer Mike Reed's new offering, About Us, this post is to let you know that the entire album can be streamed from his homepage here (or click the image above).

First impressions: bloody good, as the English might put it. Mostly a bit slower tempo wise than the more ferocious Proliferation, a record I liked a lot, so I'm thinking while the previous record was inspired by Chicago's hard boppers such as Wilbur Ware and Johnny Griffin, perhaps this is a nod to more orchestrated Chicagoans such as Sun Ra and Muhal Richard Abrams. I'm just guessing. That said, there are enough uptempo tracks on About Us to convince me that Reed's inspirations are split pretty evenly between the two PP&T records.

Music of the Weeks 40 + 41

• Girls: Album (True Panther Sounds)
• Freddie Gibbs: MIDWESTGANGSTABOXFRAMECADILLACMUZIK (Mixtape/self released)
• David Murray & the Gwo Ka Masters: "The Devil Tried to Kill Me" from the upcoming album The Devil Tried to Kill Me (Justin Time Records)
• Mission of Burma: The Sound The Speed The Light (Matador)
• Miranda Lambert: "Only Prettier" from Revolution (Sony)
• Mountain Goats: "Psalms 40:2" from The Life Of The World To Come (4AD)
• Lulu: "Love Loves to Love" (Legacy)
  

Music of the Weeks 38 + 39

Skipped last week, 'though that was not due to a shortage of songs or albums as I've been listenng to plenty of good music lately. I'm late to the Jonatha Brooke record, which is both beautifully crafted and executed. The Henry Threadgill tracks that was posted on Destination-Out sound terrific and bode well for the album, and on the upcoming Lightning Bolt record, the wonderfully titled Earthly Delights, the duo occasionally slow things down, which may dissappoint those who enjoy them purely as an impact band. But fret not, their gung-ho instrumental post-hard core/thrash/punk/impro seems more purposeful as a result.

My "best of 2009-lists" needs to be updated. They've has barely been tweaked since mid-summer, and tens of records need to be added.

• Jonatha Brooke: The Works (Bad Dog Records)
• Henry Threadgill: "To Undertake My Concerns Open" and "After Some Time", This Brings Us To, Vol. 1 (Pi Recordings)
• Vijay Iyer Trio: Historicity (ACT)
• Lightning Bolt: Earthly Delights (Load Records)
• Digital Primitives: Hum Craclke & Pop (Hopscotch)
• Deer Tick: Born on Flag Day (Partisan)
  
• Pill: "Glass" (4180: The Prescription (mixtape))
  
• Pixie Lott: "Here We Go Again" (Mercury)
  

Threadgill previewed * Destination: Out!

Head on over to Destination: Out! now for a preview of Henry Threadgill's upcoming album This Brings Us To, vol.1. Some thoughts by the man himself in that very same post.

Closing with a qoute from Studs Terkel:

“It would be difficult to overestimate Henry Threagill’s role in perpetually altering the meaning of jazz..…He has changed our underlying assumptions of what jazz can and should be.”

Quick round-up: new Henry Threadgill, the Feelies and Horace Tapscott re-issues

As mentioned in the recent Destination-Out post, the great Henry Threadgill will release a new album, called This Brings Us To, with his group Zooid on 27th of October (US date?). While I love his work with Air and his 80's Sextet and Sextett records, I've not been quite as taken with his later work. But the man is a favorite nonetheless and I am very much looking forward to this one. Destination-Out will preview the record next monday. There's a review of the record at Music & More (I've yet to read the whole thing myself, though).




The re-issue of the Feelies classic Crazy Rhythms is finally out on Bar/None after some trouble with the previous attempt by Water. Sasha Frere-Jones has some thoughts and valuable info on the Feelies and that record on his New Yorker blog.



Also re-issued is the great 1989 record The Dark Tree by pianist Horace Tapscott. Stef at Free Jazz has revied it here.

Music of the Week 37/09

• Luis Lopes, Adam Lane & Igal Foni: What Is When (Clean Feed)
  
• Raekwon: Only Built For Cuban Linx II (EMI)
• Q-Tip: Kamaal the Abstract (Arista/BMG Records)
• M.O.T.O.: "Crystalize My Penis", Single File (Criminal IQ)
  
• Natalie Imbruglia: "Want" (alright, so I'm slightly smitten. Who cares?)

Beatlemania...again.

It's to be expected, of course, with the arrival of a remastered back catalogue where the sound is x-times better than the 1987 versions + elaborate box sets.

Pitchfork reviews the albums, all of 'em, as I'm sure many others will do too. Still, one could hope these reissues would allow for at least some degree of revision of the Beatles and their music. Not so, according to Pitchfork at least. Rubber Soul (their best by far), Revolver (quelle surprise), Sgt. Pepper's... (great dream pop avant-fun), and Magical Mystery Tour (good songs, but very uneven) all getting perfect scores.

I'm still baffled by those who pick Revolver as the foursome's best (not to mention "best ever"). Plenty of great songs, sure, but the gaping void of stupidity that is "Yellow Submarine" ruins the listening experience for me. No matter how I look at the album (either counting songs or listening to it as a whole - e.g. how one song relates to the others etc.), "YS" simply does not work. It's silly, dumb, the singing is flat, nor does it work as an experimental break. Yet Plagenhoef has the gall to call it "an inventive and charming track too often derided as camp". Too often? Too rarely is more like it.

Well, that's my two cents, anyway. Rant over.

Fairytale...

...in the Supermarket. The Raincoats style. Their classic self-titled LP will be re-released (for the second time, but it's been a while since the previous) on Oct. 13th, but the LP can be pre-ordered directly from Kill Rock Stars here.

The Raincoats: "Fairytale in the Supermarket"

Music of the Week 36/09

• JD Allen: Shine! (Sunny Side Records)
• Polvo: In Prism (Merge)
• Marcus Strickland: Idiosyncrasies (Strick Muzic)
• White Denim: Live @ Garage, Oslo 03.09.09
• Brad Paisley: "Welcome to the Future", American Saturday Night (Arista)

Honorable mention: Units: History of the Units, The Early Years: 1977-83