Whether intentionally or coincidentally, both the band name The Necks and the album title Body refer to parts of a guitar, an instrument that is prominently featured on the trio’s twentieth release. The fifty-six-minute, four-movement piece starts in familiar territory, with a persistent cymbal figure from percussionist Tony Buck backing Chris Abrahams’ minimalistic piano swells,Continue reading “The Necks. Body.”
Genre Archives
Lina Allemano is Splitting Time
If Toronto’s avant-jazz and free-improv community has a living room, it’s the Southern Cross Lounge, the front room of the Tranzac Club—a cluttered bandstand with an ancient upright, a friendly bar in the back corner, a familiar audience—where drummer Nick Fraser books bands from the creative edges. Lina Allemano plays here regularly when she’s inContinue reading “Lina Allemano is Splitting Time”
Joseph Shabason’s patient unravelling
When we listen to music, are we meant to enter the hearts and minds of those who’ve created it? Or is listening more of an interior experience—of turning inwards and creating space to experience our own feelings? For Joseph Shabason, the answer to both questions is yes. The Toronto-based saxophone player and new-jazz composer hasContinue reading “Joseph Shabason’s patient unravelling”
2018 Guelph Jazz Festival.
“I’d rather be a human being / than to be avant-garde,” intones William Parker towards the conclusion of his solo bass performance at the 2018 Guelph Jazz Festival. Fittingly, the performance of his piece—which is excerpted and adapted from Flower In A Stained-Glass Window, his multifarious homage to Martin Luther King, Jr.—takes place at ten-thirtyContinue reading “2018 Guelph Jazz Festival.”
The Cluttertones with Lee Pui Ming. Leeways.
Bassist Rob Clutton has been composing for his group the Cluttertones for over a decade, modelling his work for a quartet that includes trumpeter Lina Allemano and guitarist–banjoist Tim Posgate, with Ryan Driver playing analog synthesizer and singing. The approach is unusual, combining occasional folk-like melodies and lyrics with electronica and frequent freely improvised solos.Continue reading “The Cluttertones with Lee Pui Ming. Leeways.”
Suoni per il Popolo Festival: 18th Edition
Like the accordion played in the large improvising ensemble GGRIL, this year’s Suoni per il Popolo expanded in some dimensions and contracted in others, while continuously bellowing out fascinating sounds. Some years the festival has unfolded over a full month, but the 2018 edition ran just under three weeks; while the first festival was presentedContinue reading “Suoni per il Popolo Festival: 18th Edition”
Brodie West Quintet. “Clips.”
There’s something different afoot in saxophonist Brodie West’s quintet, its singular construction of a jazz combo with alto saxophone, piano, bass, and drums—as traditional as Brubeck to that point—and a departure from the norm with a second set of drums. The sound itself doesn’t strike you right away, but it’s already there in a specialContinue reading “Brodie West Quintet. “Clips.””
Peggy Lee and the Joy of Unknowable Notes
Her cello in a white case strapped to her small back, Peggy Lee had walked several unfamiliar blocks in her hometown Vancouver, since the bus dropped her at the edge of a genteel oceanside neighbourhood. She was looking for the Aberthau Mansion, where she would perform later that evening. Across a shaded park, Lee climbedContinue reading “Peggy Lee and the Joy of Unknowable Notes”
Yuko Fujiyama. Night Wave.
On this new recording, Japanese-born pianist Yuko Fujiyama has created fifteen musical colour fields in duo, trio, and quartet configurations alongside sympathetic American associates Jennifer Choi (violin), Susie Ibarra (drums and percussion), and Graham Haynes (cornet and flugelhorn). Moving between gentle formalism that usually involves solo-piano sweeps and energetic group excursions, Fujiyama brings the sameContinue reading “Yuko Fujiyama. Night Wave.”
Ken Vandermark and Michael Snow. Duol.
Recorded in Toronto, this brief program of slashing, staccato improvisations by Toronto visual artist and pianist Michael Snow and visiting Chicago multireedist Ken Vandermark shows that a first-time meeting can engender fresh impetus. Vandermark, who has a university film degree, and Snow, who is as renowned for his experimental films as for paintings, together produceContinue reading “Ken Vandermark and Michael Snow. Duol.”