Recent "Mainstream" Jazz Releases S/D

Matt Wilson's "Humidity" is still finding favor with me, though I have some problems with it as well. Compositionally, I'd say it's the strongest I've heard this year. Wilson also drums on the latest Ted Nash album (mainstream post-bop), which isn't the most memorable thing he's done, but has its moments, including a couple of rather inspired solos from (yes) Wynton Marsalis.

Several other 2003 jazz releases that I've liked, but I don't want to ramble, and you've probably heard them. (Dave Douglas's "Freak In," for example, is proving to be more durable than I initially expected).

Brian Blade's last album (which was a few years ago by now, right?) is GREAT. It's like folk-jazz at times, but with long, through-composed tunes and super lush, pretty melodies.

The new Nick Payton starts off amazing, but I can't listen to it all the way through. It gets kind of samey and token-experimental in the second half, but the 'Fela' tracks and Cannabis Leaf Rag and a few others are ace. It's better than I thought it would be for his "electric" record.

I still haven't heard Freak In, but I went back to Dave Douglas's "The Infinite" the other day, god that is a good album. The band seems to be really locked in on a unique way of approaching things within a totally standard quintet sound, and most of the tunes manage to be pretty and fire at the same time.

Other favorite stuff lately:

Gerald Cleaver 'Adjust' on Fresh Sound/New Talent. The 'frontline' is viola (Mat Maneri), clarinet, guitar, and electric keyboards, and it's amazing how they blend into each other's sounds.

Kurt Rosenwinkel 'Heartcore', his electric album, he plays most of the instruments himself. I hated it at first except for a couple tunes, but I'm really starting to come around on it now. I still think that he's being a little abstract/complex when he claims he wants to be direct, melodic, and beat-based (Q-Tip co-produced it for fuck's sake), but I'm feeling it more now.

Ben Perowsky 'Camp Songs' - trio w/Uri Caine interpreting Jewish summer camp songs. As good as it sounds.

The two Tim Hagans albums to find are Animation/Imagination and Re-Animation Live! They're both fantastic.

Moran disappoints me on record. Black Stars was good, but it's been over a year since I've felt even the slightest twinge pulling me in its direction. Live, he was just okay, even with Sam Rivers there.

A semi-overlooked album from 2001 or 2002 is James Carter's Layin' In The Cut. It was released at the same time as an acoustic album, and the acoustic one got more press, but ITC is full-on electric, and really good. Longish review here.

i forgot also to ask about stefon harris, and also i see a lot of ECM disks at the store with european names that are not familiar to me... anyone know any of this stuff?

its too bad that Moran is not that hot (i will still try and listen to everything anyaways). i heard a lot of comparisons to Andrew hill which excited me because a) not a lot of people sound like hill and b) most of hill's records are Out Of Print anyways. (has anyone heard the new Conn disc?)

i havent heard any of Carter's music, but I was always curious about what seperated his tributes to the past from others that are maligned?

I didn't really like Re-animation Live! either, mostly because of the interaction between Billy Kilson and the DJ. The DJ has all these fast, pre-fab jungle beats going, and it's too busy for BK to do much else than play half-time funk stuff underneath. I would have much rather had him doing the dn'b parts and the DJ playing more a textural, in-and-out role.

Ask the Ages is GREAT. All the the themes are totally memorable, and everyone's playing is pure fire. That first track has what are probably my favorite Pharoah screams. Is it seriously out of print? It's on Laswell's label, right?

And Ron Miles deserves some serious love. Ron Miles Trio record is seriously gorgeous, and Heaven and Laughing Barrel also have some great moments.

I may be wrong about Carter's Django tribute getting more press than LITC, but that's how I remember it; I remember at least one review that was just of the one and not the other.

Quibbles aside, I think Jason Moran is worth your time, and deserves much of the hype. The Andrew Hill comparisons are sometimes apt.

Question: I have an old Japanese CD of Miles Davis' Dark Magus from the early 1990s. When it was reissued by Legacy a couple of years ago, was it remastered in any significant way (i.e. was some of the wall-of-mud cleared up)? I don't want to buy a new one if I don't have to, but if there is a way to hear more of the individual instruments, that'd obviously be great.

(X-Post w/ Jordan!)

I've only listened to the new Jason Moran once, but I thought the actual SOUND of it was pretty horrible (see also the new Joe Lovano live alb - who I don't much care for, anyway). I also thought the Rosenwinkle was ghastly beyond belief - like Metheny w/ new knobs on. Aaron, have you heard the Wolfgang Muthspiel trio gtr trio alb w/ Brian Blade and Marc Johnson? That's a nice rec. And the recent Pat Martino is pretty tasty too, tho' again it's more trad than the Kurt R.

Gd ECMs this year - 'Rosslyn', by the English pianist John Taylor, w/ Joey Baron and Marc Johnson again. 'Universal Syncopations' - Miroslav Vitous w/ John McLaughlin, Chick Corea, Jack DeJohnette and Jan Gabarek. That toe-tapping Dave Holland dbl live alb. The Sylvie Courvoisier alb w/ Marc Feldman and Erik Friedlander. 'Changing Places', debut piano trio rec from the Tord Gustavson Trio. The frankly barmy new Louis Sclavis alb, 'Napoli's Walls'.

Now that I actually figured out how to order Fresh Sound New Talent records I'm pretty interested in those...the Reid Anderson, Gerald Cleaver, and Bad Plus ones I have are just fantastic.

I also want to check out Jean Michel-Pilc, since I just realized the other day that he was the keyboard player when I saw Ari Hoenig in NYC, and he was great (and Ari Hoenig is the best).