New Release Round-up,
Jazz New Release Round-Up - 4th December 2020
Although the big new releases have slowed down by early December, there are still plenty of interesting things out there. This week we have a 6-LP boxset from bassist Avishai Cohen, a Raga project from the ever-busy Tenderlonious, and a great release from the always-dependable Walter Lang and his trio. Elsewhere the Eva Klesse Quartet commune with nature, Palestinian pianist Dirar Kalash makes the most of an opportunity to record in Huddersfield, and Marcus Klossek offers up the burnished tones of his Telecaster, whilst Norwegian drummer Sverre Gjørvad turns to the great outdoors for inspiration. And finally, in the year that Keith Tippett passed away there is a reissue of an epic orchestral commission from 2004.
This is the first time the music of Avishai Cohen has been released and presented in such an exclusive way, with 250 minutes of remastered recordings from his worldwide album releases since 1998. The Vinyl Box Set features fifty selected tracks such as 'Remembering', 'Seven Seas', 'Eleven Wives', 'Morenika' and 'Song Of Hope', from 12 of his albums, including best-sellers Gently Disturbed, Aurora, Continuo, 1970 and many more…
Avishai Cohen – The 50 Gold Selection is a special thank-you from the artist to his most loyal fans and followers in his fiftieth year, making it a unique exclusive collector’s item.
Available Format: 6 Vinyl Records
In April 2019, 22a boss and multi-instrumentalist Tenderlonious embarked on a trip to Pakistan to work with Lahore-based instrumental quartet Jaubi. Following on from the success of the three-track limited edition 10" vinyl release of Tender in Lahore earlier this year, 22a presents the full LP-length suite of improvised Ragas from a one-day recording session in Lahore, featuring four previously unreleased tracks. Features Kashif Ali Dhani on tabla and vocals, with Tenderlonious on soprano saxophone. Marek Pędziwiatr, from EABS & Astigmatic Records, provides the synth drones.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
The Walter Lang Trio featuring Thomas Markusson & Magnus Öström cook up refreshingly straightforward, tuneful jazz. This is Lang's most recent trio formation, or his "Twenties Trio" as he’s calling it, and yet it sounds as if they’ve been playing together for decades.
Available Format: CD
The Eva Klesse Quartet’s follow-up to Miniatures - Ten Songs For Chamber Jazz Quartet, which was released at the end of October 2018 to critical acclaim. Once again, the contemplative quartet, which was awarded the renowned German Jazz-Echo in 2015, makes its focus clear: the telling of stories that draw from their experiences and feed from their emotions. The music of the Eva Klesse Quartet impresses with substance and depth, elegance and individuality, verve and esprit.
Available Format: CD
Keith Tippett was commissioned to write this work for the 2004 Norwich and Norfolk Festival, where it received its premiere (and to date only) performance, together with a broadcast by BBC Radio 3. It is a beautiful and stirring work for large choir, saxophone octet and solo improvising voice. Whilst clearly referencing the great polyphonic choral music tradition, Keith's score also enables improvisational elements to be present in such a skilful way that the listener is left with the impression of a very unified piece, despite the diversity of approaches which a close listen to the work reveals.
Available Format: CD
Dirar Kalash is an improvising musician currently based in his native Ramallah, in the state of Palestine, where opportunities to perform are virtually non-existent. Even access to a proper instrument is impossible at the current time, so on a rare visit to the UK early in 2020, Dirar found an opportunity to record with the master sound engineer Simon Reynell, on a fine instrument in the beautiful acoustic of St Paul's Hall at the University Of Huddersfield. This is super-reduced, abstract piano music that rewards attentive listening.
Available Format: CD
Marcus Klossek is one of the growing number of guitarists who perform jazz on a Fender Telecaster, the archetype of the electric guitar. He is from a class of musicians that consists of many extraordinary artists from Jimmy Bryant to Ed Bickert, Bill Frisell, Mike Stern, Jim Campilongo and Jakob Bro, just to name a few. Klossek is an established name within the Berlin jazz scene who knows how to get to the point with his Electric Trio. His brand-new album Time Was Now, the eighth release as a bandleader and the first one for DoubleMoon/Challenge Records, is further proof of exceptional storytelling-composing skills which go far beyond the average guitar release.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC
Elegy of Skies is the fourth album by Norwegian jazz drummer Sverre Gjørvad continuing his reflections on high north of Norway, with the album being recorded in Troms, close to the Arctic Circle. Compared to the 2019 album Voi River, the music is more open, letting the band go wider in exploring the musical terrain of the compositions. Besides the original music, the album also includes Paddy McAloon's 'Mercy', first released on Prefab Sprout's album Jordan, The Comeback.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
Matt Groom - Head of Jazz
