New Release Round-up,
Jazz New Release Round-Up - 8th April 2021
For this week’s picks of the latest jazz releases, we’ve firstly got a comeback album of sorts from vocalist Gretchen Parlato, who returns to music after a short hiatus to raise her new child. We’ve also the latest from pianist Nik Bärtsch, who steps away from the funk-influenced sounds of his band Ronin for a set of solo piano pieces that experiment in texture and tempo, as well as a solo recording from Japanese jazz pianist Ai Kuwabara in a similarly stark setting. Jaubi and Tenderlonious present another offering of Indian ragas-meets-jazz, and finally saxophonist Stefano Di Battista assembles a quartet to cover the hits of the late film composer Ennio Morricone.
Following a short hiatus from music due to the birth of her child, American vocalist Gretchen Parlato returns with her first studio album in five years, Flor. Inspired by her early love of bossa nova, Flor shows clear influences from the traditional Brazilian sound, as well as vocal jazz and a significant interest in classical music - Bach’s ‘Cello Suite No. 1’ makes an appearance on the record, and Parlato’s version of Pixinguinha’s ‘Rosa’, too, has an unmistakably Bachian flair to it. Also making an appearance is ‘No Plan’ from David Bowie’s posthumous EP of the same name, another facet of Parlato’s musical upbringing. An intimate mix with minimal accompanists places the listener’s attention square on Parlato’s gentle yet dynamic voice, as the vocalist reflects on her newfound motherhood with a diverse selection of material.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
Perhaps this is a little more contemporary classical than jazz; pianist Nik Bärtsch, also known as the bandleader of both Ronin and Mobile, offers some rhythmically dense pieces for solo piano on Entendre. Bärtsch’s pieces show a fascination with texture and tempo, each heavily aesthetically-minded too with their modal nature. A marked departure from what Bärtsch would call ‘zen funk’ with Ronin, Entendre presents a new angle on the composer/bandleaders musical approach and makes for both a great ambient and focussed listen.
Available Formats: CD, MP3, FLAC, Hi-Res FLAC
Celebrating the music of the late film composer - whose catalogue spanned over 500 scores - saxophonist Stefano Di Battista and his collaborators opt for a short, selective and punchy collection of tunes that span from the massively popular ‘Gabriel’s Oboe’ and theme from ‘The Good the Bad and the Ugly’ to some undoubtedly lesser known but still worthy scores. ‘Flora’, a premiere recording of Morricone’s, also serves as a tribute to Di Battista himself, who worked with Morricone before his passing. The quartet manage to capture the spirit of Morricone’s pieces, adding their own dynamic touches without simply sounding like they’ve simply redone the pieces note for note. If anything, it’s worth a listen to hear the jazzed-up rendition of the ever-classic ‘The Good the Bad and the Ugly’ in an unabashedly celebratory and energetic performance.
Available Format: CD
Joshua Lee - Jazz Content
