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Michael Formanek: aka the Stinger
by Ludovico Granvassu
An invitation to perform at the 2023 Guimarães Jazz Festival in Portugal gave bassist and composer Michael Formanek the perfect opportunity to explore the sonic possibilities of the organ--an instrument he first loved in the rock bands of his Bay Area youth, and later rediscovered in the visionary works of Olivier Messiaen.Alexander Hawkins proves an ideal partner on Hammond B3, alongside two longtime collaborators from the trio Thumbscrew--Mary Halvorson on guitar and Tomas Fujiwara on drums--joined by João ...
Continue ReadingJamile and Vinicius Gomes: Endangered Species
by John Chacona
The musical exchange between Wayne Shorter and Brazil yielded some of the great man's most indelible compositions. Happily, the conversation happens in the other direction, as Jamile and guitarist Vinicius Gomes demonstrate on “Endangered Species." With its wide intervallic leaps and skylarking melodic trajectory, the song is for virtuosos only; notably, only Esperanza Spalding seems to have attempted it. On Boundless Species (La Reserve Records, 2025), Jamile also takes on Herbie Hancock's “Actual Proof" (wordlessly), and Guinga's “Mingus Samba," sailing ...
Continue ReadingPaul Horn: Too High
by Kitty Kalriess
Check out flute and saxophonist Paul Horn's innovative cover of Stevie Wonder's “Too High." The track is off the album Visions, a lesser-known but highly interesting entry in Horn's catalog. On the 1974 Soul Note release, he pivots from a more spiritual style into a jazz-funk/soul reinterpretation of major early '70s songwriters. On “Too High," the organ and bass take the lead while the drums lock into a chill-but-tight pocket. Where Stevie Wonder's original is layered, socially conscious, ...
Continue ReadingMarion Rampal: And It's Supposed to Be Love
by Ludovico Granvassu
More than fifteen years after her passing, Abbey Lincoln continues to move listeners and inspire fellow jazz singers--perhaps even more than during her lifetime. One of the most beautiful testaments to her enduring influence can be found in the recent album Song for Abbey by Marion Rampal. Both intimate and reverent, the recording serves not only as a heartfelt tribute but also as Rampal's personal acknowledgment of the profound artistic debt she owes to Lincoln. It is challenging ...
Continue ReadingRufus Wainwright: I’m a Stranger Here Myself
by Ludovico Granvassu
I'm a Stranger Here Myself--Wainwright Does Weill (Thirty Tigers, 2025) is a project decades in the making. Rufus Wainwright's affection for the music of Kurt Weill dates back to his twenties, though the idea of an album began to take shape more recently, following a series of concerts at the storied Café Carlyle in 2023. From those intimate performances, the project has blossomed into the lush orchestral form heard on this album--one of the artistic high points of 2025.
Continue ReadingKTU: Sumu
by Geno Thackara
Of all the offshoots on the King Crimson family tree, this may probably be the weirdest. Trey Gunn and Pat Mastelotto make a beastly rhythm section as ever, exploring somewhere between Miles Davis electric funk and the extensive groov-a-thons of prime Can. In this one-of-a-kind outfit they are put through the sampling/processing wringer by alchemist Samuli Kosminen and driven wild by accordionist Kimmo Pohjonen, who has to be either unhinged or possessed by the devil. ...
Continue ReadingAirelle Besson, Lionel Suarez: Au Lait
by Ludovico Granvassu
On Blossom, Airelle Besson and Lionel Suarez offer a compelling illustration of how instrumentalists can be storytellers just as eloquent as singers. The choice of material highlights the French duo's distinctly cinematic sensibility, with an inspired selection of originals, freely improvised pieces and compositions by kindred spirits with a strong narrative voice, such as Carla Bley. But on “Au Lait," their lyricism reaches a particularly striking level. This composition by Pat Metheny and Lyle Mays becomes the ideal ...
Continue ReadingLaura J Marras: Isotope
by Artur Moral
Laura J Marras first drew Neil Duggan's attention in his review of Alessandro Di Liberto's Punti Di Vista (GleAm Records, 2025), where her alto saxophone is repeatedly highlighted--thanks to her fresh blend of sensitivity and energy. Other press notes on that release, quite rightly, attributed to her traces of John Coltrane and Oliver Nelson, as well as Wayne Shorter, which is hardly surprising: Marras leads a quartet called Shorter's Vision, a group with which she recreates emblematic works by the ...
Continue ReadingTrombone Shorty: Dumaine St.
by Geno Thackara
If it might not be feasible to make it to jny: New Orleans for the authentic Mardi Gras experience, at least some of its natives are happy to bring the street parades to us. The brash Trombone Shorty and Orleans Avenue are always good for a party, and at their most loud and horn-heavy, they make it practically effortless to picture the flashy costumes and taste the beignets. ...
Continue ReadingTrond Kallevåg: Twins of Træna
by Ludovico Granvassu
On Minnesota (Hubro, 2025)--one of the most compelling releases of recent months--Trond Kallevåg deepens his exploration of the cultural and emotional ties between Norway and the United States. The album reflects on waves of migration driven by the longing for a better life across the ocean--and by the quiet ache for what was left behind. With his distinctly cinematic touch, the Norwegian guitarist expands the narrative arc of his earlier Hubro albums, Bedehus & Hawaii (2019) and Amerikabåten (2023), both ...
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