PAUL HARDCASTLE - THE CHILL LOUNGE VOLUME 1Having long been the purveyor of laidback atmospheric sensuous sides, once again Paul Hardcastle beckons you to follow him to places where swaying palms, crystalline water and picturesque sunsets await with The Chill Lounge, a collection of adventurous head and body trips slightly chilled and ready for transport. This is where Hardcastle is at his very best, creating sonic soundscapes that allow you to be taken to a place where you want to go to devoid of your worldy cares, where mood and relaxation are the key components. Nobody does it better. "Lounge" digs deep into the vast Hardcastle archive and combines classic mood altering favorites from the past dotted with a few re-mixes and a pair of fresh new sides like "East to West" one of the albums high points and "Ibiza Dub", with its strong reggae undertones, making for a multi-ethnic full spectrum multisensory experience par excellence. Melt into your favorite lounger, pour your favorite beverage, add a few cubes of ice and prepare to be chilled, the Hardcastle way. Not shaken, but stirred. ~ Amazon
British retro groove merchants Funkshone’s second album (functionally titled 2) doesn’t try to reinvent the tone wheel where funk is concerned. Yet there is a sure progression in the group's own musical journey: away from the roughness of debut Shining, towards increasingly cinematic, orchestral sounds. Soul-funk vocals like Darling Dear and Heaven Shine (utilizing lyrically light but tonally delightful new vocalist Jaelee Small) bump hips with swaggering, no-frills workouts such as Getting It Together. More intriguingly, however, a crate digger’s love of filmic instrumentals inspired by the scores of Lalo Schifrin, Roy Budd and Quincy Jones (and even long-forgotten library tracks) is brought into play. Imaginary cops enter opium dens to the heady wooziness of Persuasion. Chase the Dream's dulcimer intro starts an aggressive battle: the horn section, comprising Patrick Kenny, Tom Mcleod and Alex Bezzina, wheels and swoops in aerial dogfights with guest flautist Kaidi Tatham and some vicious strings. Drummer, foundation, and former Mother Earth member Mike Bandoni (who co-produces with keyboardist Nino Aurrichio and bassist Danny Huckridge) is omnipresent yet seems happier to lead from behind. ~ Angus Taylor
On Stride, his fourth Criss Cross leader date, pianist Danny Grissett returns to the trio format he navigated with such panache and imagination on his first two outings for the label. Longtime bass partner Vicente Archer and top-of-the-class drummer Marcus Gilmore join Grissett in a fluent three-way conversation on a reflective program that incorporates the American Songbook, the European canon, original tunes by trumpeters Nicholas Payton and (his current employer) Tom Harrell, and three heady Grissett originals. As always, the leader's playing is melody-driven, harmonically acute, swinging and focused; he again proves himself one of the major voices on his instrument among the under-40 crowd. ~ Amazon
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