NEW RELEASES: D’ANGELO AND THE VANGUARD – BLACK MESSIAH; MARCUS PRINTUP - LOST; NATE WOOLEY / DAVE REMPIS / PASCAL NIGGENKEMPER / CHRIS CORSANO – FROM WOLVES TO WHALES

D’ANGELO AND THE VANGUARD – BLACK MESSIAH

D'Angelo comes back after many years awol from the studio – and the result is a stunning new step in his music! We've loved the man from day one – and some folks could well say that he really helped reinvigorate soul back in the 90s – and all his time away from the studio has definitely been formative, as he comes back here with a righteous power that really blows away all his previous work! D'Angelo still loves the slow beat and mellow approach to funk – but he's also picked up a lot more fuzz and freak, too – righteous energy that more than lives up to the Black Messiah promised by the title, as do the lyrics. Instrumentation includes work by Questlove on drums, Roy Hargrove on trumpet, and Jesse Johnson on guitar – and the grooves have these tripping, slow-percolating elements that really give the lyrics a great sort of crackle. More than worth the wait – as you'll hear on titles that include "Back To The Future (parts 1 & 2)", "Sugah Daddy", "Really Love", "1000 Deaths", "Ain't That Easy", "Betray My Heart", "The Door", and "Till It's Done (Tutu)".  ~ Dusty Groove

MARCUS PRINTUP - LOST

Marcus Printup just keeps on getting better and better – a hell of a trumpet player, and a great writer too – as you'll hear in this set of sparkling original compositions, dedicated to his late father! Marcus is hardly lost at all – as the album's got this strong sense of direction – tunes that snap out and really go places right from the start, in the manner of some of the best old Blue Note tunes from the 50s and 60s – given a slightly more contemporary approach in Printup's phrasing, and the way his trumpet mixes with the tenor of Shantawn Kendrick, piano of Helen Sung, bass of Ben Williams, and drums of Ulysses Owens. Tracks are all nice and long, and very expressive – and titles include "G Wiz", "Hopscotch", "Black Bossa", "Homey's Idea", and "To The Mountain Top".  ~ Dusty Groove

NATE WOOLEY / DAVE REMPIS / PASCAL NIGGENKEMPER / CHRIS CORSANO – FROM WOLVES TO WHALES

A tremendous expression of tones and colors from trumpeter Nate Wooley and saxophonist Dave Rempis – working here together on some long tracks that spin out with really careful, individual textures – in these extended cycles that have both players winning us all over again with their creativity! The group also features bass from Pascal Niggenkemper and drums from Chris Corsano – but much of the main appeal comes from the interaction of the two horns, or the solo passages which can be extremely expressive – on long titles that include "Swingin Apoplexy", "Count Me Out", "Slake", and "Serpents Tooth". ~ Dusty Groove