Friday, June 24, 2016

NEW MUSIC: KANDACE SPRINGS – SOUL EYES; MASSIMO GUERRA XTET – JAZZ MINE; DURAND JONES & THE INDICATIONS

KANDACE SPRINGS – SOUL EYES

The debut of a great singer on Blue Note – and one who plays her own piano and Fender Rhodes as well! Kandace Springs has a gentle style that's part soul, and part jazz – as expressive as the former at most moments, but with a lot of jazz-based phrasing in the instrumentation, which underscores the message in her music in a really wonderful way! Light keyboard currents step nicely through more acoustic instrumentation – all with a laidback flow that's the perfect pace for the singer at her best. Terence Blanchard plays guest trumpet on two tracks – and titles include "Soul Eyes", "I Thought It Would Be Easier", "Place To Hide", "Novocaine Heart", "Rain Falling", "Too Good To Last", "Fall Guy", "Neither Old Nor Young", and "The World Is A Ghetto". (Special bonus – these copies come with an autographed booklet from Kandace!) ~ Dusty Groove

MASSIMO GUERRA XTET – JAZZ MINE

A really warm, well-crafted set from Italian trumpeter Massimo Guerra – just the kind of record we've come to expect from other jazz labels from his scene, but quite a surprise from the mostly-soul Irma label! The set's totally straight – and done in a way that really lets Guerra show off his talent for songwriting – as most of the tracks on the album are his own, and handled by a shifting array of small groups that work well with the leader's lyrical bent. Other players include Enrico Nisati on piano, Davide Grottelli on tenor, and Carlo Micheli on baritone – and the rhythms really benefit from warm basslines by Piero Simoncini, whose playing holds the record together in a wonderful way. Titles include "Morgan Beat", "Last Day Of Spring", "Tango 4 Clemetina", "Tres Palabras", and "Jazz Mine". ~ Dusty Groove

DURAND JONES & THE INDICATIONS

Easily one of the best deep soul albums we've heard in years – new work by a singer who hails from Indiana, but who's able to give the best from Memphis and Muscle Shoals a real run for their money! Durand Jones isn't one of these cats who's trying to fake it with a few retro touches – and instead, he gets right to the heart of the matter, right from the very first note – with a deep vocal approach that's rivaled by a rare few in the contemporary scene – maybe Lee Fields (and maybe that's it!) The vocals are perfect – never forced or cliched, and really right on the money – and the Indications do a great job, too – with these lean backings that never overwhelm, yet really help keep things funky. Hats off to drummer Aaron Frazier and guitarist Blake Rhein, who wrote most of the songs on the record with Jones – and titles include "Make A Change", "Can't Keep My Cool", "Groovy Babe", "Giving Up", "Now I'm Gone", and "Is It Any Wonder". ~ Dusty Groove


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