Thursday, March 30, 2023

New Music Releases: Rob Mazurek Exploding Star Orchestra, The Dining Rooms, Emily Braden, The Composers Collective Big Band

Rob Mazurek Exploding Star Orchestra - Lightning Dreamers

A killer set from a group that may well be the most perfectly realized version of the Exploding Star concept from Rob Mazurek – one who've got some fantastic parts that come together here in a wonderfully visionary record! Rob's still in the lead on trumpets and electronics – but the group really resonates from some key contributions from Damon Locks on voice and more electronics – at a level that has him rising to that long-overdue role of stardom, which seems to give the whole group an even greater source of focus and energy. Jeff Parker lays down some wicked guitar, Angelica Sanchez and Craig Taborn are fantastic on Wurlitzer electric pianos and moog – and the great Nicole Mitchell is on flute and a bit of vocals. There's a sense of majesty here that Mazurek has never had before – and the album is maybe one of the most crowning achievements in his long and very storied career. Titles include "Future Shaman", "Shape Shifter", "White River", "Dream Sleeper", and "Black River".  ~ Dusty Groove

The Dining Rooms - Rarities And Outtakes EP1

Milan-based duo The Dining Rooms have been a fixture of the local underground scene for more than 20 years and of the most popular signee of Schema Records. Currently working on their 10th album, due to be released early 2024, the duo consisting of Stefano Ghittoni and Cesare Malfatti is set to release two digital EPs of Outtakes and Rarities. First in line is EP1, a 3-tracker including  'Education of a Scoundrel' featuring Sean Martin, originally released on the French version of the album 'Ink' in 2008; the song takes the cue from the live version of 'M.Dupont'. 'Odd are the words' featuring Chiara Castello is an outtake from the 2002 album 'Turn To See Me' . The third and final track selected for the EP is a new edit of Four Tet's remix of 'Così Ti Amo'

Emily Braden - Cannon & Sparrow

Boise-born, Harlem-honed vocalist, songwriter and lyricist Emily Braden’s sound is an effortless blend of jazz and soul. Winner of New York City’s ‘Best of the Best’ Jazzmobile Vocal Competition, she has been a celebrated name on NYC’s music scene for more than a decade. Braden’s sophomore release Cannon & Sparrow is a vibrant collection of powerful originals and reimagined standards. Both daring and delicate, the album marks the second studio collaboration between Braden and her musical partner of more than fifteen years, Misha Piatigorsky. As producer, pianist, composer and arranger, Piatigorsky expertly spotlights Braden’s vocal freedom and fresh and forward interpretation. The catalyst for Cannon & Sparrow was the passing of Braden’s father within a week of the 2016 presidential election. The recording process began years later, and was completed in the early days of the global pandemic. The songs were largely workshopped in front of international audiences over the course of Braden’s residency at NYC’s famed 55 Bar. Cannon & Sparrow confronts the truth that it is often the heaviest things in life that jolt us alive. Braden’s vocals shine and soar with an uplifting message of love and resilience in dark times. 

The Composers Collective Big Band – The Toronto Project

What is the sound of a city? With The Toronto Project, the Composers Collective Big Band has put together its most ambitious project yet, commissioning Toronto’s top jazz composers to write about the neighbourhoods and aspects of their city that inspire them  the most. The Composers Collective Big Band is an 18 piece jazz ensemble led by trombonist and composer Christian Overton. Since forming in 2005, the group’s mandate has been to present new works for large jazz ensemble by Canadian composers. Toronto has been known as a great jazz city for decades. When jazz fans all over the world hear bands like Rob McConnell and the Boss Brass, they instantly recognize the swinging arrangements and immaculate playing as being emblematic of  the Toronto sound. Today, that sound is evolving into something new – an audacious sensibility forged by a diverse new generation of jazz musicians. Discover the unique people and places that make up Toronto as seen through the eyes of its finest jazz artists.

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