Jazz-Fusion Legends BRAND X Reunite To Tour U.S. Fall 2016 / Spring 2017

Legendary Jazz-Rock-Fusion band BRAND X has reunited and is preparing to celebrate their reunion with a Fall 2016/Spring 2017 U.S. tour, including a headline performance at Progtoberfest in Chicago on October 21st. Also on this initial run will be shows in Milwaukee, Detroit, Cleveland and Boston to name a few.

BRAND X are recognized as true musical pioneers, as they helped create an entire musical genre and influenced a broad spectrum of musicians and bands, from Phish to Dream Theatre. They are unrivaled in their creativity, originality and approach. Their contemporaries include bands such as Weather Report, Headhunters, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Jaco Pastorious and Chick Corea, all crafting a unique blend of Jazz, Rock, and Ethic influences now widely known by fans worldwide as Fusion.

Many claim it’s BRAND X's unique combination of masterful chops mixed with their childlike melodies that make so special. Some musicians play from inside their own world, but John Goodsall, Percy Jones, Kenwood Dennard and the guys from BRAND X play from their own universe!

After years of rumors of a potential reunion, it is finally happening. Three of the four main members came together recently in New York, and according to sources present at the rehearsals, listening to them play was “...like traveling back in time to the legendary 'Livestock' album – there was no question this was BRAND X! Their sound was uncannily identical to the BRAND X of 'Livestock' – and that in itself speaks volumes”

THE BAND:

* John Goodsall (Guitars): Original BRAND X guitarist says, “It's a better version now. We’re all a lot more experienced – a lot more skilled… And that goes for every one of us.”

* Percy Jones (Bass): Original BRAND X bassist says, “This music takes us back to a certain space – which was really cool. I wasn't sure I’d ever feel that feeling again – and yet here it is!”

* Kenwood Dennard (Drums): Original BRAND X drummer who’s also played with Sting and Jaco Pastorious says, “When we used to play this music, it felt eternal. We used to get into a zone where it felt so deep. Now that's exactly how it felt again.”

* Chris Clark (Keyboards): Formerly of John Entwistle Band (The Who), and Richie Cannata's Band (Billy Joel).

* Scott Weinberger (Percussionist): Sessions with Adrian Belew, and live with The Security Project (Jerry Marotta, formerly of Peter Gabriel and Trey Gunn formerly of King Crimson)

The reunited BRAND X will be performing material from their first three albums on these initial tours in October and November 2016. 

“Unorthodox Behaviour” was a superb debut album. Members Percy Jones, Phil Collins, Morris Pert, John Goodsall and Robin Lumley had been doing sessions for Brian Eno, and banded together for this initial release.

“Moroccan Roll”: Surprises everyone by hitting #37 in the UK charts. Experimenting with some Eastern tonalities, including a shimmering Sitar played by Goodsall on “Sun In The Night”, BRAND X create an uncanny masterpiece – a fusion album with melodies. Percussionist Morris Pert now joins the band, and manages to bang on everything including a few kitchen sinks. Robin Lumley's “Disco Suicide” is as catchy as it is clever. Percy Jones galloping “Malaga Virgen” races with furious Bass and Drums – and remains a show-stopper live.

“Livestock”: A true live album in every sense of the word. Recorded at gigs at Hammersmith Odeon and Ronnie Scott's Jazz Club, it shows that band at their most mature with finesse and macho chops rarely heard live. Robin Lumley has stated that the entire Livestock album was mixed in one day with absolutely no overdubs.

Guitarist John Etheridge And Jazz Vocalist Vimala Rowe Break New Ground On Out Of The Sky

Just released is veteran guitarist John Etheridge and vocalist Vimala Rowe’s breathtaking collaboration, Out Of the Sky. John Etheridge’s reputation in the jazz world cannot be overstated. A genuinely virtuosic fusion guitarist, Etheridge is one of a handful of players who can claim to have helped shape the character of modern jazz guitar. He has been described by fellow fretsman Pat Metheny as ‘one of the best guitarists in the world’, a distinction that is due in no small part to his tireless exploration of the possibilities of his instrument. A hugely respected artist in his own right, Etheridge also claims an impressive collaborative history, from his seminal work with groundbreaking fusion group Soft Machine to his longstanding status as the guitarist of choice for jazz icon Stéphane Grappelli.

It is safe to say, then, that when it comes to playing companions, Etheridge’s judgement is second to none. In vocalist Vimala Rowe, he has not only found a partner of rare ability but a talent that perfectly compliments his explorative nature. An exemplary jazz singer with a faultless and deft expression, Rowe has a unique style that is further enhanced by her past training in classical Hindustani vocals. Her soulful, moving, and unerringly committed performances on Out Of The Sky are truly revelatory. 

Out Of The Sky is an album that offers both a quintessential jazz feel and the discernable atmosphere of new territory being discovered. Peppered throughout the refined jazz and blues tones are tantalising touches of flamenco, Indian classical, and African timbres that beat at the boundaries of genre. This combination of influences, along with Etheridge and Rowe’s staggering sensitivity to each other’s styles, makes Out Of The Sky an otherworldly experience. Perhaps most pleasingly, the tracks also resonate with the deeply personal - as well as musical - connection shared by these two artists at the top of their game. 

Out of the Sky is a powerful, expressive, and joyous meeting of minds. With this outstanding collaboration, John Etheridge and Vimala Rowe have created an album that marks out the vocalist-guitarist duo as a site of previously untapped possibility.

Drummer Will Calhoun Pays Tribute to a Profound Influence on Celebrating Elvin Jones

Although he's best known as the hard-driving, groove-oriented drummer for the pioneering rock group Living Colour, Will Calhoun has played in a staggering variety of styles and traditions over the course of his eclectic career. Straight-ahead jazz, fusion, traditional African percussion, funk, hip-hop, and of course hard rock -- Calhoun has explored them all, and he traces the roots of all of them to one man: legendary drummer Elvin Jones.

On his second album for Motéma Music, Celebrating Elvin Jones (due out August 19), Calhoun pays tribute to his earliest and most profound influence with a stellar band of musicians, all of whom were impacted by Jones through their personal growth as a musician or their past working with him directly: bassist Christian McBride, saxophonist Antoine Roney, pianist/keyboardist Carlos McKinney, and trumpeter Keyon Harrold. The great keyboardist Jan Hammer, a member of Jones' trio for On the Mountain (1975), joins the band for a reprise of that album's Gene Perla-penned track "Destiny;" and Senegalese percussionist Doudou N'Diaye Rose joins with a group of drummers for the traditional Japanese folk song "Doll of the Bride."

"Elvin connected my worlds," Calhoun says. "Although I saw him playing jazz, I felt rock and roll, I felt fusion, I felt African music. It sounds electric, it sounds acoustic, it sounds very African, it sounds very Latin, there are all these elements in there."

Calhoun first became acquainted with Jones' playing as a young child hearing the drummer's recordings with the classic John Coltrane Quartet -- a band that he now considers part of a Holy Trinity with the second great Miles Davis Quintet and the Jimi Hendrix Experience. At the age of 14, Calhoun witnessed Elvin playing for the first time at the Village Vanguard and had the opportunity to meet and speak with the drum legend on various occasions throughout the years prior to Jones' passing in 2004.

"Listening to Coltrane's band in my youth reminded me of some kind of an incredible explosion," Calhoun says. "The music was beyond jazz. There were a few records in those days where you put the needle down and you didn't make it back to the couch. The Coltrane records were some of those albums where I just stood there staring at the needle and listening, and Elvin was driving that train -- no pun intended -- by shoving a lot of coals into the fire. He had a profound effect on me."

Jones also had a profound effect on all of the members of the band that Calhoun assembled for the occasion. McBride only played with the drummer on a few special occasions, including saxophonist Javon Jackson's debut album, Me and Mr. Jones. Both Roney and McKinney can boast of more extensive experience under Jones' leadership, with both appearing on the drummer's final release, The Truth: Heard Live at the Half Note. While Harrold did not have the opportunity to ever perform with Jones, the drummer has long influenced him. Calhoun drew on all of their experiences as he developed the music for Celebrating Elvin Jones.

"Hearing those guys telling stories about when they were on the road with Elvin was helpful," he says. "I chose according to what music would best represent my vision. I also wanted to put my own vibe into the music."

The songs that Calhoun selected for Celebrating Elvin Jones span the late drummer's career, though they also reflect a distinctly individual approach to that catalogue. Calhoun devised the repertoire based on purely musical instincts, not just skimming the drummer's most recognizable tunes. There's nothing on the album from the Coltrane Quartet, and "Three Card Molly," perhaps Jones' best-known composition, is missing from the track listing -- in part because Calhoun recorded a memorable version for his 2006 release Native Lands in the immediate aftermath of Jones' death.

The rousing opener "EJ Blues" was a staple of the Elvin Jones Jazz Machine's live performances in the 1980s, while Wilbur Little's stabbing modal tune "Whew" dates back to the drummer's 1969 album Poly-Currents. John Coltrane's "Harmonique" predates Jones' tenure in the saxophonist's band, but the drummer recorded it on his 1984 tribute, Brother John. Jones recorded Wayne Shorter's "Mahjong" on the composer's 1964 release JuJu, while his wife Keiko contributed "Shinjitsu," which was recorded on 1985's Live at Pit Inn. The meditative "Sarmastah" is Calhoun's sole original composition on the album, featuring the drummer playing blissful 12-string acoustic guitar to conjure a transcendent mood in conjunction with Roney's soprano and McKinney's electric piano.

Two very special guest appearances close out the album. Hammer, as mentioned above, originally recorded "Destiny" with Jones in 1975, so Calhoun was honored to have the influential Czech keyboardist contribute to the album. Hammer, who came to prominence as a member of the Mahavishnu Orchestra and whose breakthrough success on Miami Vice coincided with Living Colour's biggest hits, is instantly recognizable as his lazing, soaring synths pair off with Calhoun's raucous drumming.

Finally, Calhoun opens the traditional Japanese folk song "Doll of the Bride" with a recording of the late Senegalese percussion master Doudou N'Diaye Rose with a group of drummers. Calhoun treasures his memories of meeting Rose, visiting his house in Senegal and having the opportunity to ask questions of the master. The experience brought back memories of a visit the drummer made to saxophonist Roney's home for rehearsal, where he noticed a photograph of Jones in Africa surrounded by hand drummers, making an explicit connection that he'd always heard intuitively.

"Elvin and Doudou reminded me of each other," he says. "They have a lot in common in how they speak about rhythm and music in a very respectful, classy, educated and freeform way. I don't know if they ever met, but I wanted to recognize the energy and spiritual camaraderie between those two gentlemen."

In recording Jones' music, Calhoun didn't want to imitate the drummer, but simply -- as is only appropriate for such a restlessly inventive and forward-thinking artist -- to absorb his influence and explore his music in a uniquely personal and progressive style. "I wasn't trying to nail Elvin's playing or sound," he explains. "I love Elvin and all of his contributions. He's inspired me in so many ways, even playing with Living Colour, so this piece, to me, is celebratory. It's a thank you and a respectful homage to this wonderful musician."

  

Will Calhoun · Celebrating Elvin Jones

Motéma Music · Release Date: August 19, 2016

NEW MUSIC: JEFF PARKER – NEW BREED; INCOGNITO – IN SEARCH OF BETTER DAYS; MARQUIS HILL – THE WAY WE PLAY

JEFF PARKER – NEW BREED

The record we've been waiting years for Jeff Parker to make – a fantastic funky set that shows off a whole new side of his talents! Parker's guitar has been on plenty of great albums over the past decade or two, but this set may well be one of his greatest moments so far – a really unusual, really personal set that takes his music to a whole new level – partly schooled by vintage funk, as you might guess from the cover – but also partly set up in a spirited new direction that propels Jeff farther forward than any other record! Parker plays guitar and a range of keyboards – and the album almost has a laidback Shuggie Otis vibe at points, but is a lot more complex overall – thanks to excellent rhythm work from Paul Bryan on bass and Jamire Williams on drums – who ground the sound, but can take off freely with Parker, too – as does Josh Johnson on alto, flute, and some other keyboards too. The whole thing almost puts Jeff into Robert Glasper territory – in its unique blend of jazz, funk, and soulful currents – but very unique, a genre unto his own, really well-deserved after all these years. The album's brilliant from start to finish, with cuts that include "Executive Life", "Para Ha Tay", "Here Comes Ezra", "Jrifted", "Visions", "How Fun Is It To Year Whip", and "Get Dressed". ~ Dusty Groove

INCOGNITO – IN SEARCH OF BETTER DAYS

Incognito hardly need to go off in search of better days – as all the many years they've given us music, the days have always been pretty darn great! Yet the title's also a great reminder of the group's unflagging positive energy and optimism – a quality that made them one of the key forces helping to reinvigorate soul music at the start of the 90s, and still has them burning strong all these many years later! The trademark blend of jazz, funk, and soul is perfect throughout – led by the legendary Bluey, and featuring vocal contributions from top-shelf singers who include Tony Momrelle, Maysa, Avery Sunshine, Vanessa Haynes, and Imaani. The whole thing's great – we wouldn't expect anything less – and titles include "Just Say Nothing", "Love Born In Flames", "Echoes Of Utopia", "Racing Through The Bends", "Love's Revival", "Selfishly", "All I Ever Wanted", and "Better Days". ~ Dusty Groove

MARQUIS HILL – THE WAY WE PLAY

Perhaps the best to date from trumpeter Marquis Hill – still a young player, but he plays with a depth of Chicago soul jazz history in his musical DNA, even as he brings in profoundly modern touches! Marquis was splitting his time between Chicago and NYC by the time The Way We Play was recorded, but he's really showing a deep love for Chicago here, from the cover art to the choice of material, in which he's invigorating classic numbers with fresh, youthful urgency. Core players include Makaya McCraven on drums, Christian McBride on alto, Justin "Justefan" Thomas on vibes and Joshua Ramos on bass – with guest vocalists Christie Dashiell and Meagan McNeal, poet Harold Green III, percussionist Jan Pastor and trombonist Vincent Gardner. Includes "The Way We Play/Minority", "Moon Rays", "Polka Dots And Moonbeams", a truly fresh, slowed down and moodier take on the Herbie Hancock classic "Maiden Voyage" with some emotive wordless vocals, "Fly Little Bird Fly", "Beep Durple", "Straight, No Chaser", "My Foolish Heart" and "Smile". ~ Dusty Groove

Hard-Bop Jazz Masters The Cookers Make Smoke Sessions Records Debut with The Call of the Wild and Peaceful Heart

The Cookers, the veteran jazz supergroup that The New York Times calls "a dream team of forward-leaning hard-bop," returns with its fifth and most exhilarating album to date, The Call of the Wild and Peaceful Heart. After nine years together, The Cookers have evolved from a summit of swinging road warriors to become simply one of the most burning and hardest-hitting bands on the scene.

"At this point, we've gelled as a band with an original voice, so the goal is just to be that much stronger each time out," says David Weiss, the next-generation trumpeter that assembled this gathering of elders. "The band itself should be the story at this point, I hope, but I think this album shows off a much stronger spiritual side of the group then previous efforts. I don't know if that's what happens when such great musicians who share this common bond spend so much time together, or maybe it's just that some of the material we chose for this album conveys this spirit so well, but it's certainly there and is quite powerful."

The Call of the Wild and Peaceful Heart, due out September 9, marks The Cookers' debut on Smoke Sessions Records and is the follow up to their critically acclaimed release Time and Time Again which was the iTunes' Jazz Album of the Year in 2014. Once again, the core of the band consists of five legendary, long-undersung musicians whose credentials read like a who's-who of classic-era jazz: tenor saxophonist Billy Harper was a member of groups led by Lee Morgan and Max Roach and served a two-year stint with Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers; trumpeter Eddie Henderson and drummer Billy Hart were both part of Herbie Hancock's electrifying Mwandishi ensemble; pianist George Cables played alongside Dexter Gordon and Art Pepper; and bassist Cecil McBee anchored Charles Lloyd's famed 1960s quartet with Keith Jarrett and Jack DeJohnette. They're joined by torchbearers Weiss and, in his second outing with the band, alto saxophonist Donald Harrison.

The new album's title comes from Harper's opening track, originally recorded for the saxophonist's 1975 album Black Saint. The "wild and peaceful heart" was meant to refer to the dueling passions to be found in the soul of the composer himself, but applies equally well to this ensemble, whose repertoire can range from the tempestuous force of Hart's "Oceans of Time" to the wistful soul of McBee's "Third Phase." As Harper puts it, "The group is set up in such a way that there's a balance of hard drive and cool expressions."

That balance can be nimbly struck in the space of a single composition, as on Harper's album-closing "Thy Will Be Done." The piece begins in the mood of latter-day Coltrane's spiritually seeking excursions, eventually settling into a becalmed but vigorous groove that Harper refers to as "a swinging prayer." Like all three of Harper's contributions to the album, the song features a new arrangement by the composer.

The unique septet, Harper says, "lends itself to a wider range of colors. It's like having the palette of a big band that drives and cooks like a small group."

As always, the album's repertoire is plumbed from the members' vast discographies, a bevy of riches that Weiss says continues to yield surprises. After exhausting what he calls "David's fantasy list" of the group's compositions on The Cookers' first two albums, he's consistently discovered new favorites, embellished by the band's growing camaraderie. "I always think, 'How did I miss this last time?' But as the band grows and I realize more and more what they're capable of, certain tunes speak to me differently the next time through. I think this is our strongest record and top to bottom the strongest collection of tunes that we've done."

Following the urgent momentum of Harper's title tune comes the sharp, soulful swagger of Cables' "Beyond Forever" from his 1994 date of the same name, which first appeared on Eddie Henderson's 1977 release Comin' Through. The album's sole debut recording is McBee's "Third Phase," which begins with the pianist in a contemplative mood before the horns enter to sing the memorable melody. Hart previously recorded the abstract, dark-hued "Teule's Redemption" with his own quartet on his 2014 ECM release One Is the Other, and the song's Ornette-inspired jaggedness is only bolstered by The Cookers' four-horn frontline.

Though he's known for his hard-driving approach, Harper contributes the album's most tender moment with his ballad "If One Could Only See," inspired by a dream in which a hand reached down from heaven and handed him a cassette tape containing the song's wounded but steely melody. Native American influences are obvious in Cables' "Blackfoot," culled from his 1993 SteepleChase debut I Mean You, while Hart's "Oceans of Time" was the title track of his 1997 release.

"These guys should all be considered giants on their own," Weiss insists. "The idea of The Cookers is to bring them to greater prominence, and a big part of that is this incredible legacy of compositions."

The Cookers is unique in the modern jazz landscape, a band that benefits from more than four decades of rapport and shared experiences, as well as first-hand knowledge of the seismic shifts in the music that younger musicians only know through records and stories. "They all come out of basically the same era," Weiss says. "They all saw the same things, they were all blown away by seeing John Coltrane in 1965 - they were all part of something bigger than us. They were right there when some groundbreaking stuff happened, and they still approach the music that way."

  

"The Call of the Wild and Peaceful Heart" was recorded live in New York at Sear Sound's Studio C  on a Sear-Avalon custom console at 96KHz/24bit and mixed to ½" analog tape  using a Studer mastering deck. Available in audiophile HD format.

  

The Cookers' Upcoming Performances

September 13-17 | Birdland | New York, NY

October 15 | Angrajazz | Terceira Island, Portugal

October 18 | Night Town | Cleveland, OH

October 19 | Jazz Kitchen | Indianapolis, IN

October 20 | Constellation | Chicago, IL

October 21 | Musical Instrument Museum | Phoenix, AR

October 22 | Yoshi's | Oakland, CA

October 23 | (venue tbd) | Los Angeles, CA

October 24 | Kuumbwa | Santa Cruz, CA

October 25-26 | Jazz Alley | Seattle, WA

November 5 | Bologna Jazz Festival | Bologna, Italy

November 7 | Music Academy Chamber | Zagreb,Croatia

November 8 | Reigen | Vienna, Austria

November 11 | Szeged Jazz Days | Szegedy, Hungary

November 12 | Moncalieri Jazz Festival | Moncalieri, Italy

November 13 | The Sage | Gateshead, United Kingdom

November 15 | Band on the Wall | Manchester, United Kingdom

November 16 | Turner Sims | Southhampton, United Kingdom

November 17 | London Jazz Festival | London, United Kingdom

November 18 | Club Bahnhof Ehrenfeld | Cologne, Germany

November 23 | La Usina del art | Buenos Aires, Argentina

November 25 | Teatro Municipal Bahia | Blanca, Argentina

The Cookers · The Call of the Wild and Peaceful Heart

Smoke Sessions Records · Release Date: September 9, 2016

NEW MUSIC: PETER KUHN TRIO – THE OTHER SHORE; JAZZTRONIK – KEYSTONE; ELZA SOARES – WOMAN AT THE END OF THE WORLD (A MULHER DO FIM DO MUNDO)

PETER KUHN TRIO – THE OTHER SHORE

It seems like it's been many years since we last heard from reedman Peter Kuhn – but the sharpness of this set hardly marks the passage of time, as Kuhn's every bit as vibrant as he was a force on the avant scene of the late 70s and early 80s! As before, Kuhn handles a lot of b-flat and bass clarinet – but he also blows a bit of tenor and alto too – shaping sounds in very open territory, in a trio with Kyle Motl on bass and Nathan Hubbard on drums, in a mix of freedom and spirituality that almost recalls the New York loft jazz mode of decades back. Titles include "Not Two", "Unstrung Heroes", "Is Love Enough", "Beginning Anew", and "No Coming No Going". ~ Dusty Groove

JAZZTRONIK – KEYSTONE

Beautiful sounds from Jazztronik – a set that reminds us why we first fell in love with his music so many years ago! The album mixes wonderful keyboard lines and warmly soulful vocals – the former from the man himself, Ryo Nozaki – the latter from guests who include Valerie Etienne, Eliana, Love, Kaori Takeda, and Sumire – singers whose presence is interspersed with instrumental tracks that further the lyrical vision of Nozaki's music! Nozaki's really upped his vision here – and not only works in strings on some of the more soaring numbers, but also creates these gentler, poetic passages at mellower moments – all blended together at a level that makes this the most sophisticated Jazztronik set we've ever heard. Titles include "Now", "DGA", "Lost Melody", "Parade", "Warp", "The City Beyond", "Peach Boy", and "A New Phase Of Life".  ~ Dusty Groove

ELZA SOARES – WOMAN AT THE END OF THE WORLD (A MULHER DO FIM DO MUNDO)

A stunning new set from the legendary Elza Soares – the samba singer who gave us some wonderful music in the 70s, but who hits a completely different sound here! The set really focuses around Soares' amazing vocals – which are often sometimes out there completely on her own – but the instrumentation is unusually contemporary, and uses bits of electronics, fuzzy guitar, and some especially great basslines to create these very different soundscapes for her vocal performance! The shift is a bit like those late-life projects that Gil Scott-Heron did – such as his I'm New Here album – although with a different vibe, given Soares' background in Brazilian music. Titles include "Coracao Do Mar", "Comigo", "Danca", "O Canal", "Solto", "Pra Fuder", and "Luz Vermelha".  ~ Dusty Groove

Henri-Pierre Noel's "Piano" + "One More Step" re-released in Deluxe Editions, featuring remixes and bonus tracks

Four years on from the hugely anticipated re-issue of this much sought after tropical jazz masterpiece, Wah Wah 45s have announced the release of a Deluxe Edition of Henri-Pierre's Piano, now featuring remixes and bonus tracks for the first time in one package.

On moving to Canada from his original home of Haiti, pianist and singer/songwriter Henri-Pierre Noel brought with him much of the tropical island's influences. The Kompa Funk sounds of his homeland, along side contemporary North American jazz and disco, run throughout both of Henri's albums recorded in the late 1970's - Piano and One More Step. Both wre released on very limited private presses and have since become holy grails of the back music scene.

Henri-Pierre Noel is an incredibly versatile musican who uses the piano in a very percussive and syncopated way, almost like a drum. This particular technique naturally brings disco and afro-funk elements into hisunique brand of dance floor fusion.

Re-mastered from the original multi-track tapes, Henri-Pierre Noel's debut Piano is now available in an exclusive deluxe package featuring the foot friendly covers Mercy, Mercy, Mercy and A Fifth of Beethoven, that only appeared as a limited 7-inch single and have never featured on the album, as well as Re-Visions from a huge fan, The Reflex. The French disco don's club friendly re-workings of A Fifth of Beethoven, as well as his full length edit of album favourite Diskette, are also featured on this explosive package.

Three years on from the hugely anticipated re-issue of this much sought after tropical funk masterpiece, Wah Wah 45s are proud to announce the release of a Deluxe Edition of Henri-Pierre's One More Step, now featuring bonus remixes for the first time in one package.

On moving to Canada from his original home of Haiti, pianist and singer/songwriter Henri-Pierre Noel brought with him much of the tropical island's influences. The Kompa Funk sounds of his homeland, along side contemporary North American jazz and disco, ran throughout Henri's debut, Piano, re-released by Wah Wah 45s in 2012, and the follow up dance floor friendly One More Step - both albums having been originally released on very limited private presses and since become holy grails of the back music scene.

Henri-Pierre Noel is an incredibly versatile musican who uses the piano in a very percussive and syncopated way, almost like a drum. This particular technique naturally brings disco and afro-funk elements into hisunique brand of foot friendly fusion.

Re-mastered from the original multi-track tapes and featuring seriously foot friendly cuts like Afro-Funk Groove and Latin Feeling, One More Step is finally available along with hugely popular remixes from French disco don The Reflex, who hits all the right notes with his club focused re-workings of Funky Spider Dance and Back Home... Sweet Home.

The Battle of Santiago Announces East Coast Dates

There’s an epic soundclash taking place North of the Border. Toronto-based group the Battle of Santiago combines classic Afro-Cuban rhythms and vocals with a distinctly Canadian post-rock spirit and sensibility. The result is a wholly unique sound that tells a universal 21st Century story, transcending borders while staying rooted in one city’s immigrant experience.

“There are a couple of different Battles of Santiago’s to choose from,” explains the group’s founder Michael Owen. “There were a few in Cuba, mostly during the Spanish-American War, and there was even an infamous World Cup match in Chile that’s been given the name, too. So you can take your pick. We liked that ambiguity. It reflects how our music can change and take on different vibes. The name also implies some kind of soundclash, which works for us since the band has both a Latino and non-Latino section, and that dynamic can create a really exciting creative tension.”

While Canada is well-known for its thriving indie rock and electronic scenes, with acts as diverse as Grimes and God Speed You Black Emperor, the country is seldom thought of as a Latin music hotbed. But Toronto hosts many thriving immigrant communities — including one of the largest Cuban expat communities in North America — and the Battle of Santiago is strongly rooted in the city’s wealth of Cuban musical talent.

“The group has always had a strong Afro-Cuban base,” Owen explains. “In the beginning we had a much more pan-Latin mix, with members from Chile, Venezuela and Mexico. But as the band evolved we added more and more Cuban members until we reached a critical mass, and our sound has taken on a much stronger Cuban flavour as a result.”

Founded in 2011, The Battle of Santiago has been marked by this restless, transnational experimentalism since the beginning. The group has evolved from an exploration of experimental rock grounded in drummer-less Latin percussion, to an instrumental groove machine, to the tight Afro-Cuban post-rock outfit that it is today.

That evolution can be heard on the band’s two full-length albums, 2012’s Full Colour and 2013’sFollowed by Thousands. Now, with the addition of vocals, the Battle of Santiago is poised to break new ground in 2016 with their new EP.

Set for a 2016 release on the band’s own Made With Pencil Crayons label, this EP release dives deep into Afro-Cuban waters, mixing Afro-Cuban Yourba chants with subtle electronica (“Barasu-Ayo”) and rumbas with post-rock experimentalism (“Asi Vengo Yo”). The sound is more than just Radiohead meets Irakere, though: there’s cumbia tinged with dub (“Cimmaron”), anthemic Latin rock (“Pa Bailar”) and even the smooth funk of “Complica”.

The Battle of Santiago doesn’t skimp on their live show, either. Their Revolucion Perpetua multimedia show, developed with chilean-born artist/designer Patricio Davila,  integrates digital visual art, live musical performance and audience interaction. The result is a one-of-a-kind organic audio / visual installation not to be missed.

US Tour Dates:

July 7 @ ArtsRoit, Burlington, VT

July 8 @ Rockwood Music Hall, NYC, NY

July 9 @ Joe Pub, NYC, NY

Facebook - www.facebook.com/thebattleofsantiago

Twitter - www.twitter.com/Battle_Santiago

Soundcloud - soundcloud.com/the-battle-of-santiago

Last.fm - http://www.last.fm/music/The+Battle+of+Santiago

Bandcamp - http://thebattleofsantiago.bandcamp.com/

 

Imagineer Corrado Rustici explores expressive new sonicscapes using only the guitar on “Aham,” arriving July 15

Eager to emerge from the “trance” and “lack of imagination” plaguing electric guitarists for the past several decades, Corrado Rustici devoted six years to exploring sounds and expansive musical contexts utilizing only the guitar as his field of experimentation and expression. The imaginative results are the nine songs he composed that together form “Aham,” an audacious collection of ambient fusion, progressive jazz, ethereal rock, moody pop, and dramatic classical performed and produced by Rustici set for release in the U.S. on July 15.   

Rustici’s aural pursuit began in conjunction with a spiritual quest, an existential search into his being, which conjointly led to exploring the essential nature of his perception of music. Everything that you hear on “Aham,” a Sanskrit word meaning “I am,” from what sounds like drums, bass, strings, woodwinds and voice were created exclusively using electric and acoustic guitars through analog pedals and digital plug-ins. The only exceptions are two vocal tracks – one by Rustici on the poetic confessional “The Guilty Thread” and another featuring the soulful tenor voice of Andrew Strong (“The Commitments”) on the fantastical adventure “Alcove Of Stars” – and handclaps on the meandering balladic sojourn “The Last Light Spoken.” The artist did not use synthesizers, samplers or electronic instruments anywhere on the album.

“When I started to write the music for this album, I wanted to find out how far this wonderful instrument and I could go. During six years of work and experimentation, I’ve been incredibly surprised by the guitar’s versatility and sonic capabilities , which have been seldom used or almost totally ignored up to this point. The deeper I went, I became more and more enthused and excited about the little and big secrets that the instrument kept revealing to me. The way in which the music was conceived and produced created some limitations, constrictions and a distinctive sonic palette, all of which contributed to the overall sound and mood of the album. I hope that after six years of R&D, I was able to create a musical space within which one can hear the first baby cry of what I like to call the ‘Transmodern Guitar,’” said Rustici, who as a byproduct of his work on “Aham” is designing and developing a couple of guitar pedals with DV Mark that will be unvieled in January 2017 at the NAMM Show.

To Rustici, it was important that the songs on “Aham,” including the epic two-part title track opus, connect with listeners meaningfully and are capable of shining on their own merits, and do not simply become guitar demos for his revolutionary techniques and ingenuity.

“I was absolutely not interested in recording a ‘shredder’ project. In the end, it’s not important how we construct a piece of music, but only if and in which way a musician is capable of creating that emotional and – always virtual - space within which both the artist and the listener find a way to share the joy, the pain and the very reason for our ‘Existence.’”

The Naples, Italy native will perform music from “Aham” on home soil in November in support of the album, which Sony Classical is releasing in that territory next month. After leading his own band (Nova) in the mid-to-late 1970s, which included collaborations with Phil Collins and hit-maker Narada Michael Walden, Rustici relocated to California and has been a San Francisco resident since 1978. As an award-winning producer, Rustici helped craft a library of No. 1 Billboard singles in Europe and multi-million selling albums working with global superstars such as Zucherro, Paul Young and  Luciano Pavorotti. In 2007, he became the first producer to simultaneously occupy the top 3 spots on the Nielsen chart with three different artists (Ligabue, Negramaro and Renga). Over the years, his passion for sonic innovation has resulted in unearthing now widely accepted and used production methods such as Push & Pull, which combines the irreverent approach of rock and pop with the softer and more evocative effect of ambient music. As a solo artist, his previous releases are “Deconstruction Of A Postmodern Musician" (2007) and “Blaze & Bloom: Live In Japan” (2014), the latter of which was also issued as a DVD.  

Rustici’s “Aham” contains the following songs:

“As Dark Bleeds Light”

“Ananda’s First Steps”

“The Duke And The Hare”

“The Guilty Thread”

“Roots Of Progression”

“Alcove Of Stars”

“The Last Light Spoken”

AHAM Suite:

Part 1: “The Enquiry”

Part 2: “Aham”

Featured this week on The Jazz Network Worldwide: Vocalist, Redora Caruso, debut Solo Album of Jazz Standards entitled "My Funny Valentine”

Redora Caruso is no stranger to a lit up stage of funky rhythms engulfed in jazz and blues flavorings, sizzling vocals and an execution of song all her own.  Redora has been singing professionally now for over 20 years. She sings all styles, ranging from Jazz standards to Disco, Motown to R&B and Blues.

Redora was raised in a theatrical family. Both her parents were Opera singers who later owned a string of restaurant-dinner theaters. She was exposed to various genres of music from different eras, which became a benefit in becoming a well-rounded performer.

From singing in jazz clubs in Toronto with a latin jazz group to joining a Top 40 duo in Florida and often doing cruise ship performances on "Carnival cruise Lines." From a popular R&B house band at “Hemmingways” in Hollywood, FL to joining an all-girl group called "Beat Reaction" under contract with an Independent Record Label, Redora has tapped many diverse musical stages.

After recording an R&B single, Redora was introduced to Jimmie "bo" Horne formally of "K.C. and the Sunshine Band" who invited her to Co-star on the Cruise Ship "Fantasy". Noted as a steady main stay in southern Florida performing with different bands and keeping busy with club dates, conventions, fundraisers, special events and golf & country clubs.   Other live performances included the House Band at "Bianca's, "Sun Cruise", the "Colony Hotel" and "Club 10” at the Airport Hilton Hotel in Palm Beach, "Watercolors Cafe" and "Carmen's at the Top of the Bridge" which is a popular hot spot was located inside the Bridge Hotel in Boca Raton.

“This woman has done it all in preparation for her step forward with her first solo project.  She has many portals of musicality to draw from to create a cohesive expression of all her influences wrapped into one. I was taken by the many musical dimensions she works within, I found her quite unique, polished, authentic and eager in heart to share her gifts worldwide” says Jaijai Jackson of The Jazz Network Worldwide.

Redora's first solo album of jazz standards "My Funny Valentine" was released early 2016 and is gaining momentum worldwide with a fan base that is growing in popularity through internet radio hubs. Recently interviewed on (http://www.rnbrhythms.info/site/category/interviews/).

"I have received such an overwhelming response from my first album ‘My Funny Valentine’.   It is my soul desire to continue making music from my heart by way of live performance and recording.  I'm looking forward to a closer relationship with my fans where we can communicate through social media and with God all things are possible, to them that believe” says Caruso.

Currently you can catch her live performance every Wednesday from 5:30 to 8:30 at "Anthony's Coal fired Pizza”, on Atlantic Ave., in Delray Beach, FL sharing her love for people and her desire to bring some fun into their lives through her music.  In addition, Redora seeks to collaborate with songwriters to compose original material for her next CD project.

Visit THE JAZZ NETWORK WORLDWIDE "A GREAT PLACE TO HANG" at: http://www.thejazznetworkworldwide.com/?xg_source=msg_mes_network

NEW MUSIC: STEVE SALUTO – THE POWER OF 6 FLOWERS; MIKE DILORENZO – SOUL TO SOUL; AKIRA SAKATA - THE TALE OF THE HEIKE

STEVE SALUTO – THE POWER OF 6 FLOWERS

Italian guitarplayer, singer and songwriter Steve Saluto is releasing "The Power of 6 Flowers" on Monday, June 6, 2016. Written, performed, recorded and produced by Steve himself "The Power Of 6 Flowers" is an album that transcends genres; It's a journey of 6 songs through happy and sad and intimate moments of life… as Steve said "The 6 songs are pictures of moments; Life is Love and Loss. Period... But, you know, it ain't over till it's over so never give up ... "... As a result, "The Power Of 6 Flowers" is a remarkably diverse album that pushes boundaries on Saluto's evolution as an artist and it has much to offer to the listeners. Whether it's slick beats, guitar slinging or vivid storytelling, Saluto's 15th effort launches the artist into new territories showing exactly why it's absolutely necessary to keep a watchful eye on him. Tracks include: Get Out; Words; Crucify The Visionary; Don’t Touch Me; The Coldness The Distance; and It Ain’t Me.

MIKE DILORENZO – SOUL TO SOUL

Soul To Soul, the new CD release by Mike DiLorenzo morphs live latin, jazz and electronic elements on 7 original compositions as well as contemporary reinterpretations from jazz classics to current EDM. As a NY based musician, Mike has had the opportunity to perform on piano, organ and synthesizers with a wide range of artists with styles ranging from R&B to Latin and Jazz. Soul To Soul captures all 3 elements with 7 original compositions from organ swing jazz to samba as well as modern twists of some contemporary jazz classics such as a latin version of Friday Night at the Cadillac Club, a modern tribute to the Ramsey Lewis/EW&F classic Sun Goddess and a different spin on a Weather Report /Jaco Pastorius classic. The jazz standard Cherokee and the EDM hit Latch as recoded by Disclosure and Sam Smith are also represented in a new light.

AKIRA SAKATA - THE TALE OF THE HEIKE

Mindblowing sounds from legendary reedman Akira Sakata – working here in a setting that's mostly solo, but which also includes some group material from a DVD of the performance too! The core tracks have Sakata blowing amazingly on alto, clarinet, and bass clarinet – these long, thoughtful solos that really mark his contribution to improvised music over the years – almost poetic, even though they're very freewheeling – and marked at points by these raspy, rumbling vocal recitations by Akira – with a tone that's almost as mezmerizing and unique as his work on reed instruments! Solo titles include "Gion Shoja", "The Death Of Kiso", "The Matter Of The Six Paths", "The Assault From The Cliff", "The Death Of Atsumori", and "Battle Of Dan No Ura". Then, the set also includes some group numbers, recorded live – with Jim O'Rourke on guitar, Tatsuhisha Yamamoto on drums and percussion, Chizuru Ishii on percussion and taiko, and Yumiko Tanaka on shamisen – on titles that include "See Chanty Of Ondo", "The Chapter Of The Battle", and "The Death Of Kiso". ~ Dusty Groove

NEW MUSIC: MARTHA HIGH – SINGING FOR THE GOOD TIMES; FULL BLAST (PETER BROTZMANN) - RISC; QUANTIC PRESENTS FLOWERING INFERNO – 1000 WATTS

MARTHA HIGH – SINGING FOR THE GOOD TIMES

A great return chapter for Martha High – a singer who began her career working with James Brown, cut some disco for Salsoul Records in the 70s, and who's re-emerged in recent years as a stunning vocalist in a deep funk mode! This album's got High working with an excellent Italian combo – one who wrote all new tunes for the record, and came up with music that's maybe some of the most perfect that Martha's ever worked with – beautiful songs that unlock some soulful sides of her style that she maybe didn't even hit back in the day! The record's not one of those "old divas back for a minute" sets – and instead completely reinvigorate's High's career, and maybe even starts her anew down a path she should have taken so many years before. Hats off to producer and songwrtiter Luca Sapio for getting things so right – on titles that include "Always Worth The Pain", "Fire Shut Up In My Bones", "The Hardest Working Woman In Town", "You Baby", "I'm A Woman", and "The Hard Way". ~ Dusty Groove

FULL BLAST (PETER BROTZMANN) - RISC

Pretty blistering sounds from Peter Brotzmann's Risc trio – a group that really recalls some of the mindblowing intensity he brought to the free jazz scene in his youth! The lineup features electric bass from Marino Pliakas, which really creates a lot of power at the bottom – a rumbling quality that shakes the rafters in ways that an acoustic bass couldn't achieve – matched by frenzied drum work from Michael Wertmuller, who mostly plays in skittish space all over the kit – then matched by some very freewheeling work from Brotzmann on a range of reeds. The electric bass really gives the set a different feel than other improv trio dates – but also in a way that's never "electric" in conventional modes – and titles include "Try Kraka", "Cafe Ingrid", "TTD", "Garnison Lane", "Doss House", and "Schwarspanier Street". ~ Dusty Groove

QUANTIC PRESENTS FLOWERING INFERNO – 1000 WATTS

A dubbier set than even before from Quantic and his Flowering Inferno project – a record that's still quite heavy on the range of Caribbean elements he blended with funk on the previous two albums, but one that also seems to draw a bit more strongly from the sound of Kingston overall! The bottom end of the record is nicely pushed forward to the top – with speaker-rattling basslines and rhythms, peppered with moody trumpet and tenor lines, and sewn together with these beautifully bubbling Hammond lines from Roger Rivas – which are maybe the strongest element in the set, and which definitely give the whole thing its most classic quality. Quantic plays guitar throughout – and most cuts are instrumental, but the album does feature some guest vocals from U-Roy, Alice Russell, Christopher Ellis, and Nidia Gongora. Titles include "Spring Tank Fire", "El Disorden", "1000 Watts", "A Life Worth Living", "Homeward Bound", "Ikey's Vibe", "Shuffle Them Shoes", "Striding On Grand Street", "Macondo", "Night Shade", and "All I Do Is Think About You". ~ Dusty Groove

Icelandic keyboardist JACK MAGNET teams up with two-time Grammy® winner Paul Brown for a soul-jazz album GLOBAL WARMING

Veteran Icelandic keyboardist reunites with longtime friend, two-time Grammy® winner Paul Brown, for a soul-jazz album with a purpose: spreading harmony, love and understanding.   

There is nothing in the ten new songs that make up Jack Magnet’s Woodward Avenue Records’ debut, “Global Warming,” released Friday, that will inflame naysayers who deny climate change or its impact on the environment. It’s not that kind of album. Iceland’s popular musical export is on an entirely different mission: to reset minds using instrumental tunes to bring back love, peace and understanding to the world. Reteaming with his collaborator and friend of more than four decades, two-time Grammy®-winning producer Paul Brown, the keyboardist also known as Jakob Magnusson reenters the U.S. marketplace with the first radio single, “Still Boppin’ Along,” a jazz-funk strut.

“’Global Warming’ is all about spreading the positive, showing empathy and warming up to one another, regardless of place of origin, faith, color of skin or political views. This album is not about climate changes and environmental threats. It is about old and new friends coming together to ignite warm human emotions, seeking to counterbalance all the negativity, the conflicts and threats we´re witnessing in so many places around the globe,” Magnet explained.

Magnet’s message of harmony is ingrained in the DNA of the nine new compositions he wrote with Brown after the two reconnected at a 2012 jazz festival held in the world’s northernmost capital of Reykjavik where the famed Fender Rhodes keyboardist is based. The pair has roots dating back over forty years when as teenagers, Magnet - then Magnusson - moved into the Brown family home in the suburbs of Los Angeles. “Still Boppin’ Along,” which gets a boost from contemporary jazz hornmen Rick Braun and Elan Trotman on trumpet and saxophone, was originally penned decades ago during the duo’s pre-fame days yet it is thematically suited to the tone of “Global Warming.” Brown, who plays guitar throughout the session, lends an American vibe to Magnet’s Euro-leaning pop-jazz-blues-rock predilections. Magnet and Brown’s “Global Warming” set list is heavily influenced by music from the Mojo Triangle – New Orleans, Nashville and Memphis.

As Magnet describes it, “The music is inspired by the early European composers who developed the harmony and styles that later became the foundation of the musical language developed around New Orleans at the turn of the 20th Century when jazz was born. From Vivaldi, Chopin and Mendelson to Duke Ellington, Miles Davis and Joseph Zawinul.”

Magnet’s impassioned and lyrical keyboards emote vibrant and joyous melodies, paint poetic and ethereal reflections, and stir emotions with storming sermons. Brown’s sister, Kathy Brown-Babylon, gets in on the act with vocal embellishments on “From The Other Side,” an aptly-titled song that she wrote with her late husband, Elton John’s longtime bassist Guy Babylon. Paul Brown was a bandmate of Magnet’s in a British blues-rock group long ago fronted by Long John Baldry for which Magnet served as a replacement for the original keyboardist, Reg Dwight, who became Elton John. Also performing on the cut is the late drummer Ricky Lawson.                   

Magnet has cultivated a diverse recording catalogue that boasts jazz notables Stanley Clarke, Freddie Hubbard, Tom Scott and Richard Elliot as well as pop superstars Elton John and Phil Collins. A colorful and charismatic multimedia talent in his native Iceland, he starred in and produced the country’s biggest film in box office history, “Með allt á hreinu (On Top),” and currently serves as a celebrity judge on television’s “Iceland’s Got Talent.” 

 “Global Warming” contains the following songs

 “Still Boppin’ Along”

 “Funk It Up”

 “Florence”

 “A Simple Love”

 “Strut Yo Stuff”

 "From The Other Side”

 “Paris”

 “Compared To Who?”

 “Bourbon Street Boogie”

 “JoJo”