Category: Reviews
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Summertime Chi. album review – Micki Miller
Overlooked LP for musos who like their neo soul sprinkled with jazzy, left-field harmonies Outside of a clique of musicians such as Mark de Clive-Lowe and K15, few have heard of Indiana-based keyboardist Tarrah ‘Micki’ Miller. And that’s a criminal oversight. Her 2016 album Summertime Chi. is one of the best neo soul LPs of […]
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Black Focus album – Yussef Kamaal
There’s something decidedly old fashioned about this young duo comprising drummer Yussef Dayes and keyboardist Kamaal Williams (aka Henry Wu). Jazz funk and broken beats are the labels most often attached to their work, genres that had their heydays 30 and 10 years ago respectively. That attitude extends to how they approach music making. Like […]
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Choose Your Weapon album – Hiatus Kaiyote
For geeky music fans who may possess a rudimentary grasp of chords, scales and rhythms, Choose Your Weapon is a revelation. The Australian quartet toy with tempos, switch melodies and hijack genres with scholarly precision. It’s scary at times. Take Jekyll – it appears to be a conventional neo-soul outing until, two minutes into the […]
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Big Luxury album – Potatohead People
Not sure why Nick Wisdom and AstroLogical call themselves Potatohead People. It’s not as if either resemble Potato Head, the Hasbro toy, or pen tunes of an agrarian nature. In fact, the only thing this Canadian duo cultivate are hip-hoppy electronic tracks, often with some subtle jazzy flavours. The web is awash with unimaginative boom-bap […]
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The Thought Of You album review – Otis Brown III
You’d have thought an album featuring pianist Robert Glasper and co-produced by Glasper’s bassist Derrick Hodge would reflect the congenial characters of Black Radio 2 or Live Today, the most recent albums by the pair. But that isn’t quite the case with The Thought Of You, the debut Blue Note LP by Otis Brown III, […]
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Rising Son album review – Takuya Kuroda
For his debut album on Blue Note Records, 33-year-old Japanese trumpeter Takuya Kuroda has made a recording with broad appeal. Its title track gives a passing nod to hip hop, while soul-jazzers will bob approvingly to Kuroda’s cover of Roy Ayers’ classic Everybody Loves The Sunshine. More orthodox jazz fans aren’t ignored, either – Afro […]
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Renegades album review – Mark de Clive-Lowe
de Clive-Lowe has made a few tweaks in his life that may have influenced the sound of his ninth album. Having recently moved from London to Los Angeles, Renegades gestated in the City of Angels. That may account for the high-profile personnel, which includes Prince percussionist Sheila E and arranger extraordinaire Miguel Atwood-Ferguson. de Clive-Lowe […]
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Masterpiece album review – various artists (Gilles Peterson)
Among jazz/nu jazz DJs, Peterson is perhaps the most recognizable on the planet, which means you’ve probably heard him deejay. Not only does busy Peterson broadcast from the UK’s second most popular station, Radio 1, but he has syndicated shows in Japan and Europe. But if for some baffling reason you’ve never heard a Peterson […]
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Shapes 10:02 album review – various artists (Robert Luis)
With recession gripping the globe, less music is being released and of the albums that do reach our shelves, most are creatively bankrupt. However one label whose stock is rising is Tru Thoughts. Its valuable assets includes acts like Maddslinky, Quantic and Hidden Orchestra, all of which have attracted positive press. Diversification also contributes to […]
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Cries & Smiles album review – Izzi Dunn
We expect albums to have strong, singular themes, even though the artists that create them aren’t one-dimensional beings.Cries & Smiles, as its title suggests, has a dual identity: its jazzier, clubbier cuts sit alongside more chart-friendly soul singles. So those of a funkier ilk will home in on Tits & Ass, G@Ngst*R Bitch and the title track. […]