Norwegian guitar virtuosos Knut Reiersrud and Geir Sundstøl have achieved a rare masterwork in modern acoustic and folk-fusion collaboration. By taking the 17th-century compositions of English baroque master Henry Purcell and filtering them through decades of collective experience in blues, folk, and ambient improvisation, the duo has crafted an auditory artifact that defies easy categorization. … Read more
Executive Overview The contemporary musical landscape thrives on unexpected collisions of creative pedigree, but few pairings possess the organic, deeply rooted synergy found between singer-songwriter Olly Him and producer Wyndham Earl. Released via the esteemed imprint Wah Wah 45s, their debut full-length collaborative album, Falling Backwards, stands as a masterclass in genre-fluid artistry. Merging the … Read more
Executive Overview Operating out of Rollag in the rugged Numedal valley of Norway, Motvind Records has steadily carved out a vital niche in the European avant-garde. Functioning as the sister label to the renowned Motvind festival, its catalogue moves freely between the rustic cadences of Norwegian folk music, cutting-edge contemporary compositions, and the high-wire acts … Read more
Executive Overview In the ever-evolving landscape of contemporary transatlantic jazz, few releases capture the cross-cultural synthesis quite as intriguingly as Between the Vistula and the Hudson. Issued on compact disc via the artists’ independent collective, Aesthetiko, this dynamic collaborative effort brings together British-Israeli alto saxophonist and clarinetist Gilad Atzmon with two stalwarts of the Polish … Read more
Executive Overview For over two decades, the boundary-pushing British-Nigerian saxophonist, composer, and Ifá priest Kevin Haynes has maintained a singular, uncompromising vision within the global jazz landscape. His work refuses to neatly partition contemporary modern jazz from the ancient, spiritually saturated rhythms of Yoruba music. Now, twenty-four years after the release of his celebrated independent … Read more
Executive Overview For decades, the standard anthems of automotive motion have been dominated by the neon-lit mythos of the American highway. From Bobby Troup’s “Route 66” to Kraftwerk’s rhythmic, electronic gaze down the “Autobahn,” and even the high-octane British swagger of the Tom Robinson Band’s “2-4-6-8 Motorway,” songs about travel have typically hitched their wagons … Read more
The contemporary European jazz landscape thrives on nuance, historical lineage, and cross-cultural synthesis. Few artists embody this synthesis as completely as pianist and composer Jean-Martial “Jean-Marie” Machado. With the release of his fourth piano trio album, Como as Flores, Machado redefines the boundaries of modern chamber jazz, blending Mediterranean warmth, Brazilian rhythmic vitality, and a … Read more
In the realm of modern cinematic pastiche and retrospective groove culture, few releases manage to transcend the inherent pastiche of the genre. Enter A Day Of Unrest, the fourth studio album from Eleven76—the enigmatic production-housing project masterminded by documentarian and percussionist Paul Elliott. Released via Légère Recordings, this 12-track collection bypasses the traditional constraints of … Read more
Executive Overview In the sprawling pantheon of Brazilian popular music (MPB), few artists possess the chameleon-like capability of Marcos Valle. A pioneer who helped define the luminous, sun-kissed contours of the 1960s bossa nova explosion, Valle never allowed himself to be creatively boxed into a single genre. While his peers frequently adhered to established formulas, … Read more
In the heart of Paris, at the Théâtre Silvia Monfort and its surrounding parklands, an empty chair spoke volumes. It was September 28, 2024, and the independent French label No Format! was celebrating its twentieth anniversary with carte blanche given to virtuoso cellist Vincent Segal. The conceptual blueprint for the day was ambitious: a sprawling, … Read more
