Tag: Jazz
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Psychic Temple – Plays Music For Airports LP
Psychic Temple Plays Music For Airports LP (Big Ego Records) Whatever you think you should expect from the Plays Music For Airports LP – Psychic Temple’s third album, chronologically – you’re going to discover that you’re wrong. First, the recently released vinyl record is a limited-press reissue; Plays Music For Airports originally came out on…
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Baker Gurvitz Army – Since Beginning: The Albums 1974-1976
Once again Esoteric must be applauded for releasing a superb box-set that is not just a pleasure to listen to but also historically important. The Baker Gurvitz Army was formed in 1974 by former Gun and Three Man Army members Paul Gurvitz on bass/vocal, Adam Gurvitz on guitar/vocal, and Cram legend Ginger Baker on drums……
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Brant Bjork – Jacoozzi
It’s always a good day for stoner rock when Brant Bjork releases a new record—although this isn’t really a new, new record, and it isn’t your typical Brant Bjork record, either. Recorded in 2010, Jacoozzi is just Brant jammin’ with himself, playing all the instruments like he did on Jalamanta, his solo debut from ’99…albeit…
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Thantifaxath and more in Toronto, March 2018
Thantifaxath / Cleric / Pyrrhon / Suffering Hour @ Coalition T.O, 28 March 2018 Metal is often accused of lacking creative development and rehashing the past. Briefcase Show Inc. has done a fine job at curating tonight’s event and laying waste to such trite assertions. The bands at the Coalition are all relatively youthful outfits, each…
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Preservation Hall Jazz Band – Run, Stop & Drop (The Needle) EP
It’s not common for a jazz album which was made in a recording studio to really reach out and grab a listener’s attention. Let’s be honest here; jazz was originally music which was born onstage and developed there with the help of gifted players who spent hours crafting it, grooming it, refining it and making…
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Pallbearer + Kayo Dot @ Lee’s Palace, Toronto, 30 August 2017
Are we all doomed out yet? Over the last seven or so years, doom metal has risen from its moldy grave like a fiend from a ‘70s Hammer Horror film. Consequentially, this trendy reincarnation has spawned an army of redundant Black Sabbath, Candlemass, Electric Wizard and Pentagram clones as well as summoning the original corpses…
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Stick Men + Sonar @ The Garrison, Toronto, 27 August 2017
Time to get sticky! Stick Men are a progressive rock act where all three band members stick it to conventional rock norms by playing wielding sticks – two Chapman sticks and drum sticks. Formed in 2007 by Chapman stick player Tony Levin of King Crimson fame (who has appeared on over a whopping 500 albums),…
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Five Alarm Funk – Sweat
Without intending to come off as trite, there are occasions when it’s possible to mark certain similarities between a new album and music which has appeared elsewhere in music history, but those moments can still reverberate with excitement because no one saw that music or the connection to anything else coming – from anywhere, ever.…
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Maxwell – Maxwell’s Urban Hang Suite 2LP
It’s incredible how wide the stream of creativity was in the mainstream music scene of 1996. While rock had finally started to get itself worked out following the death of Kurt Cobain (there were a few good rock records that year – Ministry released Filth Pig, Lou Reed put out Set The Twilight Reeling, The…
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Erroll Garner – Ready Take One
A deeper look at the grooves pressed into the Ready Take One LP by Erroll Garner. What do critics really know about jazz? Such was the first question I found myself asking as I wound my way through Popmatters and Jazzwax looking at longer-lead reviews of Ready Take One. Complaints about Martha Glaser’s production styling…