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"They like their prog in the valleys, don’t they? There seems to be a never ending production line of female fronted bands emerging from secret facilities in deepest, darkest Wales. Or in the case of Last Flight To Pluto, from Cardiff.
In most cases, you’ll find at least some DNA trace evidence of serial Welsh prog-meister Rob Reed. And Last Flight To Pluto, are no exception, with Reed lending piano and Moog to the set opener, ‘Masheena’, mastering the album, and putting it out on his fledgling...

“Last Flight To Pluto were founded in mid 2010s as a female-fronted project by Alice Freya (vocals and guitars). They say they had all known each other from playing in various other bands which crossed paths occasionally and also some mutual friendships prior to the formation.
Writers Freya and Darren Joseph are joined again by guitarists Jack Parry and Ryan Barnard, plus old friends Ed Rees and George Jones (Son Of Man) with a guest appearance from Rob Reed on the opening track - Stop Yourself From..

“The Last Hurrah!!'s Los Angeles started out as a commission work for the Vossajazz festival, and was performed in Voss in western Norway in March 2018. A far cry from Los Angeles, but to mastermind and founder HP Gundersen there are no boundaries in music and such differences are only sources of inspiration and natural parts of his vast musical universe. For the previous album Mudflowers, HP Gundersen "found" and recruited the perfect singer in Maesa Pullman, daughter of famed actor Bill Pullman...

"In the young Maesa Pullman, The Last Hurrah!! mastermind HP Gundersen has found the perfect singer for this ever-developing project so dear to his heart. After exploring the possibilities of the drone guitar on their 2011 debut, Spiritual Non-Believers, and the slightly more song-oriented 2013 follow-up, The Beauty of Fake, The Last Hurrah!! are back with a third album that dives straight into the heart of classical song traditions and vintage production values, blending elements from country and...

"The Last Hurrah!! is the project of Norwegian guitarist HP Gundersen plus a jamboree of international players and singers. Based in Bergen in western Norway, Gundersen has a long history in Norwegian music and beyond. As a producer he discovered and...

"Last Knight is a Neo-prog supergroup that has consisted of several different musicians, many of whom have played with other progressive and non-progressive bands. Some of the many musicians that have participated on Last Knight albums in the past have consisted of Theo Travis (who has worked extensively with Robert Fripp and Steven Wilson of various ptojects), Ashley Mulford (Sad Café, Mike & the Mechanics), Troy Donockley (Iona, Nightwish), Geoffrey Richardson (Penguin Café Orchestra, Caravan), and...

This is a modern, symphonic rock album with a loose concept and a ton of players!

Jose Manuel Medina (Mandalaband): Keyboards, Piano, Drums & Orchestrations
David Rohl (Mandalaband): Main Vocals, Piano & Orchestrations
Marc Atkinson (Riversea, Mandalaband, Nine Stones Close): Main Vocals
Lisa Fury (Karnataka): Main Vocals
Julia Malyasova: Main Vocals
Yann Zhenchak (Azazello): Main Vocals
Esther Yuste: Main Vocals
Ashley Mulford: (Riversea, Mandalaband, Sad Café)..

Interesting acoustic and electric guitar-dominated post-rock instrumental music with definite nods to the Takoma school of guitarists and more. "Chris Summerlin's debut album under the boastful, ironic pseudonym Last of the Real Hardmen follows six...

Fine, overlooked jazz musician who made a few great records in the 90s and hasn't been heard from enough since then until now.

"Composer, clarinetist/saxophonist Andy Laster has been involved in the downtown jazz scene since the mid-’80s. His...

This is a nicely done, charming, period-piece release that has quite good sound considering the unreleased nature and age of the materials. Most people were not even aware of this band's existence! "Maneige fans are in for quite a treat with these long...

This really could be considered a Maneige album, expanded into a larger format! "Another page in the history of Lasting Weep, formed in 1968 by Alain Bergeron and Jérôme Langlois (prior to them founding Maneige), Mathieu Leger and Claude Chapleau...

"...it’s beautifully brutal and scintillatingly snarling, an arctic blast of synapse-cleaning, focused, furious racket with some capricious serenity here n’ there. The players: An American-raised Finnish guitarist; a jack-of- all-trades American...

Bill Laswell-electric basses
Michael Beinhorn-synths, shortwave, tapes
Ronald Shannon Jackson-drums
George Lewis-trombone
Ralph Carney-bass sax, contrabass clarinet
Fred Frith-guitar, violin
Martin Bisi-drums, percussion, metals
David Moss-voice, non-metric percussion, steel drum
Phillip Wilson-drums

When the Bill Laswell-helmed Material released Memory Serves in 1981, it was one of the very earliest of the 'downtown sound' albums to be released, and it was..

''Featuring a wonderful array of Laswell regulars and many special guests, this fascinating disc of recent soundtrack work is one of the few collections that showcase the full range Laswells vast, seemingly all-encompassing musical vision. Drum n bass,...

''Laswell steps out here as a composer with eight tracks showcasing his virtuosic bass playing, radical studio techniques and musical obsessions.'' [Tzadik]

"In addition to being one of the most unique producers in contemporary music, (Iggy Pop, Herbie Hancock, George Clinton, the Rolling Stones, Laurie Anderson), Bill Laswell is also one of the world’s most original and creative bassists. Here he brings...

Yusef Lateef-flute, shenai, xun, tenor sax
Stan Tracey-piano
Rick Laird-bass
Bill Eyden-drums

"A live club performance from the brilliant multi-instrumentalist whose mixing of jazz and Eastern music was a great influence on some of Jazz's finest including John Coltrane and Pharaoh Sanders. Back in vogue and massively influential on the current new wave of Jazz coming out of LA and London."

Take the Plaza Jazz Trio (Steve Waterman, George Haslam and Robin Jones) - a quirky, stripped down to the bones Latin jazz ensemble, fresh from working in Cuba with members of Irakere and the Buena Vista Social Club. Add Stekpanna (Mads Kjlby Olesen, S...

Mini-lp sleeve release of this, the 2nd, and probably the best release of this group's E.L.P. - inspired albums that this very young Italian band released. A very nice fusion of keyboard-driven progressive rock and classical music.

"Mary Lattimore and Walt McClements are two of contemporary music's most renowned innovators. Each has managed to expand the perception of their instrument's capabilities. Lattimore inventive harp processing and looping has brought the instrument to a new audience. Her prolific run of celestial solo albums and evocative film scores have redefined the instrument in the modern consciousness. Her genre-agnostic collaborations include work with Kurt Vile, Steve Gunn, Jeff Zeigler, Meg Baird, and Thurston...

Tom Rainey: drums
Ingrid Laubrock: tenor and soprano saxophones
Sylvie Courvoisier: piano
Mark Feldman: violin

“TISM is the result of four musicians of immeasurable ability listening to one another and drawing up intuition developed over years of collaboration to create something uncanny in all of its shifting turbulence and beauty. The communication is profound."

Ingrid Laubrock: Saxophone
Brandon Lopez: Bass
Tom Rainey: Drums

“Dreamlike experiences. Sparks fly and a musical interaction works without arrangement or plan. An organic musical process develops out of intuition alone. The same magic happens every time. When Brandon Lopez, a New Yorker with Puerto Rican roots, joined the duo of saxophonist Ingrid Laubrock and drummer Tom Rainey, this wasn't simply about adding a plus one to the Laubrock – Rainey duo.
Thanks to the young bassist...

Ingrid Laubrock: Soprano and Tenor Saxophone
Andy Milne: Piano

“For the third installment of Ingrid Laubrock's duo series on Intakt (following Kasumi with Aki Takase and Blood Moon with Kris Davis) Ingrid Laubrock and Andy Milne develop their own sounds in a common sound world. Fragile is characterized by the great empathy that unites these two artists. The music, which is both stirring and soothing, confident and intuitive, is deeply expressive and inventive. “Laubrock’s growth as an...

Ingrid Laubrock Saxophone / Mary Halvorson Guitar / John Hébert Bass / Tom Rainey Drums / Kris Davis Piano."In the summer of 2008 Ingrid Laubrock quietly relocated to New York from London, where the German native had been living for nearly two

This is the sort of ambitous recording project that never happens anymore, except somehow, this time, it did!

“Ingrid Laubrock's credentials as an ambitious, skillful composer of intricate yet visceral works for small ensembles is well established – not least on the evidence of her excellent, much-admired Intakt recordings. Whether writing for conventionally constituted assemblages like her quintet Anti-House, or for a more unusual complement, like the mix of tuba, koto, electronics, and more...

"The double album Dreamt Twice, Twice Dreamt follows Ingrid Laubrock's landmark orchestral album Contemporary Chaos Practices from 2018 (Intakt CD 314).
On Dreamt Twice, Twice Dreamt Laubrock presents five compositions in double version. On the first CD, the EOS Chamber Orchestra Cologne interprets Laubrock's compositions. The soloists are Cory Smythe (piano), Sam Pluta (electronics), Robert Landfermann (bass), Tom Rainey (drums) and Ingrid Laubrock (saxophone). On the second CD of the double album..

"Saxophonist and composer Ingrid Laubrock is at the center of today‘s Brooklyn avant-garde, and over the past decade has steadily expanded her reach as a composer, devising new ways to inspire, organize, and situate improvised music. Intakt Records has released several of her most impressive compositional works, including two orchestral recordings, Contemporary Chaos Practices (2018) and Dreamt Twice, Twice Dreamt (2020). Monochromes marks a new chapter in her oeuvre, as she has written and designed...

Ingrid Laubrock: Tenor Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone, Glockenspiel
Peter Evans: Piccolo Trumpet, Trumpet
Miya Masaoka: Koto
Craig Taborn: Piano
Sam Pluta: Electronics
Dan Peck: Tuba
Tyshawn Sorey: Drums

“After relocating to Brooklyn in 2008 Ingrid Laubrock soon became a creative epicentre in the New York jazz scene, and is now one of the most significant voices in contemporary jazz. The new album 'Serpentines' fits in Laubrock’s musical cosmos, in which improvisational.

Ingrid Laubrock: Saxophones / Liam Noble: Piano / Tom Rainey: Drums

"Over the past years Ingrid Laubrock has gradually come to the limelight of the current jazz scene. She has won several awards and prizes with a jazz that is boldly modern...

Ingrid Laubrock - tenor and soprano saxophones
Mazz Swift - violin
Tomeka Reid - cello
Brandon Seabrook - guitar
Michael Formanek - double bass
Tom Rainey - drums

“Ingrid Laubrock is a saxophonist/composer based in Brooklyn since 2009. Laubrock is interested in exploring the borders between musical realms and creating multi-layered, dense and often evocative sound worlds.”

Ingrid Laubrock: Saxophones, Marxophone / Liam Noble: Piano, Marxophone / Tom Rainey: Drums.

"If you haven't heard Laubrock live during the last couple of years, you're in for a revelation. Here, on tenor and soprano, she is writing what...

"Ubatuba is the eponymous release by Ingrid Laubrock s newest quintet, featuring a handpicked group of musicians including alto saxophonist Tim Berne, trombonist Ben Gerstein, tuba player Dan Peck, and drummer Tom Rainey. The release features all original compositions by Laubrock."

This is about as much of a modern-day, new-jazz / new composition supergroup as could be hoped for. I mean, look at this!
Ingrid Laubrock: Saxophone, Composition
Mary Halvorson: Guitar
Tom Arthurs: Trumpet
Ted Reichman: Accordion...

Ingrid Laubrock: Tenor & Soprano Saxophone
Aki Takase: Piano

“Jazz as the art of dialogue: two of the great musicians of today's jazz from different continents and generations make music sparkle.
Born in Osaka in 1948, Aki Takase moved to Berlin where her musical partners included Han Bennink, Evan Parker, Rudi Mahall, David Murray, Louis Sclavis and Fred Frith as well as her husband and pianist Alexander von Schlippenbach.
Ingrid Laubrock, born in 1970 in Stadlohn in North...

Ingrid Laubrock: Tenor & Soprano Saxophone
Mary Halvorson: Guitar Kris Davis: Piano
John Hébert: Bass
Tom Rainey: Drums
Oscar Noriega: Clarinet

"Anti-House is perhaps Laubrock’s most New York-centric band, comprised of hers

Ingrid Laubrock: Tenor & Soprano Saxophone
Kris Davis: Piano

"More than a decade ago, saxophonist-composer Ingrid Laubrock met pianist-composer Kris Davis at the recently shuttered historic hang Cornelia Street Cafe in downtown Manhattan, before Laubrock had moved to New York.
Over the next years, Laubrock and Davis would inspire and challenge each other within varied musical contexts – and across a number of re-cordings – including Laubrock's critically-acclaimed quintet Anti-House,

“Two of the most fascinating musicians of the free improvisation scene are Ingrid Laubrock on sax and Tom Rainey on drums, partners in life and partners in music. Their musical universe is something special, one of resonance and emphasis, of intimate immediacy and deep restraint, rather than effects and spectacular outbursts.
Or to put it differently, the rawness of the duo setting is softened by the lyricism and accuracy of the playing. Laubrock's tone is warm and round as usual, while Rainey's...

Ingrid Laubrock: Soprano and Tenor Saxophones
Tom Rainey: Drums

“Since 2017, the two virtuoso improvisers and unmistakable stylists Ingrid Laubrock and Tom Rainey have been celebrating music as a duo. A classic duo that releases energy, pulsating vividly while simultaneously withdrawing into intimacy. A celebration of successful interplay, burning for the moment. Brink is a fascinating example of jazz as the art of dialogue. In a profound and telepathic way, Laubrock and Rainey understand...

“Recorded at the end of a 2014 US tour, Buoyancy is the second duo release from saxophonist Ingrid Laubrock and drummer Tom Rainey, a team who have collaborated on so many recordings that it’s really gotten hard to keep track of them all. Last year they played together on at least three records, including Laubrock’s Ubatuba project and the under-recognized trio album Hotel Grief (with Mary Halvorson).
What’s clear in this more intimate format is the undeniable rapport Laubrock and Rainey possess...

Ingrid Laubrock - soprano and tenor saxophones
Tom Rainey - drums

One of the great creative music duos of our present time!

“Ingrid Laubrock and Tom Rainey played relentlessly during the pandemic. Laubrock and Rainey clearly have finely honed their improvising skills through touring and rehearsing together. This release is comprised primarily of composed pieces by Laubrock and Rainey.”

“This is a very intimate record; the recording makes it so. Recorded and mixed by Andy Taub, mastered by Weasel Walter, no less. Closely miked sax, Laubrock’s slightly hollow, dry tone, even austere, on the way to haunting. What you hear is breath, space, muted tonguing, a hint of the room echo, a squawk here, a gently laid tone there, a very personal saxophone. Rainey’s brushes are sweet, just enough, not too much. His cymbal touches and rim hits are measured, chasing after Laubrock, occasionally...

Chris Laurence is a bassist who has appeared on many Brit-jazz classics in the past. Nice to see a new release from him. This one features Frank Ricotti-vibes, John Parricelli-electric and acoustic guitars, Martin France-drums, Chris on bass and Norma...

Audrey Lauro, alto saxophone, preparations

"Using 'everyday' objects to prepare the instrument in a simple way structures this « prose métallique », in which each piece offers a poetic approach to language and textual references. Recorded in one day, these close-miked solo pieces for alto saxophone explore the area where voice and instrument converge."

''Inspired by her living in New Mexico where traces of prehistoric civilizations coexists with alien encounters, Elodie Lauten with Inscape from Exile expresses her spirtual tension of a mysterious and scary land.'' [Felmay]

"CD debut of this 1985 post-minimal landmark by Elodie Lauten. Lauten has been active in the downtown New York classical and punk scenes since moving from France in the 1970s. The Death of Don Juan is a breakthrough for its lyrical minimalism in...

"The debut album by these young, excellent musicians blends original compositions and improvisations into a dynamic and open contemporary jazz. This modern jazz trio has a fluid, nuanced sound, and its debut album delivers surprisingly varied dynamics....

What is it about Scandanavia that makes so many spacerock bands come from there? Good spacerock bands too! Lava consist of Benjamin Sandkvist-drums, percussion, Christian Johansson-guitar, Hannes Nilsson-drums, Jerker Jarold-syntheziser, Jonas Stenman-org

Matt Lavelle (trumpet, flugelhorn, alto clarinet)
Reggie Sylvester (drums)

"New York avant-jazz veterans and longtime cohorts in the Bern Nix Quartet, perform in duo here on Retrograde, their debut on ESP-Disk'. Visiting destinations overlooked on John Coltrane's tour of the solar system, they craft their own space suite of earthier delights. This album was recorded live at Andrea Wolper's WhyNot Experiment? series. Matt and Reggie played two sets; the second set, with Bern Nix in the...

"The debut album which features the virtuoso talents of Roy Marchbank, Andy Edwards and Mark Hartley, presented in the beautiful CD. On this album, push to the limits the concept of the power trio. Everything you hear on this album is created by guitar, bass and drums."

Roy Marchbank is a quite extraordinary guitarist, obviously a post-Holdsworthian kind of player; he uses guitar synths very well and very convincingly, but he also shows that he knows his way around the fretboard extremely well...

Really excellent modern Brit-jazz with a sound not copying the classics of Brit-jazz, but finding its own voice. Really great and highly recommended! "Cornucopia Ensemble: Rita Manning, violin/leader; Emlyn Singleton, violin; Andy Parker, viola; Nick ...