release date: 25.03.2022 on Rune Grammofon
“Happy Village” is Master Oogway’s third album, their second on Rune Grammofon. The music on the previous outing two years ago (“Earth And Other Worlds”) was all written by Håvard, while the music on “Happy Village” is written by Karl Erik, one track co-written with Håvard.
“Happy Village” finds the band in a more lyrical and exuberant mood than before, in no small part due to Henriette’s beautiful contributions.
release date: 11.03.2022 ; artist’s self-release
“Gill’s spiky, sparse piano was most successful in channeling the eccentric spirit of the masterful Monk” — Geoff Chapman, Toronto Star
Twelve years passed since Tania Gill‘s debut Bolger Station in 2010. The whole decade is quite a gap and many might not even notice its original appearance at all. I didn’t , being Europe based and if not the recent Disappearing Curiosities I might not ever cross the path with Tania’s music, which would be an unfortunate event as despite of the lack of the recognition outside of her domestic Toronto scene, it is the music which well deserves to be known better and listened to. The fact that the line up stays firm since a decade also says a lot. Lina Allemano — trumpet; Rob Clutton—bass; Nico Dann — drums, remain valid members of pianist Quartet.
release date: 04.03.2022 via Not applicable records
A remarkable album produced through artificial intelligence design and interaction with modular synthesisers is the latest offering from British musician Sam Britton aka Isambard Khroustaliov. Sam’s music had always being exploring some cyber musical Universe in sort of avant garde, but that one is taking the whole experiment even further,
“Deliciously and maddeningly unclassifiable” – The Wire
“Truly innovative” – BBC Late Junction
“Oddly recalling free music experiments of the late 60s by Spontaneous Music Ensemble if time-warped to a postrave warehouse ritual on the Moon. Fearless” – Electronic Sound
“abstract flicker, controlled tone and daring extended strategies … it’s all going on.” Jazzwise
“This is music of fracture that somehow manages to move in continuous sweeps of sound.” – Future Music
release date: 04.03.2022 via Firehouse 12 Records
“Deliberately seeing double in the cause of exploratory jazz, Fujiwara brings together instrumentalists primed to rub each other in all the right and creatively wrong ways.“ – The New Yorker
“[The six musicians’] collective talent and Fujiwara’s innovative leadership make for a tonic of unpredictability… A triple scoop of great music.” – Britt Robson, JazzTimes
“March is brilliantly mad, joyously improvisational, cathartically cleansing. The perfect companion to two years of isolation, this music frees your spirits and clearly makes the musicians soar.…It all goes happy-hour punch-drunk in the dual-drummer assault of ‘Wave Shake Angle Bounce,” with ominous tri-tones backing gleeful guitar and trumpet as Fujiwara and Cleaver bash and bleed.” – Ken Micallef, JazzTimes
release date: 25.02.2022 on Hubro
Hubro records release Nils Økland’s Glødetrådar LP on February 25th 2022.
”Glødetrådar”, the commissioned work for Vossajazz 2016, is a sort of ”back to his roots” for Nils Økland. The area of Voss has been an important part of his musical development, in the 80´s as a student and later as the musical leader at Ole Bull Akademiet (1989-95).
release date: 18.02.2022 via Jazzland Recordings
With THIS IS NOT ABOUT YOU, the Johan Lindvall Trio continues its work within the jazz tradition. The dream continues. What does it really mean to dream of jazz? Yes, it may be a bit about nostalgia or about finding a kind of personal doorway into a tradition. Because even though the concept can be questioned, jazz exists, lives and develops. The trio’s first album NO CITY, NO TREE, NO LAKE (2019) received rave reviews and was mentioned in Dagsavisen by Espen Løkeland as: “(…) a smacker of an album. One of the best so far this year. ”
release date: 18.02.2022 on Hubro
Hárr*, alternates between traditional tunes from Norway, free improvisational music, American minimalism, and extensive use of musique concrète as a prominent element in the compositions, with sounds from reindeers, birds, insects and reindeer herders from Hardangervidda integrated into the music. Recording brings the feeling of nature in to the music and indicates an equality of all the creatures who are inhabiting the planet Earth.
release date: 18.02.2022 on Slow Music Movement
High & Lonesome is The Howard Hughes Suite’s 13th release, it comes out as a mark of extraordinary time which entire creative artists faced in very special way, when it comes to the isolation. The title underlines that fact and gives it a special meaning as well, as we have seen recently on many post pandemic outcomes. But the true message is there in between the notes, so just listen to it.
Animal Crossing, due out digitally February 4, 2022 via Whirlwind Recordings, tackles eclectic repertoire including the theme from the wildly popular video game and songs by Pat Metheny, Chuck Mangione and George Michael
“Its central achievement is bridging the gap between supposed high and lowbrow, as Mahanthappa’s trio convincingly puts a distinctive stamp on the eclectic source material, with sparkling cocktails of grooves, hooks and solos…” – Kevin LeGendre, Jazzwise
“ [Mahanthappa is] making truly some of the most original jazz out there at the moment.” – Brian Zimmerman, Jazziz
release date: 21.01.2022 on TUM Records
2 Blues For Cecil brings together three legends of modern improvised music, drummer Andrew Cyrille, bassist William Parker and flugelhornist Enrico Rava, in a tribute to the late, great pianist and bandleader Cecil Taylor (1929-2018). Although the three played together for the first time as members of this trio, they share a common bond through their separate time spent performing and recording with Taylor.
