Yussef Dayes The Haunt, Brighton Wednesday 26th September, 2018 The bouncer outside is busy checking ID and handing out wristbands to those lucky enough and old enough to buy booze legally; inside the system is playing trap to entertain the packed out crowd. The keys and bass players appear first and, after a short […]
Jean Toussaint, Chiminyo, Arthur O’Hara Trio Jazz In The Round at Emergence Festival, St. Mary in the Castle, Hastings Saturday 29th September, 2018 Jazz In The Round promoters Chris Phillips and Jez Nelson must have scoured the South in their search for suitably-shaped venues to accommodate their expanding vision; St Mary’s In The Rock, […]
Gabrielle Ducomble Across the Bridge (MPG Records – mpgcd020) Ducomble studied jazz at Guildhall; previous releases featuring the likes of Gilad Atzmon and Chris Garrick have established her on the UK jazz circuit, and she’s appeared alongside Jacqui Dankworth and Tina May as part of the Jazz Diva series, and as part of Georgia […]
Lorraine Baker’s Eden Spark! (Spark006) Here’s something new – a young drummer leading a tribute to veteran New Orleans sticksman Ed Blackwell, with a band that features streetwise new-thing iconoclast Binker Golding alongside long-established, critically acclaimed pianist and mentor Liam Noble, with feisty newcomer Paul Michael providing tough, imagnative basslines and credited with key […]
Hexagonal McCoy & Mseleku (Hexagonal Records – HRCD101) John Donaldson’s piano style – dynamic, exciting, heavy with dense left hand chording and furious pentatonic runs – has drawn comparisons with that of McCoy Tyner, and he worked extensively with maverick South African pianist/composer Mseleku before the latter’s untimely death. Ensconced in his Hastings stronghold, […]
Autumn brings many harvests in its wake; not least the publication of numerous surveys and reports, the pages of which drift across the digital realm like the falling leaves. With the Brexit deadline drawing ever nearer and inconsistency remaining the only consistent factor in approach from both government and opposition, the uncertainties that the whole […]
“Anyone lucky enough to receive the Performing Rights Society’s regular magazine will no doubt have been intrigued to see an article headed ‘What’s going on in British Jazz?’, and even more intrigued by the following introductory quote from saxophonist Pete Wareham: ‘Jazz? I don’t know much about it. I haven’t been following it for ages…… […]
While our public life remains mired in irreconcilable division and the prolonged period of uncertainty we were promised continues unabated, at least we’ve had a nice long spell of hot weather, to the delight and relief of all those involved in running or attending outdoor events. Festival season is upon us – we can […]
This month brings us not only a welcome blast of authentically summery sunshine – just in time for Love Supreme at Glynde, folks! – but also a double hit of delicious vinyl issues by a pair of statement tenor players. While many in the jazz world work hard to promote egalitarianism in all things, […]
Mark Kavuma Kavuma (UBUNTU – UBU0007) As the rising generation of young British jazz musicians continues to attract the attention of the wider world, Mark Kavuma arrives to add his voice to the chorus with this debut release. It features many of the stalwarts of London’s late-night blowing scene; closing track The Church […]