Paul Dunmall: Red Hot Ice (Discus 186CD)
The Dunmall renaissance continues with this fine nine-strong romp, recently recorded in Birmingham. Dunmall leads, of course, on tenor and soprano saxes, supported by, in particular, Percy Pursglove on trumpet, Andrew Woodhead on organ and synths, and an ever fluid James Owston on bass, but space is left for everyone to contribute. The collective sound is strong and full-blooded, the rhythms rollicking in Mingus style on Say Hi To Your Evil/Get Comfortable, and ebullient elsewhere. Dunmall celebrated his 70th birthday last year, but seems to getting younger by the day, judging by his use here of an electric guitar, some soulful grooves, and, on the long title-track, spacey atmospherics and rock beats. The concluding Dearly Departed is as evocative as its title suggests. The man can do no wrong!
Tap is a live art, to be seen as well as heard, but here it is a percussive nuisance, an irritating distraction to the rest of the performance
Xhosa Cole: On A Modern Genius (Stoney Lane Records)
Birmingham saxophonist Xhosa Cole – who recently recorded with Dunmall and is now on his fourth album as leader – rips straight into the opening Trinkle Tinkle as if in desperate hurry to stamp his mark on the music of Thelonious Monk, six of whose compositions – plus Ellington’s Come Sunday – make up this live set. Cole is well suited to playing Monk, given his rhythmic and harmonic mastery, but he pays no homage, delivering instead a brave and radical approach to an acknowledged influence. Rhythm-a-ning gets so completely reworked that it takes time for the main theme to emerge in fragmented style while a Monk medley opens with a lengthy bass solo before Cole slowly leads in the band as he tip-toes through the rising theme of Misterioso and roars out at the end with a furious reprise of Straight, No Chaser. Making a trio of a fast Criss Cross with a lengthy and languid solo tenor delivery of ’Round Midnight and then a fast and fleeting Brilliant Corners is daring, as is altering the tempo of Let’s Cool One as it progresses, and thoroughly shredding the rarely heard Bright Mississippi. Musically, this set is fine, but my only regret is the presence on five tracks of tap dancer Liberty Styles. Tap is a live art, to be seen as well as heard, but here it is a percussive nuisance, an irritating distraction to the rest of the performance. A mistake.
Mark Kavuma & The Banger Factory: Magnum Opus (Banger Factory Records BF007LP)
What started as a quintet in Brixton in 2015 has now transformed into a vast, adventurous ensemble: this double album of 15 tracks features 19 musicians, of whom pianists Noah Stoneman and Deschanel Gordon stand out, as do Artie Zaitz on Hammond organ and the alternating Jack Thomas or Will Cleasby on drums. The whole shebang is led and inspired by trumpeter Mark Kavuma, who is confident enough to sit out three tracks. A moody intro leads into a flat-out post-bop explosion, Kavuma and saxophonist Mussinghi Brian Edwards in consistently blistering form, strong brassy ensemble pieces follow slow, electric blues, soulful vocal ballads and easy swingers, and all are impeccably played by a band that includes the best of London’s jazz community. Not surprisingly, this album was showcased at this year’s London Jazz Festival, along with a celebration of the label that promotes it.
Playtime: Morse Code Through The Lights (Interrupto IM010)
Covid continues to leave its mark on jazz, with yet another lockdown recording of improvised music created live, online by musicians confined to their own homes. The Scottish-based band Playtime had already been playing some their performances as continuous whole-set improvisations, so their task was arduous but not impossible, once they had sorted out how to stick to a shared pulse, but this set stands out, for the Playtime quartet invited such luminaries as trumpeters Laura Jurd and Byron Wallen, saxophonists Iain Ballamy and Denys Baptiste, and cellist Ernst Reijseger to join in. Over the course of 18 short tracks – lasting anything from 37 seconds to six minutes – the music is stylistically wide, Tom Bancroft’s drums and Mario Caribé’s bass supplying the insistent beat over which Graeme Stephen’s fluid guitar and Martin Kershaw’s saxes glide effortlessly. Given the fraught circumstances, the result is often surprisingly gentle but never lacking interest, the two contributions of both trumpeter Byron Wallen and vibist Corey Mwamba standing out in particular. Perhaps best of all is Ernst Reijseger’s haunting folk-based cello lead that calls out plaintively over an ethereal landscape. Playtime add the label “New Adventures in Music” to the album cover, and mean it.
Martin Küchen & Mathias Landæus: MÜÆM (SFAR 4)
Away from the mainly acoustic music of their trio, Swedish saxophonist Martin Küchen and analogue synthesizer and drum machinist Mathias Landæus have wandered off into the night and ended up in a dystopian nightclub. The music they perform there is twisted, hypnotic free jazz, the four tracks recorded in a single session with minimal preparation, and delivered without edits or overdubs. The significance of the album title eludes me, but its four letters rearrange to title each track. This might not be a club that will entertain everyone, but this adventurous duo fills it with squalling sax, washes and eruptions of synthesized noise, and some beauty. Much to enjoy here.
Lina Nyberg: Lost In The Stars (Hoob Records HOOBCD119)
Still in Sweden, but in a very different style, is singer and composer Lina Nyberg, her 24th album a tribute to Kurt Weill. Well supported by trumpet, saxophone and rhythm section, she effortlessly and effectively strides through nine Weill and self-penned songs, her vocals a winning combination of perfect, sometimes jaunty, intonation and breathy vocalese. Importantly, she updates Weill, both in her modern vocal style but also in the improvised, occasionally avant-jazz accompaniment. The opening Pirate Jenny is investigative and intriguing, Lonely House suitably atmospheric, while Bilboa Song transcends its usual clichéd treatment fronting an ethereal soundscape. The songs of Kurt Weill can sometimes sound out of time today, but Nyberg makes them relevant, and gripping.
2024 favourites
Geri Allen & Kurt Rosenwinkel: A Lovesome Thing (Motéma MTMO427). Of the many albums I have reviewed or listened to in 2024, the one that stands out for me is, surprisingly, the Geri Allen and Kurt Rosenwinkel live set from Paris in 2021. Not my usual fare, but playing a duo together for the only time, Allen and Rosenwinkel delivered an utterly mesmerising set. In complete contrast, Shabaka Hutchings’ Perceive Its Beauty, Acknowledge Its Grace (Impulse 602465050356) is beautiful music delivered at a high price, for it speaks of insecurity and pain, of a need for reassurance and comfort. A brave and intense album. And to continue my mea culpa to Alan Barnes, his duo set ’Tis Autumn (Woodville WVCD154) with pianist David Newton is pure pleasure.