Summer is here! Some wonderful albums got us through May. Two of them are just one epic track long – maybe a lesson for life to just concentrate on the most impactful statement, and leave everything else out. Then if that was too intense, there was the serene and beautiful sounds of the Fuubutsushi quartet to calm us down, and the immersive world created by I, Castorpollux. These albums were all so good and so different, it was hard to pick, so we have four TNB Picks for May. May also brought us an a searing guitar/drums duo, a wonderful tenor sax trio, a remarkable solo sax album, and the first album released here by an accomplished musician/artist from Isreal. With great music at our side, we’re ready for June!
TNB Pick!
Erika Dohi – I, Castorpollux
(released May 14, 2021)
Erika Dohi- keys (all tracks except 10), percussion (1) and vocal (6)
William Brittelle- additional keys (1,2,3,4,7,8,9,10)
Andy Akiho- steel-pan and percussion (2,6,11)
Ambrose Akinmusire – trumpet (7)
Jeremy Boettcher – fretless bass (4,7,8)
Channy Leaneagh – vocal (4,8)
Emily Wells- vocal (2)
Immanuel Wilkins- alto saxophone (2,7,11)
Zach Hanson – piano (5)
A conceptually heady and fascinating album. The first track starts with narration spoken in Japanese, telling of Dohi’s experience at age 7 in the 1995 Kobe earthquake. Hiding alone under a table, she emerged to find that the world around her had disappeared. When Dohi returned to Kobe years later, a new world had sprung back, but with a lone structure surviving from before the earthquake, the Tower of the Sun built for Expo 70. The album is preoccupied with the idea of one’s self existing in the past and present at the same time and how trauma and change creates duel selves. One of the standout tracks is “Particle Of…” , which Dohi states “deals with quantum tunneling and the idea of the multiverse, and that fascinates me because it creates the possibility of a parallel universe and alternate realities. What if I did something differently in the past, are there different versions of myself, and does every choice I make create a new reality?” There’s a lot going on here! For more on this record, check out Dohi’s website. Dohi is a virtuoso, but admirably downplays her chops and concentrates on melody and atmosphere. It’s immersive and quite wonderful.
TNB Pick!
Jusell, Prymek, Sage, Shiroishi “Fuubutsushi Quartet” – Yamawarau (山笑う)
(released May 7, 2021)
Chris Jusell: violin, voice
Chaz Prymek: guitar, bass, clarinet, synths, samples
Matthew Sage: keyboards, percussion, voice, acoustic guitar, field recordings
Patrick Shiroishi: trombone, guitar, glockenspiel, tenor and alto sax, laptop, samples, voice
Jusell, Prymek, Sage, Shiroishi “Fuubutsushi Quartet” – Setsubun (節分)
(released February 2, 2021)
Chris Jusell – violin
Chaz Prymek – bass, guitar, synthesizer, clarinet, field recordings
Matthew Sage – keyboards, percussion, radio, field recordings
Patrick Shiroishi – alto, tenor, and soprano saxophones, clarinet, glockenspiel, samples, voice
Jusell, Prymek, Sage, Shiroishi “Fuubutsushi Quartet” – Fuubutsushi (風物詩)
(released September 29, 2020)
Chris Jusell – violin
Chaz Prymek – guitars, field recordings, voice
Matthew Sage – keyboards, percussion, voice, field recordings
Patrick Shiroishi – alto & tenor saxophones, clarinet, flute, glockenspiel, samples, whistling, voice
additional vocals on “Chorus Wheel” by Matt Crook and Anna Wilson
Four musicians for four seasons. These three albums (a fourth one is forthcoming) were created out of a COVID social distancing practice – the musicians recorded the albums remotely from their homes in separate states. The music here is infused with a calm hopefulness that is the perfect antidote for, and may be inspired by, our world during lockdown. Fuubutsushi, released last September, is a Japanese word that describes the feeling that the season is about to change. Last September’s album captures the soft radiance of Autumn, and introduced the group’s spare but interactive dynamics. Setsubun, released in February to celebrate the Japanese New Year, has the peace of a country walk on a winter morning. This month brought Yamawarau, which captures the awakening of Spring. Not all ambient music rewards close listening the way these albums do – they’re truly beautiful. You’ll hear about the to-be-released summer edition here for sure!
TNB Pick!
Sō Percussion, MEDIAQUEER, Adam Tendler, Alex Sopp, Beth Meyers, Shelley Washington, Grey Mcmurray – Stay On It
(released May 14, 2021)
Sō Percussion (Eric Cha-Beach, Josh Quillen, Adam Sliwinski, Jason Treuting) – Percussion
Adam Tendler – Piano
MEDIAQUEER (Darian Thomas and Phong Tran) – Electronics, Keyboards, Violin and Vocals
Grey Mcmurray – Guitar and Vocals
Beth Meyers – Viola and Vocals
Alex Sopp – Flute, Piccolo and Vocals
Shelley Washington – Saxophone and Vocals
The music of Julius Eastman (1940-1990) has been getting recent attention, and if the results are like this exhilarating record, I can hardly wait for more. Stay On It, composed in 1973, starts with a joyous parade rhythm that will have you dancing around your apartment. About 10 minutes in the cacophony closes in, but that’s joyous too. Sō Percussion says on their Bandcamp page they turned to Eastman during the Pandemic because his music allows for flexibility and interpretation. Hopefully that spirit will draw other interpreters, and an audience as well.
TNB Pick!
[Ahmed] – Nights on Saturn (communication)
(released March 26, 2021)
Pat Thomas – Piano
Joel Grip – Bass
Antonin Gerbal – Drums
Seymour Wright – Alto saxophone
More Pat Thomas! Just one tune recorded live at Cafe OTO, which interprets two compositions by the groups’ namesake Ahmed Abdul-Malik. Frankly this performance takes off from the source material and achieves it’s own blistering momentum based on the strength of the musicians here. Thomas’ piano playing is outrageous and mesmerizing, and Wright’s saxophone really burns. Grip and Gerbal lay down a propulsive rhythm and the results are very much a group effort. Based on the energy on display, this group needs to be experienced live – a good reason to plan a trip to London!
Chris Corsano & Bill Orcutt – Made Out Of Sound
(released March 26, 2021)
Chris Corsano – Drums
Bill Orcutt – Guitars
Every Bill Orcutt record is an event. Here his guitar playing scales the usual radiant heights, and finds an ideal partner in Chris Corsano’s flexible drumming. This album, like the Fuubutsushi Quartet above, was recorded remotely due to COVID restrictions. Here, Corsano recorded the drums tracks alone in Ithaca NY, and then sent them to Orcutt to overdub his guitars. A duet separated by time and space is proof that artistic ingenuity overcomes and sometimes thrives on obstacles.
María Grand – Reciprocity
(released May 14, 2021)
María Grand – tenor saxophone and voice
Kanoa Mendenhall – acoustic bass and voice
Savannah Harris – drums and voice
María Grand is new revelation – her great tenor sax sound is dark and weighty but her playing is fleet and melodic. This album, her second, was inspired by her experience of carrying her first child. Grand adds some spoken word sections that meditate on creation and existence, which are certainly not to everyone’s taste. But the music is creative and alive, and Grand’s band mates Meddenhall and Harris are terrific.
Patrick Shiroishi – resting in the heart of green shade
(released March 5, 2021)
Patrick Shiroishi – alto, soprano & tenor saxophones
Shiroishi’s solo sax outing could not be more different from his stately reeds in the Fuubutsushi Quartet (see above). Here, the solo sax work summons more energy than most bands. Each track is intense and quite mesmerizing. Shiroishi is a force to be reckoned with! Also, he appears to release an album just about every month, so if you like his playing, there’s a lot more to dig into. Check out his Bandcamp page.
Maya Dunietz – Free The Dolphin
(released May 7, 2021)
Maya Dunietz – Piano
Amir Bresler – Drums
Barak Mori – Double Bass
Donitz is new to me and this album impresses. So does Dunietz’ Wikipedia page, which shows an artist equally conversant in playing several instruments, composing and the visual and sound arts. Her Bandcamp page says “Maya Dunietz is a prodigy pianist, an avant-garde sound artist, an award winning composer, a dubious character and mom of four.” Her piano is just as playful, morphing one minute from Ahmad Jamal-like structures to ragtime to modern playing that reminded me of Geri Allen at times. At 27 minutes this does leave you begging for more, and hopefully more will come.
Here’s the Spotify playlist: