Music Review: Ali Jackson

Appeared in the June 2009 edition of DownBeat, an internationally circulated jazz magazine.

Ali Jackson’s first studio release as a leader, Wheelz Keep Rollin’, is stylish hodgepodge—Latin here, straightahead swing there—loosely bound together by a refreshing, buoyant spirit throughout. The slow, bluesy strut of the title track kicks off the album with captivating flair. Jennifer Sannon’s punchy vocals and Jonathan Batiste’s dissonant Monk chunks, along with Jackson’s cogent second-line time, project a cool confidence. With a melody both urgent and playful, the number lingers in the memory long past tuba man Vincent Gardner’s solo march into the distance.

Jackson generally plays it simple on Wheelz. His musical personality is more restrained, humbler, than on previous recordings. While his clear, declarative statements and straightforward grooves serve the music well much of the time, several moments on this album cry out for more activity from the drums. For example, the uplifting “Spiritual,” which is ostensibly the album’s emotional climax, falls flat for want of more rhythmic energy.

This recording is most engaging when it’s least predictable. The angular, Latin-tinged “I Gotchu,” for instance, takes a striking turn after the final go-around of the head, modulating a central motif into a swinging coda, with trombone and muted trumpet floating on air. Accordingly, a musical high point for the rolling New Orleans shake “Shimmy Pop” comes on an abrupt two-beat silence smack in the middle of the head, a moment at which Jackson’s abstinence is welcomed.

Music Review: Brian Blade

Appeared in the September 2008 edition of DownBeat, an internationally circulated jazz magazine.

For most drummer-led ensembles, the idea of an album with nary a drum solo smacks of sacrilege. For Brian Blade & the Fellowship Band, though, individual vainglory has always been trumped by a strong sense of collective purpose. Season Of Changes skillfully continues the trend and marks the group’s first outing in eight years. Among the changes this season: The septet has been trimmed to six with the departure of pedal steel player Dave Easley, who added salt-of-the-earth ambiance on the group’s first two discs.

In keeping with the Fellowship Band’s contemplative esthetic, the new release is steeped in spiritual yearning. Blade interlaces his compositions with dramatic flair and soft sobriety, asserting himself on the skins when needed but never overwhelming the group’s tender balance of voices. The album’s compositional jewels come from pianist Jon Cowherd. On the epic title track and “Return Of The Prodigal Son,” Cowherd’s weighty melodic statements channel both elegiac and joyous spirits, all over a harmonic framework that invites probing, occasionally soaring solos from guitarist Kurt Rosenwinkel, alto saxophonist Myron Walden and tenor saxophonist Melvin Butler.

“Rubylou’s Lullaby” eases the listener into the album nicely with stark piano and guitar, but needs more edge once tenor and bass clarinet join in with the melody—the reeds sound a little too sweet for their own good. Although a few moments on Season of Changes verge on melodrama, the album as a whole is a genuinely moving piece of work. Rarely does such unabashedly serious, artful music come in such a listenable package.

Music Review: Stanton Moore Trio

Appeared in the July 2008 edition of DownBeat, an internationally circulated jazz magazine.

Stanton Moore’s ability to exude raw power without resorting to bombast has made him one of the most sought-after drummers in the South, and he often hangs with New Orleans heavies such as George Porter Jr. and the Preservation Hall Jazz Band. It’s no surprise, then, that his past recordings as a leader were peppered with special guests of all ilk.

Not so on Emphasis (On Parenthesis), on which Moore downsizes to a classic organ trio. He’s joined here by guitarist Will Bernard and keyboardist Robert Walter, who also provided company on his funky 2006 date, III (Telarc). Emphasis extols the virtues of simplicity in all its swaggering glory, with a program of belt-busting soul-jazz from a group that is beginning to find its collective voice.

As per usual, Moore pounds his primal urges heavy and thick. On the joyful opener, “(Late Night At The) Maple Leaf,” he builds on Walter’s gritty organ intro with a loose but in-the-pocket beat, proceeding over the course of the tune to profess his love for the press roll. Most of the album maintains that playful exuberance, although the group reigns in the energy on the mysterious “(Sifting Through The) African Diaspora” and the downtempo, Galactic-esque “(I Have) Super Strength.” The latter is the biggest departure from most of the album’s freewheeling feel, adding jingle bell samples and a looped recording of Walter’s four-year-old son proclaiming his might (hence the tune’s name).

Moore’s thunderous drums can wear on the ears after a while (he tends to dominate the mix), but he thankfully rotates equipment to keep things fresh. His switch to bone-dry drums is particularly welcome on “Over (Compensatin’),” a ’70s-inspired grease groove on which Walter and Bernard wail for the group’s most satisfying jam.

Music Review: moe.

Appeared in the Jan. 25, 2007, edition of Recess, the weekly arts and entertainment section of Duke University's independent daily newspaper, The Chronicle.

When Phish decided to call it quits in 2004, every dreadlocked, herb-smoking devotee of the jam gods thought the same thing: Well, what now? Would a new leader take over the band's legacy, once again giving hippies everywhere a reason to exist? (That reason being, of course, to follow that band around the country, selling grilled cheese in the parking lots before the show.)

In conversations about who would become the next Phish, another monosyllabic name consistently came up: moe. After all, the band had built a solid reputation as a similarly mellow, playful troupe of improvisationalists whose songwriting was catchy and smart and who could jam till the cows came home.

Unfortunately, in their first album of new studio material since Phish's breakup, moe. fails to quite grasp the torch of jam band greatness from their predecessors.

There's plenty to like about The Conch--intricate rhythmic complexity, rip-roaring guitar soloing and a few raw, '70s rock 'n' roll anthems balance darker, more introspective dirges. "Wind It Up" perfectly marries a solid melody with a meticulous jam, culminating in one of the group's most satisfying climactic moments.

But the tunes aren't as catchy or carefree as moe.'s earlier material--the band tends to fall into the common trap of taking itself a bit too seriously. Some of the songs also seem half-baked, as if the band had a good idea here and a cool riff there, so they decided to throw them together and call it a song.

The Conch delivers a hodge-podge of cuts that occasionally impress but ultimately feel like they could've used a few more hours in the oven.

Available online here

Music Review: TV on the Radio

Appeared in the Sept. 14, 2006, edition of Recess, the weekly arts and entertainment section of Duke University's independent daily newspaper, The Chronicle.

Rarely do the words "good music" and "radio" end up in the same sentence, but we'll make an exception for art-rock quintet TV on the Radio and their latest release, Return to Cookie Mountain (Interscope). From its first jarring beats, this album thrusts a bold collage of noise into your face and dares you to look away. Their sound--a brawny mix of guitars, synths, drum machines and haunting layered vocals--may take a little getting used to. But what this album lacks in immediate accessibility, it more than makes up for in dazzling originality.

Part of producer and electronics-whiz David Sitek's brilliance is his ability to create songs that simultaneously sound rough and refined. This is especially apparent on "Dirtywhirl," where scuzzy guitars meet jingling bells and bowed string bass. Cookie Mountain reaches its peak on "A Method," where a simple intro of whistling and handclaps gives way to rolling, spiritual-sounding vocal melodies and an all-out assault of synthesized drums. Even with a couple of disappointing tracks, this record is a refreshing burst of creativity from a young band on the rise.

Available online here