Tag: Spiritual Jazz
Tel-Aviv based composer, producer, bassist and bandleader Shay Hazan, who released a superb 7inch single last year with his Quintet on Jazzman Records, returns with a brilliant new album, titled Reclusive Rituals on London’s Batov Records.
Putting together selections for this list, I often find that there is a blurring line as to what is an EP and what is considered an album, and some of the selections below can arguably be considered full-length recordings. Sometimes I think it’s best to leave it up to the artist’s interpretation, which to me, makes the most sense. Regardless of the category, I thought this most importantly provided another opportunity to highlight more incredible recordings that came out in 2021.
When it comes to organizing a record release, there might not be something more challenging than compiling music for a compilation. Unlike a Spotify playlist, these releases require sourcing and licensing the music, which is often much more challenging than selecting the tracks. That being said, compilations play an important part in telling a story about either a time period, a region, a sub-genre of a sub-genre and many times, all of the above. They often also serve as musical “gateway drugs” into whole worlds of lesser known music for listeners, in which they can continue to explore well beyond each release.
Over the past twelve months, not only was there a tremendous amount of great new music put out into the world, but we also saw a high-level of incredible reissue releases, including many previously unreleased recordings that had been shelved for 30-40 years or more.
2021 … or what at times just felt like the hangover to 2020. For parts, it seemed like a better year than the one prior, however let’s be real, that certainly wasn’t a hard bar to climb by any stretch. Over the last 12 months it’s become clear that the pandemic still remains a strong influence on all of our daily lives. It also continues to have a significant effect on music in general, what was produced, how it gets created, and often how it’s distributed. A whirlwind of complex emotions, cautious gatherings, high levels of uncertainty, as well as constantly backed-up vinyl pressing plants and more … 2021 was definitely a very challenging year for many, including musicians, record labels, and just about everyone in the music ecosystem.
For over a decade, Matsuli Music, have unearthed and reissued some of the most essential South African recordings ever made. With their latest release, the UK-based label has turned their attention to the incredible story and sounds behind Soweto’s first nightclub, known as the Pelican Club in an incredible new compilation.
London-based Outernational Sounds has recently reissued, for the first time outside of South Africa, two superb 1974 Johannesburg sessions Song Of Soweto and The Last Special from an all-star U.S. touring band led by both guitarist Charles Mallory and trombonist Al Hall Jr., known simply as the The Mallory Hall Band.
Since the release of their breakthrough self-titled debut in 2017, the adventurous Philadelphia/NY/DC-based quintet has established themselves as one of the most thought-provoking and forward-thinking jazz collectives. The group returns with an incredible new album on International Anthem, titled Open The Gates, that much like their other recordings, cries out for universal social change.
Over the last few years, Ill Considered has been one of the most active and musically adventurous ensembles to have emerged out of the London jazz scene. For their first fully produced studio album on the New Soil label, and their 11th full-length to date (9 self-released from 2017-2019), titled Luminal Space, the group continues to take their sound to new heights in what is arguably their best record to date.
Acid Jazz has released an official reissue of Emmanuel Abdul-Rahim’s highly obscure 1988 Latin jazz dance full-length Harlem featuring The Times at Hand Orchestra. Known for his 1972 classic album Total Submission for Cobblestone/Muse, this later recording, which is equally brilliant, is often overlooked.
