'Resavoir' by Resavoir

'Resavoir' is the self-titled and debut album and project from trumpeter, musician and producer, Will Miller.

Released through the always compelling Chicago label, International Anthem - home to incredible offerings from Angel Bat Dawid, Ben LaMar Gay and Makaya McCraven - 'Resavoir' proves to be such a natural fit within the International Anthem's ethos of forward-thinking and "progressive" music.

Miller's work up to this release has primarily relied on session recordings for a range of artists including Mac Miller, Eryn Allen Kane, Terri Walker and Adriana Evans, all the while slowly cultivating the music that would go on to form the basis of Resavoir.  Initially composed by Miller through a series of samples & loops before slowly introducing layers of different musicians into the proverbial gumbo - the resulting concoction boasts seemingly strong nods to a '70s aesthetic but still forges gloriously ahead with its own multi-layered and kaleidoscopic sound.

With an initial line-up comprising of Akenya Seymour on vocals and keyboards, Irvin Pierce on sax, Lane Beckstrom on bass, and then Peter Manheim and Jeremy Cunningham on drums, further contributions come in the form of harpist Brandee Younger who introduces such a dynamic texture to 'Taking Flight' (herself riding high with the release of her 'Soul Awakening' album from earlier this year), and vocalist/saxophonist Sen Morimoto guests on 'Escalator' masterfully matching Resavoir's rapid pace set for their compelling lead single. 

With the original version of 'Escalator' initially having been released in January, the evolution of the song from then to the album version gives some indication of the time and development that was put into the whole project - the single ("demo") version appears without Morimoto's vocal and is also accompanied by a ten minute live rendition from 2018 that further reinvents the song.

There must be a genuine sense of pride for Miller, and all involved, at the eventual release of this project with all the years that have been poured into it.  'Resavoir' absolutely an exquisite and inspired release - an absolute gem and one that stands incredibly tall amongst the year's best.

'How's By You?' by Bright Dog Red

Following the praise and plaudits for Bright Dog Red's 2018 debut record 'Means to the Ends', the improv jazz outfit from Albany, New York, return with their thrilling follow-up for 2019, 'How's By You?'.

Founded by drummer, Joe Pignato - a one-time student of Yusef Lateef and now a State University Professor in his own right - and comprising of students who participated in extensive Pignato-led jam sessions, the Bright Dog Red line-up comprise drums by Pignato, Anthony Berman on bass, saxophonist Mike LaBombard, rapper Cully and sound & electronics by Cody Davies, Bright Dog Red have once again aligned with one of the leading labels for contemporary and forward-thinking jazz music, Ropeadope Records.

Much has been made about Bright Dog Red's boundless skill at improvisation and the fact that 'Means to the Ends' is an album born out of hours of recorded jam sessions, so what adds a further layer of intrigue to that project's successor is the fact that - while the band still relish the improvisational approach - the sessions were carried out with 'How's By You?' in mind, perhaps resulting in a more calculated and deliberate perspective when considering the album's structure as a whole.

'How's By You?' presents the band as becoming even more experimental and diverse in their compositions - which is perhaps a concept that wouldn't have seemed possible to many following the eclecticism displayed throughout 'Means to the Ends'.  On this release, however, Cody Davies (credited as supplying sound and electronics for the band) embraces his role further by immersing the musicians within a more disparate and celestial sonic landscape which the Bright Dog Red members seem to thrive in - ultimately all contributing to this overwhelming cacophony of sounds.  The opener 'Runnin 'em Hurdles' eases you in perfectly but by the time you've reached the album's centrepiece - the 9+ minute otherworldly 'What's The Point?' - you ultimately stop trying to comprehend this unravelling psychedelic experience and just learn to accept its mesmerizing nature.

With eyes already set on the third Bright Dog Red release, we'd always urge anyone not aboard the Bright Dog Red train yet to grab a ticket.  Theirs is an unrivalled approach to contemporary jazz - one that challenges and inspires and we're excited to take the 'How's By You?' journey again and again.

You can purchase your copy of the album from Bandcamp.

Also, if you've yet to do so, have a listen to Joe Pignato as a guest on the Blue-in-Green:PODCAST recorded earlier this year discussing 'Means to the Ends' as well as 'How's By You?'.

Blue-in-Green:PODCAST #26: Simon Allen of The New Mastersounds

Welcome to Episode #26 of the Blue-in-Green:PODCAST which sees Imran secure time with drummer and co-founder of The New Mastersounds, Simon Allen. And there's a lot to celebrate from this year marking the band's 20th year together and the imminent release of 'Shake It' serving as their 13th studio album! 

But for the funk & soul quartet known as The New Mastersounds – it’s a fairly standard measure for a veracious band with a tireless work ethic.  Spearheaded by the singles 'Let's Go Back', 'Kings & Queens' and 'Taking Me Down', 'Shake It' looks set to be another standout release from the collective comprising Eddie Roberts (guitar), Simon Allen (drums), Joe Tatton (keyboards) and Pete Shand (bass), and now also aligning with US vocalist Lamar Williams Jr who rounds the album out beautifully, also making this a stunning debut for the first record through Roberts' Color Red label.

A genuine pleasure to have been able to share time with Simon for a great episode which we hope you'll enjoy!

The New Mastersounds are celebrating the new album and their 20th year together with two special UK shows which you can purchase tickets for here:

Buy tickets for Friday Sep.13th at London's Jazz Cafe:
https://www.ticketweb.uk/event/the-new-mastersounds-album-launch-jazz-cafe-tickets/9548585
Buy tickets for Friday Sep. 20th at The Wardrobe in Leeds:
https://www.lunatickets.co.uk/event/the-new-mastersounds/the-wardrobe/1314365

The Blue-in-Green:PODCAST unveils new episodes on the first, second and third Mondays of the month. This podcast series runs in conjunction with the online radio station, Blue-in-Green:RADIO which celebrates 21st century soul, jazz, funk, Latin & hip-hop music. These shows are designed to give you some insight into the incredible range of talented presenters we're so lucky to host from all over the world and to geek out musically with us.

www.blueingreenradio.com
TuneIn: bit.ly/2LBK0BD

'A State of Flow' by Ishmael Ensemble + Pete Cunningham/Blue-in-Green:PODCAST #25

'A State of Flow' is the debut full-length project from the UK's Ishmael Ensemble released in May of this year.

Comprised of band members Jake Spurgeon (synth, keyboards), Stephen Mullins (guitar), Rory O'Gorman (drums) and bandleader Pete Cunningham (production, saxophone), 'A State of Flow' is the perfect culmination of their Severn Songs series which were a trio of two-track EPs dating back to 2018, and containing initial versions of the album's 'Full Circle' and 'The River'.

Although 'A State of Flow' serves as the group's debut album, the Ensemble have garnered such a flawless reputation through an incredible body of work for listeners to immerse themselves in including their 'Songs For Knotty' EP (Banoffee Pies Records, 2017), their aforementioned Severn series, and not forgetting their selection of remixes for Chip Wickham, Yama Warashi and the revered reworking of Carl Craig's 'The Melody'. 

While we may never know where Ishmael Ensemble will specifically go with their compositions, that level of unpredictability has in itself become their trademark: 'A State of Flow' masterfully navigates elements of jazz with dance & electronica, and it's a testament to anyone with the ability to make songs seemingly worlds apart like 'The Chapel' and 'Lapwing' both fit perfectly as part of a cohesive project.

And a fairly incredible one at that!

The Ensemble's genre-defying, no rules approach to music-making is inspired making their releases absolute treasures.  And helping bring their compositions to life is the excellence of contributors Holysseus Fly - long-time friend and collaborator who breathes new life into 'Full Circle' (and is also responsible for the album's artwork); Yama Warashi who guest on 'Yellow House' and, as already mentioned, a former recipient of one of the awesome Ishmael remixes, and then there's the esteemed trumpeter Yazz Ahmed who soars on one of the project’s signature songs, ‘The River’.

While fans rightfully embrace 'A State of Flow', we'd still urge new listeners to revisit 'Songs For Knotty' which is not only a stunning introduction to the Ensemble but also features three exclusive live tracks that demonstrate Ishmael's masterful ability to translate their music from the studio to the stage and why they’ve proved to be a leading name within contemporary jazz and electronic music.