Stars Like Grains of Sand

Félicia Atkinson The Flower And The Vessel ★ ★★★ Félicia Atkinson is a multifaceted French artist who I have just recently discovered last year with the release of her collaborative album with Jefre  Cantu-Ledesma, titled Limpid as the Solitudes. That album quickly warranted many listens and became one of my favorite musical experiences of 2018. This year Atkinson returns on Shelter Press with a solo release that spans seventy minutes. Without looking deeply into the context of this album, there are some influences that stand out. The cover displays the Japanese art of arranging flowers known as Ikebana, and I believe there is no other visual depiction to more accurately describe the music on this album. Using human constructs and designs to represent the natural world in a different, but just as delightful manner. This introspective record is a product of Atkinson's more recent experiences, and one of her outlets used to connect to the natural world around her. The i...

Oren Ambarchi Simian Angel ★ ★★★ A continuation of Oren Ambarchi's work on the Editions Mego record label, Simian Angel takes a pleasant detour from the more recent path the Australian musician has traveled. Even then it's no surprise that Ambarchi would collaborate with Cyro Baptista; the Brazilian percussionist who maintains a rich and vital role within the "Downtown" scene in New York. Both musicians have a definite knack for collaboration, with a long history of  Mycorrhizal network style interaction with musicians from all types of artistic and cultural backgrounds. In other words, the influence and collaborations have proven to be mutually beneficial for whoever is involved. For Ambarchi, the music in its physical form is an important aspect to consider. As a fellow lover of the record format I appreciate the reissuing of groundbreaking works on his Black Truffle label as well as the attention to detail he puts into design of each album. In a way, th...

Joe McPhee, Piotr Michalowski & Andrew Drury  Live at Edgefest ★★★½   Edgefest serves as one of the larger American Midwest's avant-garde jazz festivals. Since 1997, the Kerrytown Concert House has provided an up-close and personal listening experience through this now four-day long festival. Its popularity, support, and collaborations have continued to grow in recent years. In 2017, Joe McPhee, Andrew Drury, and Piotr Michalowski performed three improvisations that have finally met my ears nearly two years later. Joe McPhee is no stranger to me, and while I have not heard Drury's music, I know that the two have played with each other before. Michalowski resides in Ann Arbor and besides being a self-taught horn player, he teaches at the University of Michigan and writes for the Ann Arbor Observer. So this setting and player arrangement was all new to me, and I was determined to go in with little expectations and to really listen to the interactions...

Marion Brown / Dave Burrell Live at the Black Musicians' Conference, 1981 ★★ ★ ★ When thinking about Marion Brown and Dave Burrell, I rarely gravitate to anything of this period. In fact, there isn't much of it even recorded or issued; compared to the fire music of the 60s. So, my lack of listening experience with this musical period resulted in mixed emotions, mainly excitement and worry that it would not live up to my expectations for these artists. Dave Burrell has always served as a very capable sideman, and his leading role on the BYG actuel released album Echo was where I first became engulfed into his skillful musicianship. Echo is a large outing with some of most well-known and respected names in free jazz at the time, and it really is no surprise that the album is quite difficult to get into. The musical partnership between Burrell and Brown was revealed to me through some of Brown's first releases, including Juba-Lee and Three for Shepp. While thei...