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10/24/20
DENNIS JONES/Soft Hard & Loud: The blues rocking power trio leading gun slinger comes in with album 7, a sizzling set of not more of the same. Using the pandemic downtime to sharpen up the material he started out with, his focus is like a laser. Completely tight throughout with some delightful accents that go beyond the trio, Jones is smoking throughout and never lets you down. A winner throughout.
(Blue Rock)
TIM WOODSW/Vortex: An old genre blending white boy with the blues gets bowled over by nature in Sedona and fuses that love of new beauty with love of classic rock. Disenfranchised boomers are sure to get it right away.
NEW ORLEANS MAMBO/various: In which the magic of Putumayo comes to the fore where they give you a program of music that was mostly hiding in plain sight but they put a different spin to it and open your ears a whole new way. The focus here is on Nawlins but they deep dive into contemporary tracks that highlight the Nawlins/Cuba fusion that was there all along. The fun, the funk and the heat for the feet, it's all here in fine style. Another solid winner from a solidly winning team.
(Putumayo 382)
HAWKESTREL/Pioneers of Space: The largest Hawkwind alumni crew gather together and leave their walkers at the door as they proceed to tear it up like it's the old days once more. Space rockers know the drill and it's kicked out here by the gang that kicked it out originally without seeming like they've lost a step.
(Purple Pyramid 1644)
PARTINGTON & SWEENEY/Commonplaces: You can't tell the originals from the folk ballads on this lovely set that takes you places you wouldn't expect. With no dust on it, you're transported back at least a hundred years in most cases for songs about adversity, adventure and prevailing---largely something to think about today. With a classic folk feel but recorded and played with much more clarity and charm, this is sure to give you a whole new perspective on folk music as you return to it over and over. Simply smoking.
DULCIE TAYLOR/Reimagined: A greatest hits record of a sort from a singer/songwriter that arrived fully formed 20 years ago and seems like she's still a reigning queen of the underground no matter how much recognition she's racked up over the years. Taking a handful of her songs that really connect and remixing them for nu ears, the spirit remains untouched but the new wings allow them to deservedly soar higher. Taylor hits it out of the park as always.
(Mesa/Bluemoon)
MATT ECKSTINE/Lil' Blue: It's funny that John Prine was once part of phalanx of New Dylans and now there is a phalanx of New Prines out there. Coming from Lowcountry, Eckstine's roots aren't all that far from Prine's Muhlenberg County roots and they must have been close enough to share something in the water. Eckstine is his own singer/songwriter but the Prine influence is unmistakable and not at all unwelcome. He's paid his dues and he's a comer you'll be hearing more of as his rep grows.
ANDREW W. GREEN/Dime Dancing: The jazzbo guitarist does a deconstruction of Steely Dan's 70s hits and does it with pals that have the chops and the flying time but are mostly not the usual suspects. The kind of set that would make gift shop versions of this material run for the hills, Dan always colored outside the lines anyway so this diversion is diverse but it never runs off the rails. You try to keep Dan enthusiasts away from it.
(Shifting Paradigm 157)
MICK KOLASSA/If You Can't Be Good, Be Good at It: A Memphis white boy with the blues didn't let the pandemic stop him from rounding up his Memphis pals to turn it up and turn it loose for his best record yet. Tasty and tight throughout, Kolassa has the growl and the grit to let you know he's not fooling around. Despite that, this is a fun set that moves and grooves just the way you'd want it to if you were at the wheel. A solid set to leave your cares behind with.
(Endless Blues)
SATOKO FUJII-NATSUKI TAMURA/Pentas: The piano/trumpet duo mount their 7th album in over 2 decades but time and tide hasn't dimmed their hell raising ways. Totally improv left leaning jazz, it often feels like their telepathy guided them in the moment and jazz malcontents are sure to delight.
(Not Two 999)
IKUE MORI-SATOKO FUJII-NATSUKI TAMURA/Prickly Pear Cactus: The sound isn't ornery enough to clear your arteries they way the plant does but the real question here is whether the whippersnappers have played around on those internets enough to notice how much this sounds like Zappa in his Varese meets Boulez phase? And it was all done by sending sound files over the wires internationally. Nothing is the same anymore. Or is it?
(Libra 203062)
Volume 44/Number 357
October 24, 2020
MIDWEST RECORD
830 W. Route 22 #144
Lake Zurich, IL., 60047
CHRIS SPECTOR, Editor and Publisher
Copyright 2020 Midwest Record
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