Ross Hammond & Sameer Gupta
Ross Hammond is a genuine troubadour, seemingly spending his life on the road playing acoustic and electric guitars to anyone that has the sense to listen. His style on Upward will be familiar to those who appreciate the work of John Fahey and Ry Cooder, steel string picking on 12-string acoustic guitar with a strong […]
Erlend Apneseth Trio
If you think Arvo Pärt’s Fratres sounds beautiful then this gem from the consistently fascinating Norwegian label Hubro should be on your must hear list. It’s stark music lead by Hardanger fiddle player Apneseth but it is also radiant with Nordic light, timbrally rich and unquestionably essential. Stephan Meidell provides accompaniment on guitar and electronica […]
Stein Urheim
If there’s a stringed instrument that Stenin Urheim can’t play and play well I’d like to know what it is. However that’s not a reason to listen to his third release on the excellent Hubro label, unless of course you enjoy hearing different stringed instruments that are very well played and recorded. The best reason […]
John Renbourn
In the early sixties when British ‘folkies’ like John Renbourn were honing their licks, few were truly aware of the origins of the blues tunes they were playing. YouTube wasn’t even a notion and genuine blues musicians were very scarce in the UK ,so they learnt songs from friends and records. This excellent collection of […]
All Times Big band
For readers who like big band music we have selected a real audiophile production, mastered by the Dutch company STS-Digital, cut and pressed in Germany on 180 grams vinyl. Tunes by Duke Ellington, George Gershwin and Cole Porter are among tracks like ‘Don’t Get Around Much Anymore’, ‘Our Love Is Here To Stay’ and ‘Love […]
Gregory Porter
It’s unusual for ascendant artists to stick with the backing bands that got them started, which makes Gregory Porter a bit different, after all it’s his name that sells and he’d probably do just as well with session musicians. But Porter is a singer with integrity, that much is clear when you listen to this […]
Klaus Gesing, Bjorn Meyer, Samuel Rohrer
Amiira has an atmospheric essence that flows all the way through, it haunts and charms in equal measure. It builds layers of tones and mixes them with chords and then splashes rhythms that slowly build from a Tibetan monk’s bell and percussion to prog-rock played with treated saxophone. It is a very intimate album in […]
Michel Benita
Michael Benita’s 2010 album Ethics has a rich and in places cinematic feel and sound, but is best described as a creative fusion of prog rock, blues, jazz and world music. One that provides a joyous and rewarding musical journey in the company of some highly able and original musicians, playing graceful avant garde. This […]
M.A Bakker
How do you pay the ultimate homage to a musician you love? Do you start a tribute band that imitates the artist’s original work, or do you create an inspired semi facsimile that is distinctive in its own right? M.A Bakker and his large band appear to have taken the latter approach with Rejected Scripts. […]
Tord Gustavsen
Tord Gustavsen and his small ensemble of musicians have created something truly amazing with this album. But listeners are required to ‘work’ for the many aural pleasures it offers, this is not an obvious album even if its sound quality alone will be enough for many. To my ears Gustavsen has found a musical balance […]
Matthias Loibner
What we have here is an uber unusual recording created by one of the most unique musical personalities I have ever encountered. Matthias Loibner is a rare creature with a vast musical interest and a virtuoso mastery of the hurdy gurdy. He is also inventive and keeps discovering new ways of using the instrument, rather […]
Mop Mop
It is possible to sum up this album in two words: simply mesmerizing. But reviews need to be a bit longer than that so I will continue. Lunar Love consists of tunes that transform hypnotic reggae into something akin to the work of Ethiopian musical giant Mulatu Astatke. With reggae notes underpinning an African sound […]
Matthew Bourne
Matthew Bourne looks like a rugged character, an image that doesn’t quite sync with the nuanced ambient ramblings of Moogmemory. Bourne is into the people and lore of the Memorymoog synthesiser, he has a strong affinity with what sounds like a particularly challenging instrument to get on song. I wasn’t aware that such things required […]
Madeline Bell
It has been years since I last heard from Madeline Bell, an artist known for singing in Blue Mink and later a member of The (New) London Chorale. This record from the Dutch label STS Digital is not really new either. It was recorded some 15 years ago and used as a promotional CD at […]
Ben Sidran
This album from 2009 is a tribute to a poet and his lyrics. Ben Sidran has taken Dylan’s words and recreated them in an original, unique and exquisite fashion. Sidran refreshes Dylan, who by now is an icon to a generation, and his large band of co conspirators breathe originality and life in to his […]
Jimmy Giuffre
In the past Jimmy Giuffre has always struck me as being a little bit too smooth, his west coast cool sound has never struck a chord but Western Suite has changed all that, now I have to hear more. A saxophonist, clarinettist and composer Giuffre composed this suite for the trio he had been playing […]