New Albums - Page 153

John Scofield’s Grammy-nominated Überjam came out more than a decade ago. And while the guitarist has since released seven albums of his own, and five albums as a co-leader, the followup to Überjam has been in the works. Überjam Deux is the result of that decade-plus of work. “Certain songs have been evolving over the ten years since Überjam; [guitarist]...

Steve Swallow has released Into the Woodwork, a new, multi-textured collection of twelve of the bassist’s original tunes. The album features a revised lineup of Swallow’s quintet with longtime collaborator Carla Bley on organ, Chris Cheek on saxophone, Steve Cardenas on guitar, and Jorge Rossy on drums. “This album is very much about what this cast of characters provoked in...

Seems hard to believe this group started out simply to perform a show at the 2011 Winter NAMM show. The Aristocrats, formed by bassist Bryan Beller, drummer Marco Minnemann and guitarist Guthrie Govan have come a long way since then. This week, the trio released Culture Clash, their second studio album and third overall. Based on the reaction of our...

By the 1950s, Oscar Pettiford had already made a name for himself as a force in the bebop movement and was working as a bandleader. But when the bass legend first arrived in Germany in 1958, he was lauded even more than he could believe. His signature style and use of bass as a solo instrument was extremely popular with...

Tom Kennedy newest acoustic CD, Just Play is out today. Bringing together many of the people Kennedy has performed with over the years, the album has a truly all-star cast of musicians. The core band is Renee Rosnes, Dave Weckl and George Garzone along with guests Mike Stern, Tim Hagens, Lee Ritenour, John Allred and Steve Wirts. The CD’s nine...

Veteran bassist Charnett Moffett has released Spirit of Sound, his thirteenth album as a leader and companion to his solo release, The Bridge which debuted in April. While Spirit of Sound is not a solo bass album like The Bridge, it does center heavily on Moffett’s bass virtuosity. The new album finds Moffett building upon the “Harmolodic Free Jazz” concepts...

Thundercat, aka bassist Stephen Bruner, has returned with his second full-length album, Apocalypse. Continuing Bruner’s unique hip hop meets jazz meets indie rock style, the effort centers on the cycle of life and all its ups and downs. The topic has been heavy on the bassist’s mind since the passing of his close friend and fellow musician, Austin Peralta, who...

One thing a band with the Yellowjackets’ longevity is likely to experience is change. The 32-year run has seen their fair share of change, with the most recent one happening with the bass chair. Back in January 2012, we broke the news that Felix Pastorius – son of the late Jaco Pastorius – was replacing Jimmy Haslip. Haslip reportedly wanted...

After eight years since his debut effort as a leader, Steve Jenkins has returned with Steve Jenkins and the Coaxial Flutter, an album that blends the bassist’s progressive rock and jazz fusion influences with “strong undercurrents of metal and electronic music.” The eight-song collection features Jenkins on a multitude of instruments and has guest appearances by Vernon Reid, John Shannon,...

In 1975 and 1976, former Fab Four bassist Paul McCartney and his band Wings took the world by storm with the “Wings over the World” tour, a 66-date trek across Australia, Europe and North America. It was the largest tour the band would ever undertake, and it resulted in the triple live album Wings Over America. A concert film entitled...

The wait is finally over. Black Sabbath have released 13, their first studio album featuring original members Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi and Geezer Butler since 1978’s Never Say Die. The band, which officially reunited in late 2011, is rounded out by Rage Against the Machine drummer Brad Wilk, who fills in for Bill Ward. Ward left the reunion in February...

Queens of the Stone Age has released …Like Clockwork, their first album in six years. The album’s title comes from the hard-fought process, an effort that began as far back as 2008 but was met with numerous obstacles. “We’d have these great victories and then something would go south for a bit,” leader Josh Homme told Rolling Stone, “and we’d...