Browse some recent OA2 Reviews.
Paul Tynan & Aaron Lington - Bicoastal Collective: Chapter Three
by Dave Sumner, emusic.com
Third recording for Paul Tynan and Aaron Lington�s Bicoastal Collective. In addition to Tynan�s trumpet and Lington�s bari sax, Dan Murphy is on Rhodes, Corey Christiansen on guitar, Ashley Summers on bass, and Jon Deitemyer on drums. More straight-ahead than prior recordings, this is more of a lay-back-and-play type of session. Freewheeling solos and crisp rhythm sections represent this album�s heart. A solid recording from solid... read more
Charlie Porter - Immigration Nation
by Editor, JAZZIZ
CRITIC'S CHOICES Trumpeter and composer Charlie Porter released an impressive self-titled 2018 debut recording that featured tracks ranging progressively from solo to sextet settings, then reversed back the other way. The Juilliard grad waxes conceptual on his sophomore recording, Immigration Nation (OA2), as well, this time tackling the immigrant experience. A descendent of Lebanese, Greek, Italian and English immigrants to the United... read more
Angela Verbrugge - Somewhere
by Tom Haugen, Take Effect
The Canadian vocalist Angela Verbrugge turns in a heartfelt body of work, where several musicians accompany her for 7 timeless, vocal jazz selections
Miles Black's warm keys and Verbrugge's smooth voice open the listen with the soft and stylish "I Had The Craziest Dream", and "Somewhere" follows with Erik Kalaidzis' deep pipes complementing the intimacy that makes great use of Jodi Proznick's cautious bass plucking.
Deeper into the... read more
Rich Pellegrin - Episodes IV-VI
by Scott Yanow, LA Jazz Scene
Pianist Rich Pellegin contributed all of the music to Episodes IV-VI, the second volume in his three-part odyssey trilogy. The five pieces on this CD are excellent showcases for his quintet (trumpeter R. Scott Morning, tenor-saxophonist Neil Welch, bassist Evan Flory-Barnes and drummer Chris Icasiano) as soloists and in loose but very coherent ensembles. The originals set moods on which the musicians build and develop the music, sometimes taking... read more
Danny Green - Altered Narratives
by Chris Spector, Midwest Review
Everything here seems appropriate. Recorded for Origin's 'after hours' label with production vet Matt Pierson at the helm, this jazz piano trio date seems like the perfect after hours set. Recorded with that after hours, there's no one in the studio but us, vibe this is the perfect classic feeling date that simply has to dust on it. A killer listening set, it's a real joy and time well spent. Killer stuff throughout everyone on board can... read more
Michael Kocour - East of the Sun
by Dave Rogers, WTJU
Michael Kocour is an Associate Professor and the Director of Jazz Studies at Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona. Hailed by the Chicago Tribune as "one of the most sophisticated pianists in jazz," Kocour has performed at venues around the world and has been a guest on Marian McPartland's internationally syndicated NPR program "Piano Jazz." Among the many artists and ensembles with whom he has appeared with are Dizzy Gillespie, Eddie... read more
Libby York - DreamLand
by George W Harris, Jazz Weekly
Vocalist Libby York gives casual and intimate servings of standards with the deft team of guitarist Randy Napoleon and bassist Rodney Whitaker, with drummer Keith Hall sitting in for a handful of mellow tones. There's a maturity to her calm enunciation of pieces like the gentle "Cloudy Morning" and patient "Estrada Branca". She sits well with Napoleon, soft together on "Something Cool" and the spacious "When October Goes" while going into dark... read more
Shawn Maxwell - New Tomorrow
by Dan McClenaghan, All About Jazz
Chicago-based saxophonist Shawn Maxwell has produced an excellent run of straight ahead CD releases in the past decade, sets like his two self-produced discs, Originals (2006) and Originals II (2008), and Maxwell's House (Chicago Session LTD, 2010) before he changed his game up with Shawn Maxwell's Alliance (Chicago Sessions LTD, 2015), a shift away from mainstream quartet - sax and rhythm section - to a walk-on-the-mini-big-band wild side,... read more
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