Jazz Megathread: "I'll play it first and tell you what it is later."

The Something Awful Forums > The Finer Arts > No More Drake > Jazz Megathread: "I'll play it first and tell you what it is later."

x0nix: May 25, 2001

Anyone into James Farm? Joshua Redman's new(ish) band. They're my favourite modern jazzers: pretty experimental in feel but within controlled melodic structures. Can be very catchy. Listen to Poliwog or this live video.

CNN Sports Ticker posted:

The only jazz album I actually have and have listened to is Bitches Brew. I think I'll have to start exploring some other Miles Davis.

Also, can you suggest something that's keyboard based and very improvisational? I saw a trio play a while ago that did that kind of thing and I really enjoyed it.

Bill Evans. He was the pianist in Miles Davis' Kind of Blue era quintet, and a school unto himself as far as jazz pianists are concerned. His compositions are quite accessible and have great melodies yet are really 'out there' too. Listen to the "Paris February 1972" record, or "Waltz for Debby" (which might be easier to find).

x0nix fucked around with this message at 20:45 on Nov 6, 2011

# ¿ Nov 6, 2011 17:10

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# ¿ May 22, 2024 17:58

x0nix: May 25, 2001

Nuclear Spoon posted:

I loving love me some Davis' In a Silent Way: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DCnUpl6B46M

Does anyone know anything else like it?

Love it too. Check out the album "Angel Song" by the following supergroup: Kenny Wheeler / Lee Konitz / Dave Holland / Bill Frisell. It's spooky, mysterious, contemplative and ethereal jazz at its finest - with no percussion. Here's a sample.

# ¿ Nov 7, 2011 15:55

x0nix: May 25, 2001

Relayer posted:

I found this live performance of the Brubeck tune "Forty Days" and am currently completely obsessed with it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8PQBYEkHHg

Absolutely destroys the version on 'Time In' imo. Paul Desmond's solo is amazing as usual, but Dave just gets insanely delicate in the middle, it's beautiful.

The main reason I wanted to post it though is cause it's such a harmonically simple, very non-jazz progression, and it occured to me you really don't hear this kind of simple tonality in a jazz context too often. Could anyone suggest some other stuff like this, that is jazz but built around more traditional harmony?

For traditional harmony system jazz I'd reccommend The Neil Cowley Trio. But it's a completely different mood to the Brubeck stuff. They are a modern jazz trio from London, writing some really amazing tunes- catchy, lively, tender, beautiful and occaisionally brutal. Post-jazz perhaps? Check out: Degree In Intuition, Clumsy Couple, Gerald, Monoface, Box Lily, Hug the greyhound.

# ¿ Nov 8, 2011 11:17

x0nix: May 25, 2001

Walter Sobchak posted:

Sao Paulo Underground
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s4XijbNSqh0

Azure_Horizon posted:

Whoever plays with Gretchen Parlato

Her voice is my favorite female jazz voice since Billie Holiday/Ella Fitzgerald, and Taylor Eigsti is by far my favorite modern pianist.

Great and great. Thanks for these reccommendations.

My favourite modern jazzers are James farm: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5tz-nXt1kY and the Neil Cowley Trio: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tRijZZ8uAf0

# ¿ Nov 20, 2011 11:48

x0nix: May 25, 2001

Azure_Horizon posted:

Anyone in here checked out Colin Stetson's New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges?

It's hard to even describe it as jazz, it's pretty out there. I like parts of it but not all of it, however I can respect that the dude is simply incredible on a bass saxophone. The way he recorded it is interesting, too: He set up mics all over the room he was in to capture the echoes of his playing, then spliced them together to get what we have in the album.

Yeah I found it overall a bit more 'interesting' than likeable. It's amazing the range of noises he makes with that bass sax, and I found myself wondering most of the time what was overdubbed and what he was able to play at one time - because apparently many of the tracks are just one live take: see this. It must be a pretty big feat of endurance to play like that for any length of time.

# ¿ Dec 15, 2011 16:05

x0nix: May 25, 2001

Jazz Marimba posted:

You and I have very different tastes, apparently. I'm not really a fan of guitar, and the guitarist in Autumn in New York was too over the top. I much prefer Wayne Shorter's version of Infant Eyes.

Seems like most people including myself are very picky about guitars as a solo instrument in jazz. While Jonathan Kreisberg's facial expressions are extremely offputting, I like his tone and style. Here is an example of a guitar tone I think is awful in anything vaguely jazz related: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zRZaicH1_YM (Mike Moreno playing in Aaron Parks' Nemesis).

x0nix fucked around with this message at 15:19 on Jan 13, 2012

# ¿ Jan 13, 2012 13:47

x0nix: May 25, 2001

Azure_Horizon posted:

Most definitely. I consider "The Lost and Found" to be the jazz album of last year. It's also perfect when it's cold out. Check out her cover of Herbie Hancock's "Butterfly". It's beautiful, but so is Taylor Eigsti's piano work.

The album version with the 'sparse' acoustic guitar backing isn't that great, the rhythm sounds a bit awkward and clunky to me. The live version you mention with Taylor Eigsti accompanying on piano is so much better. Unfortunately that's kind of typical of the arrangements on her first album 'In a Dream'.

x0nix fucked around with this message at 22:04 on Jan 18, 2012

# ¿ Jan 18, 2012 22:00

x0nix: May 25, 2001

_Leviathan_ posted:

Just got into more traditional jazz. I am loving Four and More by Davis Davis, Empyrean Isles by Herbie Hancock, and A Love Supreme by Coltrane. Any recommendations for aggressive jazz like that with crazy drumming?

Check this out: Chronos by James Farm. I just can't plug this self-titled album 'James Farm' enough. They're a very modern quartet including Joshua Redman on sax, Aaron Parks on piano and Eric Harland on drums. At this end of this particular tune Aaron Parks begins a gorgeous backdrop of chords, then Eric Harland simply rips it on the skins. Bang it up and enjoy some of the illest drumming ever.

# ¿ Jan 23, 2012 20:14

x0nix: May 25, 2001

woodenchicken posted:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jazz_(TV_series)

As expected from Ken Burns this is a brilliant series. Some eras/topics I personally wasn't that interested in but I still always appreciated the general level of detail. I loved the episodes covering the 40s and 50s. The final part about modern jazz seemed a little slapdash though as I recall.

# ¿ Feb 19, 2012 00:15

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# ¿ May 22, 2024 17:58

x0nix: May 25, 2001

Azure_Horizon posted:

I have added a modern jazz improv section so for any of you who have some recommendations of groups that are pushing jazz forward or blending it with some of the current popular genres of today please recommend them.

James Farm - Chronos
Neil Cowley Trio - Fable

Farecoal posted:

Do swing singers like Dean Martin or Bobby Martin count as jazz? Stuff like this?

Most definitely! That's pretty much as jazz as it gets.

# ¿ Apr 14, 2012 11:08

The Something Awful Forums > The Finer Arts > No More Drake > Jazz Megathread: "I'll play it first and tell you what it is later."