Review: Over the years, Sam Shepheard's work as Floating Points has become increasingly ambitious, moving further away from his dancefloor roots and closer to spiritual jazz, new age and neo-classical. Even so, it was still a surprise when Shepheard announced Promises, a 46-minute piece in 10 "movements" featuring the London Symphony Orchestra and legendary saxophonist Pharoah Sanders. It's an undeniably remarkable piece all told; a constantly evolving fusion of neo-classical ambience, spiritual jazz and starry, synthesizer-laden soundscapes notable not only for Sanders' sublime sax-playing and Shepheard's memorable melodic themes, but also the intricate, detailed nature of the musical arrangements. It's a stunningly beautiful and life-affirming piece all told, and one that deserves your full attention.
Review: Kyoto Jazz Sextet are an acoustic jazz 'unit' established in 2015 fronted by Shuya Okino. After their first two albums 'Mission' and 'Unity' this new third album channels only the best of what Tokyo's jazz scene has to offer, illuminating both past and present musical narratives in Japan by enlisting both new artists and legends (Takeo Moryiama appears on drums) alike.
Review: World music and downtempo pioneers Thievery Corporation dropped their seminal It Takes A Thief album back in 2010 and it instantly became another one of their many classics. Drawing on sounds from across the globe from Indian tablas drums to Lebanese funk via Far Eastern strings, it's a cultured and laid-back listen rich in instrumentation and escapist grooves. The beachy bliss and gentle horns of 'All That We Perceive' and dubby swagger of 'The Richest Man In Babylon' are just two standouts among many.
Review: Amongst fans of the late Coil member (and prolific electronic experimentalist) Peter 'Sleazy' Christopherson, the Amulet album has long been spoken of in hushed tones. The second and final set he recorded as The Threshold Houseboys Choir, it was recorded in 2008 and only available at gigs (or via mail-order) in a "hand-made four mini-CDR package housed in a circular Thai amulet case". This, then, is the set's first "proper" release, with the material now stretched across two CDs. Reminiscent of some of Coil's more colourful and polished works of the early-to-mid 1990s, much of the material on Amulet blurs the boundaries between ambient, dub, trip-hop and downtempo psychedelia, sitting somewhere between vintage Orb albums and the more out-there escapades of Future Sound of London.
Review: Tom Perera-Chamblee is one of New York's more interesting jazz musicians - a long-term, genre-bending member of Brooklyn's DIY music community whose creative efforts have to be balanced with a day job as a 'bioinformatician' (we have no idea what that entails, but it sounds fairly weighty). A Willed and Conscious Bias is the multi-instrumentalist's debut album and was recorded with an impressive ensemble of independent musicians and fellow rising stars of alternative jazz. Musically, it's undoubtedly exceptional, drawing as much influence from contemporary musical culture as jazz of old - all inventive rhythms, slowly unfurling solos, soul-fired electric piano stabs and heady spirituality. For proof, check out the gentle musical flowering that is 'Love' and the jazz-funk and fusion-infused warmth of 'Life'.
Debbie Cameron & Richard Boone - "Stop Foolin' Yourself"
Marcia Maria - "Brasil Nativo"
Midnight Gigolos - "Brother Samba"
Sonzeira - "The Mystery Of Man" (Rainer Truby & Corrado Bucci presents Truccy remix)
A Bossa Eletrica - "Sob A Luz Do Sol"
The Matheus Combo - "Aderico"
Grupo Ebano - "Pe No Chao"
Guillermo Reuter - "Mr Jenkins"
Jean Marc Jafet - "Offering"
Wutrio - "Hallo Hoppel"
Christian Knobel - "Sambomambo"
Review: German DJ and producer Rainer Truby first unveiled the Glucklich series of compilations way back in the 90s, when fusions of Brazilian music, jazz, soul, funk and electronic were making their very first commercial splashes. This reissue of the sixth edition of the series, first released in 2003, hears 14 tracks of nu-Brazilian groove by the likes of Azymuth, Marcos Valle, Sabrina Malheiros and Celia Vaz. You're not likely to hear a psychedelic acid downtempo version of 'Everybody Loves The Sunshine' anywhere else any time soon.
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