Showing posts with label Allison Miller. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Allison Miller. Show all posts

Tuesday, May 9, 2023

Artemis - In Real Time

Styles: Jazz, Post Bop
Year: 2023
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 50:23
Size: 117,2 MB
Art: Front

(7:05) 1. Slink
(6:17) 2. Bow and Arrow
(6:18) 3. Balance of Time
(4:51) 4. Lights Away from Home
(7:30) 5. Timber
(7:03) 6. Whirlwind
(5:34) 7. Empress Afternoon
(5:42) 8. Penelope

The all-star jazz sextet Artemis further coalesce their sophisticated post-bop sound with their sophomore album, 2023's In Real Time. When the group debuted with 2020's eponymous title, the all-women group brought each of the member's extensive solo experience to bear on their vibrant group sound.

While part of the line-up has shifted since then, the group (still led by pianist Renee Rosnes) sounds even more united. Part of this is due to the increased time Rosnes and her rhythm section partners, including bassist Noriko Ueda and drummer Allison Miller, have spent touring and performing together.

Also returning is trumpeter Ingrid Jensen, whose warm tone and lithe, Kenny Wheeler-esque harmonies work as a bold herald to the group's lush interplay. Coming on board this time out are tenor saxophonist Nicole Glover and alto saxophonist/multi-reedist Alexa Tarantino, who both bring their distinctive improvisational styles to the fore. While originality is still at the core of Artemis' sound, there's a feeling that Rosnes and her bandmates are also exploring their influences.

It's a vibe that's evident from the start on their sparkling rendition of longtime Pat Metheny bassist Lyle Mays' "Slink," a song culled from his 1985 self-titled album. Here, Artemis transform the contemporary synths of Mays' original into a more organic-sounding arrangement, one where the contrapuntal bass groove is nicely off-set by colorful flute, sax, and vocal harmonies.

They further underscore the deep influences at play on In Real Time with album's closing take on Wayne Shorter's "Penelope" fleshing out the late sax legend's composition with Jensen's muted, night sky trumpet leads, Rosnes' luminous pianos chords, and spectral saxophone solo from Glover. Equally potent are the group's own originals, including Miller's "Bow and Arrow" (a roiling tune in the '60s hard bop tradition) and Tarantino's atmospheric waltz "Whirlwind" (recalling Miles Davis' '60s recordings).

There's also Jensen's "Timber," her vocal-like trumpet textures framed by a funky '70s-style groove and Rosnes' dewy Fender Rhodes accents. While much of In Real Time evokes the deep well of the post-bop jazz tradition that inspires Artemis, they never fail to inspire on their own terms.By Matt Collar
https://www.allmusic.com/album/in-real-time-mw0003961691

Personnel: Renee Rosnes: piano; Ingrid Jensen: trumpet; Alexa Tarantino: alto and soprano saxophone, flute; Nicole Glover: tenor saxophone; Noriko Ueda: bass; Allison Miller: drums.

In Real Time

Sunday, October 2, 2022

Allison Miller & Jane Ira Bloom - Tues Days

Styles: Bop, Saxophone Jazz
Year: 2021
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 56:48
Size: 133,5 MB
Art: Front

(4:43) 1. Tues Days
(5:36) 2. Technicolor
(5:26) 3. Rowing In The Dark
(3:16) 4. This Is It
(2:16) 5. Five Bells
(8:30) 6. The Wild Frontier
(5:59) 7. Light Years Away
(4:16) 8. A's & J's Test Kitchen
(6:13) 9. Crayola
(4:19) 10. On Seeing JP
(6:08) 11. Walk Alone

The story goes that, during spring 2021, on five consecutive Tuesdays in March and April, soprano saxophonist Jane Ira Bloom and drummer Allison Miller recorded a handful of improvised sax and drum duets just to see what might happen and evolve. Well, a lot does because with Tues Days both Miller and Bloom cut their inner hippie loose to gambol out in the fields with flowers in their hair and their skirts all a-billow.

It is not all fun and games, as any ageing hippie learns, but still you have gotta get out in the sunshine, air it out and bond; close the chasm that technology, in equal terms ,either helps us cross or broadens, and jam merrily on. Even if it is remotely, you are never alone.

So we have the title track, a true reversal of fortune given the last two years of our human story, opening a dance fest of ideas. "Technicolor" vaunts and veers into the thoughtful and sparing "Rowing in the Dark." Pensive yet hopeful, the duo share epiphanies that last long after something proves otherwise.

"This Is It" sets the foot tapping once again while "The Wild Frontier" beckons in its own obstinate, oblique way. Bloom screams, Miller skitters and somehow everything is right with world. "Light Years Away" is that quieter moment everyone needs. "A's and J's Test Kitchen" is the duo's (and listeners') just reward for the unbridled, pure human engagement that Tues Days swears by. By Mike Jurkovic https://www.allaboutjazz.com/tues-days-jane-ira-bloom-outline-supaphine

Personnel: Allison Miller: drums; Jane Ira Bloom: saxophone, soprano.

Tues Days