By:
On:
In: ALBUMS, BLOG POSTS

Each album release from Kamasi Washington is cause for celebration in my book. Ever since his first triple CD album ‘The Epic’ (what a name for a debut!), his music evokes a tremendous sense of awe, with a spiritual, mystical and ethereal quality. ‘Fearless Movement’ is more down to earth according to the press notes, due to Kamasi’s change in perspective based on the birth of his daughter, Asha. Nevertheless, it’s still epic (yes, I did that) and a majestic collection of tunes that add to the fantastic legacy of this still-young, legendary composer and saxophonist. As usual for Kamasi,Continue Reading

By:
On:
In: ALBUMS, BLOG POSTS

The Jazz Defenders have recently become a personal favorite. They truly ‘defend’ the art of jazz pumping out fresh sounds with deep roots. This is just their third album and their previous one ‘King Phoenix’ was one of my top albums of 2022 (review here). ‘Memory in Motion’ is a great mixture conjuring up various artists of the past but adding melodic twists and turns for an enjoyable scenic journey. The tightness of the quintet format allows the horns and piano to tell the story while the drums and bass rev the engine. I know that readers and followers ofContinue Reading

By:
On:
In: BLOG POSTS

Joe Marcinek has been consistently putting out excellent, interesting albums for several years now with a rotating group of musicians that keeps the music ever fresh and evolving. His latest release, 1 River Street, was recorded in Massachusetts at Iron Wax Studios with Alan Evans producing and on drums, Nate Edgar on bass, Kris Yunker on keys, Brian Thomas on trombone and Alex Lee-Clark on trumpet and Jared Sims on sax and flute.  It’s a tight collection of eight sharply-honed tunes, each with a different flair to appeal to all lovers of groove-oriented music. I feel like the the flexibilityContinue Reading

By:
On:
In: BLOG POSTS

“Mustard n’Onions,” the just-released, double helping of funk from Ghost-Note has been cookin’ for six-years and its savory beats strike my main nerve. Ghost-Note, the brainchild of Robert “Sput” Searight and Nate Werth, coming out of Snarky Puppy nearly ten years ago, is now a bona fide funk factory. This album of course features the powerfully, kinetic collaboration of Nate and Sput on percussion and drums with a rock steady rhythm section, a truly effervescent horn section and psychedelic keys throughout.  To top it off, they’ve brought in a legendary guest list including Benard Wright (keys) and Casey Benjamin (sax),Continue Reading

By:
On:
In: ALBUMS, BLOG POSTS

The New Mastersounds (NMS) have been consistently pumping out great music and super groovy vibes for 25 years and their latest release “Old School” is a testament to their legacy. NMS are an all-time favorite of mine — their retro-soul-funk in the tradition of The Meters is timeless but always evolving. Over the years they’ve had songs and albums with vocalists such as Corinne Bailey Rae and Lamar Williams, Jr.  They’ve also had many tunes supplemented with horns for added oomph. But there’s nothing quite like the core four on the floor of Eddie Roberts on guitar, Pete Shand onContinue Reading

By:
On:
In: BLOG POSTS

Resonate Suwannee is back for its second year in this format in just three short weeks and I’ll be back in Live Oak to celebrate with the crew. The festival came together under this name last year when Resonance and Resonate joined with the headlining band STS9 to put together a smashing jamtronica, EDM, funk, prog lineup. It’s such a great vibe with minimal, if any, music overlap on the stages so you get to see as much music as you want in what is for me, the best music festival venue in the country, Spirit of Suwannee Music Park.Continue Reading

By:
On:
In: BLOG POSTS

Jam Cruise 20 is upon us and Day 1 delivered in an epic way — anchored deep in the funk roots Day 1 featured heavy funk hitters like Lettuce, Karl Denson, and the long awaited return of The New Mastersounds. Check in this year was a breeze after the disaster of waiting in line for 2 hours plus last year and it set the tone for pure unadulterated fun for next 5 days. The MSC Davina sailed away as we were blessed to have the funk masters Lettuce get the opening set for Jam Cruise. Lettuce opened up with oneContinue Reading

By:
On:
In: BLOG POSTS

A couple of months ago, Yussef Dayes had a show at Variety Playhouse here in Atlanta. In preparation for the show, I took a super deep dive into his music, which then led me down a rabbit hole of listening to jazz. Whenever I listen to jazz at a high frequency, a question always pops into mind: Why do the worlds of jazz and jam artists rarely combine? These two worlds of music that focus so hard on improvisation, musical talent, and a fanbase rabid to see how far these bands can push the sound, why is it so rareContinue Reading

By:
On:
In: BLOG POSTS

Whippersnap Music and Arts Festival is shaping up to be a fabulous respite from winter — perfect setting with a superb lineup of funk, jam and soul. This fest is  very personal for me as I’m a huge fan and friend of several of the bands. Right from the top, The New Mastersounds haven’t played in the U.S. since the pre-pandemic tour in 2019 so it’s gonna quench that thirst that I’ve had for a looong time. It’s worth noting that this fest should feature a lot of great jams that you won’t see elsewhere based on a terrific trioContinue Reading

By:
On:
In: BANDS

Last week, I covered the annual GroundUP Music Festival in Miami Beach coming up February 2-4. It’s the greatest adventure for musical exploration in the U.S.  Since its inception in 2017, in addition to the main festival performances, there have been artist workshops during the day, pre-festival brunches with artist performances and late night parties after the festival closes. This year’s brunches and late nights are as spectacular as ever with extra-special performances including individual artists and late-night performances. Here’s the rundown of each – I plan to attend as many sets as my body will allow. BRUNCHES Bill LauranceContinue Reading