jazz2love

  Album:  Earth Travelers Artist:  Asai Kastan Duo Label:  Space2Groove Records Release Date:  April 23, 2026 Website:  http://www.takeshiasai.com/index.html https://www.space2grooverecords.com Earth Travelers is a kaleidoscopic voyage helmed by pianist Takeshi Asai and Brian Kastan on fretless bass.   Their prismatic inflections, multi-hued tones, and free flowing sound waves craft an atmospheric expedition that delights audiences.  The pair demonstrate a smooth repartee formed by the piano and bass, rarely experienced in music.  Their lyrical improvisations and random dynamics keep the tracks in a state of flux that heightens the listeners senses from the fiery exchanges of "We Made It" to the silky conversing through the title track.   The cresting and ebbing motions of "Sonic Pathways" permeate an emotive vibe, while the lulling swells of "This Is The Way" project a consolatory stroking.  The duo travel from the ether...

Album:  Hermanos Artist:  Cortez-Williams Project Label: Blue Bamboo Music Website: https://bluebamboomusic.net/cortez-williams-project https://www.orlandoatplay.com/event/cortez-williams-project-4 The Latin flavors and nocturnal ambiences of guitarist Chris Cortez and percussionist/trumpet player Larry Williams are honed into a verdant field of feel good expressions throughout the duo's release Hermanos from the Blue Bamboo Music label.  From the sprightly gait of the title track, spruced in the frilly keys of pianist Bob Thornton, to the trundling stride of "Melody Makes It Happen," buttered in the bourbon tones of Dan Jordan's tenor saxophone, the recording serves listeners with a bounty of pleasing aesthetics. Williams's star-gazing twinkles scrolled on the trumpet give "Glorious!" a refined luster as Cortez's sensitive musings on the guitar burnish an introspective atmosphere.  The bossa nova sway of Williams's trumpet emblazes "Un Ped...

Album Review:  Gravity from Simon Sammut and Omar Vazquez Album:  Gravity Artist:  Simon Sammut and Omar Vazquez Label:  Self-released Website:  http://simonsammut.com World music and New Age encompass a wide breadth of music but there is likely no doubt in anyone's mind that the music of electric and acoustic bassists Simon Sammut and Omar Vazquez fall into these two open-ended categories.  Their latest creation Gravity consists of compositions that dwell on roomy atmospherics and eclectic soundscapes.  Capricious and airy, listeners detect more soundwaves than chord patterns or intervals of notes.  Like a breeze casting a sail, the particles emitted from the instruments glide like intangible emanations, producing vibrations that float across the air, massaging the listener's aural senses. The soft flutter of the flute moving across "Equinoccio" is layered in heavy bass tones and  meandering keys, which segue to a funky poppish rhythm th...