This week's CD REVIEWS and the archives | ||||
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TOP SITES |
Top Sites |
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A well-organized and frequently updated fan page dedicated to the work of the star-crossed, iconoclastic American tenor saxophonist Albert Ayler (1936-1970). With typical British thoroughness the Web master includes a biography; a discography (including album cover scans and rumors of unreleased sessions); clips of Ayler music; remembrances of those who saw Ayler live; and a collection of good links. |
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Organized by one man with links to the community of professional jazz musicians, this site is subdivided between Diatribes and Twisted Tales. Many of the later are of the hoary, bandstand laugh variety. Many of the former dis other musicians, record companies, bookers and other irritants in a pro's working life. |
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Mostly a way for jazz's smallest and crabbiest magazine to sell more copies and distribute CDs on its two own (CIMP and CJR) and other labels. A truly homegrown enterprise, Cadence will even sell you books, t-shirts and socks (!) It's still a valuable way to get to the only truly non-advertising driven American jazz publication. No flash. |
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Want a glimpse into a breadth of jazz in France? This site offers CD and concert reviews, profiles, gig announcements, manifestos covering most activities form one end of France to another. (In French) |
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Best known as the primary discographer of the work of jazz giant John Coltrane (1926 - 1967), Wild is also a pianist and composer. The Coltrane work is due for a major update soon. |
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An obsessive look at many out-of-print or merely underappreciated classic LPs this site includes MP3s of the music as well as written descriptions of it. A blog updated twice-a-week, not a commercial enterprise, Destination Out makes a point of stating that the tracks are “are only available for about two weeks, and are for evaluation purposes only”. As its owners add: Attend concerts. Buy music. |
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The world's best-known jazz publication was late to come to the Web and still seems a bit uncomfortable here. It seems to be unsure whether it wants to have a commercial or an information site. Besides a precis of the current issue, it also offers different message boards, news, profiles, lists and an education component, audio interviews on its radio section, plans for digital downloads and some links. |
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Bruce Lee Gallenter's miniscule outlet for so-called outside music in New York's East Village. More catholic in his tastes than most merchants, he stocks LPs as well as CDs in categories that range from what he thinks of as "Downtown" — multistylists who live nearby — to jazz, klezmer, blues, rock etc., and he does mail order as well. The page is frequently updated with his reviews of new releases, important (to him) New York gigs as well as which musicians will be playing in concert at the store itself. |
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Chicago's on-line rare new CD and vinyl outlet has more of a Web than a physical presence. Mostly worthwhile as the way to keep up with the latest outside releases, especially from offshore outlets. Has a monthly and a weekly newsletter. Has a compact, but interesting, list of links |
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Organized by Hamburg, Germany-based Cornelie Müller-Gödecke, this bilingual (English and German) site is a compendium of musicians and music that she considered important. Someone who writes for German publications and has an appreciation for the visual arts as a photographer, Müller-Gödecke provides arts-oriented news as well as a political/sociological view of Eastern Europe. Her links and pictures of subjects could include anything from Armenian dance or Russian composers to portraits of abandoned churches. Updated more-or-less monthly. |
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One of the few musicians comfortable in nearly every sound world extant, from electrononics to improvised jazz to blues, is guitarist/saxophonist and composer Elliott Sharp. His site not only includes the expected discography, gig information, reviews and articles, but also a selection of his scores as well as a a remarkably frank, literate and informed month-by-month tour diary. |
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Founded by bassist Claude Tchamitchian in 1994, the French-based Émouvance label is a prime example of a boutique label at its most sophisticated. With most projects involving one of its three main participants – guitarist Raymond Boni and saxophonist Daunik Lazro as well as Tchamitchian – Émouvance is concerned with creative music in its broadest sense. It limits its yearly releases, but often mixes improvised music with poetry and ethnic sounds. The site not only itemizes Émouvance CDs and affiliated upcoming concerts, but also provides biographies of the label’s main men and links to other interesting improv-related sites. |
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In existence since 1987, the EJN is a non-profit association of promoters, musicians' associations, artistic directors, music program consultants in jazz and improvised music. The EJN promotes collaboration among the professionals to coordinate common projects and commission original productions. Besides upcoming concerts it also has some musicians' bios and discographies. |
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Information relating to the music and musicians who have evolved from the American free jazz tradition to create a Eurocentric one of their own. Painstakingly organized — hey the guy is a librarian — and subdivided into multiple categories, including musicians, record companies, upcoming gigs etc. It includes photos, music files, discographies and multiple links to other pages. Updated monthly. |
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Web presence for Canada's (and Quebec's) veteran avant garde festival, Le Festival International de Musique Actualle de Victoriaville, located midway between Montreal and Quebec City. To be consulted just before the Fest for a rundown of performers on tap for that year's festival. |
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Dependent on how interesting its participants’ comments are, this Free Jazz blog can offer many insights into the area, usually from an American perspective. Still, it is most readable when opinions and experiences are noted. It is least worthwhile when mere lists of important albums or musicians are proffered. |
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George Scala's painstakingly researched discographies of the cream of Free Jazz Artists who got their starts in the creative ferment that was the 1960s. Visionary performers, both deceased (bassist David Izenzon, drummer Ed Blackwell, saxophonist Frank Wright) and those very much alive, such as violinist Billy Bang, percussionist Milford Graves, vocalist Sheila Jordan, trombonist Roswell Rudd and bassist/synthesizer player Alan Silva), are given the encyclopedic treatment they deserve. Includes links to even more musicians who were associated with those covered here. |
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Home base for this rapidly-growing, annual Ontario festival that takes place every September. Based in a small university town near Toronto, the GJF has a broad definition of jazz, but falls more into the improv, rather than the mainstream camp. Particularly valuable to keep track of what festival-oriented activities are taking place during the year. Provides links to many academically oriented jazz pages. |
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Focusing on Free Jazz and Free Improv, this site is stronger on CD catalogues and pictures than analysis and information, but it does offer a glimpse into the thinking of committed outside music purveyors. (In French) |
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Based in Zürich, Switzerland, but with a world-wide reach, Intakt Records was founded in 1986 to initially release CDs by pianist Irène Schweizer. Since that time its catalogue has grown and now includes discs by pioneering American Free Musicians such as Anthony Braxton, Oliver Lake and Cecil Taylor, more diffuse experimenters such as Elliott Sharp and Christian Marclay, and, of course, European players such as Han Koch, Pierre Favre, Joëlle Léandre and Alexander Von Schlippenbach. Intakt also distributes the discs of Maya Records, run by Barry Guy and Maya Homburger. |
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A bilingual (Italian and English) site that is the centrepiece for information on Italy's jazz scene, which is one of the world's most extensive, yet little known. The site offers musicians' bios, which are often updated, pointers to many Italian record companies, lists of local festivals and clubs and links to more Italian jazz sites. |
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Hotbed of all sorts of unusual music, Japan and its music fans fervently follow local and overseas improvised musicians as well. This expansive site not only provides biographies of many of the most important native improv players and groups, but itemizes Japanese independent labels as well as upcoming concerts outside Japan by local musicians. Many of the musicians not yet included here can be reached through the page's impressive list of links. |
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Site of the professional organization for those people who write about the music, complete with association business sections. However Jazzhouse also offers fan resources. Included are reprints of articles and photographs, lists of awards, enumeration of musicians' birth and death dates, different message boards, plus bulletin boards and links. One downside: musical downloads only lead to an MP3 link page. A section entitled Out Posts mostly deals with San Francisco, pointing out the Manhattan-centric nature of the site. |
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France's venerable (since 1954) monthly publication has a multi-faceted site that magazines in other countries should envy and copy. The basic table of contents includes such highlights as news, Paris performance info, music reviews, interviews, a gallery, a site of the month, games (!), ads and info related to Jazz's current issue and its annuals. Extensive links include such topics as Vie de Jazz, with bios, think pieces, homages and individual subject studies. Another page offers a rendering of the covers of the magazine's first 500 issues. In addition, each screen features the full color reproduction of an abstract painting created by an artist as he was listening to different musicians. |
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This Philadelphia, Pa.-based page has downsized its coverage in recent years. But it's still valuable for its almost daily updating of upcoming jazz concerts and night club gigs in "The City of Brotherly Love". |
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Jazz Record Mart /Delmark Records Home base for the Jazz Record Mart, North America's (if not the world's) largest specialist jazz and blues record store and its affiliated Delmark label. Most useful if you want to know what's available at the store in Chicago or what new releases are out from Delmark. A few articles about blues and jazz are appended along with a good selection of links. Randomly updated. |
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Describing itself as America's Jazz Magazine, this maintream-oriented publication tries to be all things to all people. That is, it's as likely to give space to Spyro Gyra as Art Tatum and highlights Dee Dee Bridgewater as well as Charles Mingus. The page replicates in shorter form many of the magazine's features, includimg news, disc reviews, live reviews, columns and even contests. For the Web page, it has added a discussion page, promises audio samples. Most impressively, can append the sound of the discussed selection to its popular Before And After (i.e. blindfold) test of different musicians. |
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One of improvised music most accomplished bassists, France's Joëlle Léandre has spent more than 30 years giving solo concerts plus playing and recording with new partners or old friends who are the cream of the international improv scene. Her Web site offers a selected discography, biography, media reviews and articles plus a concert schedule outlining upcoming gigs. |
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One of Chicago’s – and perhaps the world’s – most prolific jazz men, reedist Ken Vandermark always appears to be traveling somewhere and just as often plays in unfamiliar surroundings with new partners. A modest, well-informed player, this constantly updated blog charts his travels, recordings and opinions. |
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An association of the most cutting edge or, if you prefer, farthest out of British musicians who include forms of improv jazz, improv rock, improv ethnic and even improv classical in the group. The site includes a monthly calendar, articles from the LMC's publication, information on improvisation in general and links. |
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Michael Fitzgerald (jazz research) Looking for a history of the jazz clarinet, a biography on 1950s composer/arranger Gigi Gryce, a list of the LPs put out by ESP-Disk or a list of musicians' pseudonyms? Well, this is the place to go. Fitzgerald, a music teacher and researcher, has interests that range across the history of jazz. He and his contributors have collected a fascinating collection of links that contain a wealth of information -- some of which you may wonder how you've not known beforehand. |
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Jazz's primary multi-CD reissue label, Mosaic records are only available by mail order and this site offers a look at what it has to offer. With an interface that features a new CD each time Home is pressed, it also highlights details on the sessions, releases in preperation and a photo gallery. |
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Canadian-based, this music publication is published quarterly and tries to cover experimental music throughout the world. More oriented towards more print sales than stand alone information, the site includes some online articles and excerpts from that issue's associated CD. Valuable links, including one to the Music Gallery, Toronto's showcase for performers who work outside the margins in the composed and improvised music areas. |
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A bilingual (English and French) site dedicated to the activities of musicians associated with Montreal’s Ambiance Magnétiques label and others distributed by it in Québec’s burgeoning musiques actuelle scene. Good if somewhat idiosyncratic links. |
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Nagual Music and Gerry Hemmingway The model of what a musician's personal page should contain. Not only does the site highlight the composer/percussionist's work, including sections where you can purchase his scores and recordings, but the different bands and musicians with which he works are featured. He also supplies an extensive discography and a frequently-updated performance schedule. Also noteworthy is the links section. Besides including information on Hemingway's personal interests, articles and reviews of note, it also includes connections to the Web pages of many of the musicians with whom he performs, such as Ellery Eskelin and Mark Helias. |
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An ever shifting collection of articles and opinions about contemporary, so-called serious music, most of the articles are written by insiders. Luckily the informed discussion is rarely pedantic and appended readers’ comments keep the commentary honest. |
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A long-time presence on the New York scene, Steve Smith writes about so-called classical music for the New York Times, jazz and rock for TIME OUT New York and adds his thoughts on everything from baroque sounds to Heavy Metal [!] on his well-organized blog. |
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Now in its third incarnation after being maintained by Seth Tisue and the late Malachi Ritschler, Chicago-based Now Is, is the exemplar of how to run an informative and up-to-date city site. Webmaster Tushar Samant not only maintains a list of months-ahead Chicago out happenings, but provides additional music-oriented information for that city. Many links to other valuable city-specific and other sites. |
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Although One Final Note has run its course as a Web page after a seven-year-plus history, this link still stands to allow those interested to read its archives. Considering that many top-flight writers covered the performances and releases of most major improvised musicians, a wealth of untapped information is available for those with the time and inclination to search the site. |
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A self-consciously hip CD retail outlet — see name — now with branches in both New York's Lower East Side and Boston's Harvard Square. A good source for finding many so-called different discs that fall between the cracks at other, larger oulets such as electronica, contemporary classical and some jazz. But always compare its prices to those in other sources on this list. |
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One man's (Jason Gross) idea of what a music mag should be like. Essays, reviews and reportage covers a variety of outside and difficult music, with the greatest emphasis on post-rock and downtown New York jazz. Be warned: the writing can be inconsistent. |
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As interested in World Music and Rock is he is in Free Jazz, long-time Chicago Reader columnist Peter Margasak rarely lets an important Windy City musical happening pass without some comment on it in this blog. |
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Red Saunders Research Foundation This page is very model of what an obesssive fan's page should be like. It's organized by a group of serious musical scholars, including, among others, Robert L. Campbell, author of "The Earthly Recordings of Sun Ra", and musician/producer Billy Vera. Advancing the knowledge about the many only locally-famous musicians who worked in that city's clubs and recording studios during the two decades following The Second World War is its raison d'etre. It's named after a long-time Chicago drummer and bandleader from that time. Information about the likes of tenor saxophonist Tom Archia, (pre-Chess) Aristocrat records and the Four Blazes combo are just some of its finds. Many pages have Real Audio sound files. |
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Want to know about every session recorded by David S. Ware, Susie Ibarra, William Parker, Matthew Ship and many others? This is the place to go. Start with the Parker info then roam further. Frequently updated, packed with details and illustrated with excellent pictures. |
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This is home of the venerable ground-breaking California-based saxophone quartet, which has been involved in exploring the synthesis among Free Jazz, avant rock and notated New music since 1977. Besides the usual concert schedules, musician bios and related links, the site also outlines the activities of Rova-Arts, ROVA’s non-profit umbrella organization, which is involved with education as well as collaborating with and commissioning new works from both musicians and creative artists in related disciplines |
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Universal centre for all things Saturnian, the site is dedicated to the life and work of American composer Sun Ra (1914 - 1993). Primarily concerned with Ra, it contains articles, pictures, links and Robert Campbell's massive discography of Ra's multi-faceted recorded work. Also available are sections on Ra sidemen and other avant garde jazz musicians, concert listings, small record companies discographies and the like. Many links. |
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An outgrowth of New York alto saxophonist Tim Berne's own Screwgun label. This site offers information on the CDs available from Berne and his associates on Screwgun and other labels. It include a growing list of interviews with the musicians, a Berne-oriented performance schedule and even audio clips from the sessions. Musicians featured, besides Berne himself, include Michael Formanek, Craig Taborn and Marc Ducret. |
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Toronto's main venue dedicated creative improvised music; this small, slightly out-of-the-way performance space usually offers at least two sets of music nearly every day of the week. Unpretentious and usually for a very small cover charge – unless international artists are featured – this location in the city's Parkdale neighborhood is where you can follow the musical evolution of members of the Association of Improvising Musicians Toronto (AIMToronto) and others. |
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A practically exhaustive — if not exhausting — compendium of Lacy's life and work. This French site is dedicated to the late American-born, Paris-based soprano saxophonist and offers everything a fan could want. It includes an extensive discography of his work, published interviews, photos, sound samples, solo transcriptions and a schedule that pinpoints exactly where and when Lacy (1934 - 2004) performed during his long working life. |
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Toronto's venerable outside music performance space has moved from location to location over the years. Now in a temporary home it still manages to present contemporary concert music, experimental and free jazz, so-called ethnic music, electroacoustic and electronic styles plus work involving mixed or experimental media. For years its house band included poet Paul Dutton, pianist/visual artist Michael Snow and saxophonist/sound manipulator John Oswald. This bare bones site contains a calendar of upcoming performances, downloadable audio files and details of its weekly FM radio show. |
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Supported by John Zorn and curated by different musicians each month, this tiny (60-seat) Manhattan club serves up music that’s as POMO and eclectic as Zorn’s oeuvre, making it ground zero for improv in the city |
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Now that Chicago tenor saxophonist Fred Anderson has moved his legendary South Side club to a new, and slightly less grotty location this bare-bones site has expanded as well. Besides a calendar of upcoming performances and pictures of musicians who regularly play at the Lounge, there are MP3 files of Anderson’s playing plus a collection of good, Chicago, as well as Lounge-related links. |
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Canada's premier avant garde music mail-order service, the site lists every piece of product — mostly CDs and books — available at that time through the business based in Uxbridge, Ontario, near Toronto. |
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Heading into its sixth year, this New York-based late Spring festival has set itself up as an alternative to the increasingly commercialized, big name semi-jazz festivals that proliferate in North America. A link between the New Thing survivors from the 1960s, forward-thinkers from New York's Lower East Sider and Europeans who make up an increasing part of the music. Centre of it all is bassist William Parker, who seems to be on every other avant garde recording, and his wife, dancer Patricia Nicholson. Recently the Vision-aires behind the festival have begun presenting concerts at other times during the year. Good links. |
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Not strictly a jazz magazine, this British publication negotiates a meandering line between jazz, new classical, post-rock, improv and electronica. If it isn't mainstream — a tricky concept at best — The Wire is for it. Although the site is rganized to promote issue sales and Wire-sponsored concerts, some valuable information is still on the site itself. Its news section includes upcoming concerts throughout the world and its Web-only section preserves some out-of-print interesting articles and interviews. There are also sound and video files. Its links include pointers to artists, festivals, labels and even non-musical content. But still, pure jazz content in both the magazine and on the site has reduced over the years. |