Review: Hidefumi Toki's 1975 album Toki offers a deeply personal journey into the realms of jazz, showcasing his expressive prowess on alto and soprano saxophones. Backed by a stellar quartet including Kazumi Watanabe on guitar, Nobuyoshi Ino on bass, and Steve Jackson on drums, Toki creates a stunning sonic landscape filled with gentle, raspy tones. The album's ambiance is laidback and mellow, yet infused with a profound sense of spiritual depth reminiscent of Coltrane's work. Original compositions like 'Darkness' and 'Lullaby For The Girl' captivate with their introspective beauty, while soulful renditions of classics such as 'When Sunny Gets Blue' and Ornette Coleman's 'Blues' further showcase Toki's emotive storytelling through his saxophone. Toki's ability to convey immense depth and emotion within a stripped-down setting, makes it a must-listen for fans of spiritual jazz.
Review: Japanese prodigy Ino Hidefumi has completed Memories, his ninth original album here after following his unique journey at his own pace. Crafted entirely in his home studio, the album features his stripped-down compositions and distinctive voice after many years of writing songs but never actually singing on them himself. Shared with the world from his bedroom, the music's simplicity, its careful use of space within the ensemble, and the soothing electric piano create a captivating sound. This latest work captures a fresh, unfiltered essence while also conveying the artist's unwavering strength and sharpness as he continues to evolve his musical expression.
Review: Inocology by master pianist Ino Hidefumi is one of many great examples of his unique blend of jazz, funk, and soul and it brims with the Japanese artist's signature laid-back style. The album features mellow grooves, smooth basslines, and warm, analogue synths that are both nostalgic yet timeless. Tracks like 'Ants Funeral Procession' and 'Space Butterfly' are standout highlights of his skilful fusion of genres that blend organic instrumentation with deft electronic touches. this is one of the prodigy's many great albums and is denied by its relaxed tempo and soothing melodies so it is a perfect soundtrack for unwinding into a dreamy, soulful world.
Review: Japanese jazz quintet (and over the course of their whole career, sextet) Hideo Shiraki Quintet centred on the namesake of the central jazz drummer, whose chops on the drums were matched by few. First released in 1962, 'Plays Horace Silver' hears the band work through several of the late great New York jazz composer's best standards, including 'Senor Blues', 'Preacher' and 'Filthy McNasty', in what could be described as a flamming, flauting, tambourine dream.
Review: Jamaican-born, Maryland resident Hiero announces his talent with a debtor EP that offers a hazy and lo-fi trip into hip-hop beats and wavy grooves. It is seductive and sublime, stylish and effortless in its blurred lines and imperfect drums, with guest appearances from the always on form West London-based MC Lord Apex, plus XXL Freshmen and Interscope Records' artist Charles Hamilton. These are warm and organic sketches that suit backyard BBQs, lazy smoking sessions on the sofa and plenty of emotive situations in between. We already can't wait to hear more from this man.
Review: Jamal Moss aka Hieroglyphic Being is one of the most fearless experimentalists in house and techno. He confronts dancefloor disillusionment head-on with Dance Music 4 Bad People, his raw, uncompromising debut for Smalltown Supersound. A veteran of Chicago's club scene, Moss channels four decades of history, highs, lows and trauma into an album that defies escapism. These are not crowd-pleasers but cathartic confrontations dense with abrasive synths, molten drum loops and uneasy textures which all crash together in chaotic, transcendent layers. There's no clean resolution anywhere, instead just tension, dissonance and moments of stark beauty. Far from a nostalgic Windy City love-in, Moss' music reflects a dance culture in crisis and provides a place to rage against it.
There Is No Acid In This House (Just Emotions Rmx) (6:24)
Dogs Don't Wear Pants (4:45)
Review: Chicago extraordinaire Jamal Moss aka Hieroglyphic Being's third solo album is titled There Is No Acid In This House, and sees him return to Soul Jazz Records. Using his idiosyncratic electronic sound, Moss takes influence from the experimental minds of fellow Windy City innovators such as The Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians, The Art Ensemble of Chicago and Sun Ra, through to icons of his hometown's house music scene like Ron Hardy, Marshall Jefferson, Lil Louis and others who have defined Chicago's musical universe over the last half a century.
No Matter How Far We Are, We Can Always Share The Moon & Stars
Purple Skies With Cotton Candy
An Eternal Star Beyond The Firmament
Helium Three
Mawu
Review: The inimitable Jamal Moss comes forth with his second offering for Madrid's Apnea records. 'The Moon Dance' unfurls over 11 tracks- in turns pensive, elegiac, and slammin'. Between the sedate expanse of opener 'When The Earths Shadow Falls On The Moon' and the final cymbal strokes of gauche, machine funk closer 'Mawu', Moss lifts us on yet another Afrofuturist space flight of fancy, passing through superclusters of deep house, tactile techno and stroboscopic piano jams along the way.
Standout moments include the smoove-as-u-like-it intergalactic lounge jazz diversion 'The Moondance Moon Walk Version'; its steezy stride-piano vamp seamlessly intertwining with Moss' signature babbling acid intrusions, the irresistibly groovy bump of 'Tethered 2 The Divinely Spaces With In' and the hypnotic sway of 'Celestial Poems Of The Lady With 10000 Names', which opens up from Terrence Dixon-esque introspection into broad windy city string washes and synapse-tickling bleeps. With this collection, Moss pens yet another crucial chapter in the seemingly bottomless hieroglyphic being scroll. While 'The Moon Dance' is one of his most accessible and harmonious works to date, it doesn't lose an ounce of the rawness and immediacy of his previous work. Essential listening!
Review: Hats off to Jamal Moss for the tongue-in-cheek title of his latest album as Hieroglyphic being, which is naturally another pleasingly wild, freewheeling, imaginative and out-there excursion in his now trademark style. It sees him sprint between mutant electronic jazz ('Circumploar'), out-there analogue techno ('21 Days'), organ-rich post-beatdown chuggers ('Foreboding Self Pleasure'), reverb-laden ambient soundscapes ('A Dream Within a Dream', 'Delta Opus L'), industrial-strength dancefloor weirdness ('The Prograde Direction'), sub-heavy lo-fi deep house ('Black Love On An Early Sunday Morning'), sparse electronic future funk ('Future Shocked'), and jacking, sci-fi seeped brilliance ('The Andromeda Strain'). In other words, it's another excellent collection from one of dance music's genuine geniuses.
Pep Love & Jay Biz - "Every Day Of The Week" (2:50)
Tajai & Extra Prolific - "Let It Ride" (4:09)
Souls Of Mischief - "Step To My Girl" (4:08)
Casual - "Where They At?" (3:12)
Del - "Nowadays" (3:11)
Pep Love & Jay Biz - "Reckless/Hush" (7:54)
Review: Hiero Oldies is a collection of early works from the Hieroglyphics crew. It takes in a crack team of beat makers such as Del The Funkyhomosapien, Casual, Pep Love, and Souls of Mischief and marks the first time the timeless tune 'Step To My Girl' has ever been on wax. Oakland-based Hieroglyphics crew might not have the headlines of some of their peers but they sure have made a valued contribution to underground rap over the years as this collection proves with its freestyle rhymes, battle verses and often psyched-out beats.
Review: While he enjoyed a brief career as a musician in the 1960s, by the time he recorded debut album "Down On The Road By The Beach" in 1983 Steve Hiett was better known as one of the world's leading fashion photographers. In fact, it was at the suggestion of a Japanese gallery owner that he got back in the studio to record what has long been regarded as an impossible-to-find Balearic gem. Hiett's reverb and delay-laden Peter Green style guitar passages take centre stage throughout, winding in and out of languid grooves and ambient electronics to create what some have called "the ultimate desert island disc" - a record of such lazy, sun-kissed beauty that it sounds tailor made for drowsy days waking up on the beach.
Review: Disco bossmen HiFi Sean and David McAlmont return with their new album, Daylight, on Plastique Recordings and a fine one it is too to follow up their acclaimed 2023 debut, Happy Ending. Daylight features twelve exhilarating tracks that celebrate the essence of summer and do a good job of capturing its vibrant colours and joyous moods. This is the first of two albums from the duo in 2024, with the nocturnal counterpart, Twilight, set for release on December 1 and therefore likely to be a celebration of the moods of winter. In the meantime, your days will be long and bright and full of dancing with this one.
Review: Former Soup Dragons man Hifi Sean (real name Sean Dickson) seems to have found a musical soulmate in David McAlmont. The pair have already impressed via a pair of well-regarded albums and here drop a third collaborative full-length - barely six months after its predecessor, Daylight, appeared in stores. Designed as a kind of flip side to that set - a loosely conceptual musical night drive from dusk 'til dawn - Twilight cannily combines slow, soft-touch grooves, dreamy textures, bubbly electronics, strobe-lit synths and McAlmont's honeyed vocals to great effect. The plentiful highlights include Blessed Madonna collaboration 'The Comedown', the tactile bliss of 'Goodbye Drama Queen', the huggable wooziness of 'High With You' and the heartfelt sweep of 'Star'.
Review: Six months after dropping their second collaborative full-length excursion, Daylight, HiFi Sean and David McAlmont deliver the yang to that set's ying - the loosely conceptual dusk-til-dawn night drive that is Twilight. More synth-heavy and strobe-lit than its predecessor, the album sees the effortlessly soulful McAlmont add his honeyed vocals to backing tracks rich in soft-touch grooves, dreamy textures, bubbly electronics and strobe-lit melodic motifs. This limited, deluxe edition is the one to grab if you can; aside from being pressed to colourful purple vinyl, it also comes bundled with a single-track seven-inch flexi-disc (containing a fine alternate dub mix of 'Driftaway') and an autographed art print.
Review: HiFi Sean and David McAlmont's latest collaboration, Daylight, delivers another dose of upbeat, soulful and danceable tunes on the follow up to their acclaimed debut, Happy Ending. The first of two releases from the duo this year, with the companion album, Twilight, set for release in December, Daylight is a vibrant journey through 12 songs that celebrate the colors and feel of summer. The duo's chemistry shines through as they explore themes of joy and exploration, and fans can anticipate a deluxe limited 'Neon Orange' Vinyl Edition featuring a free orange flexi-disc, signed art print and downloadable lyric book.
Review: Guitarist and composer Patrick Higgins moves out of his comfort zone for a high concept record that pushes boundaries in many directions. As emotionally charged as it is expansive, the title track itself premiered at Monom Studios, Berlin, on a 75 surround speaker setup, giving some idea as to how bold and high spec the ideas are behind the collection as a whole. Versus has plenty of fingers on live instrumentation, but it's also concerned with totems of electronic production - the seamless interweaving of musical textures and layers, free improvisation and an appreciation for bridging styles within and between tracks themselves. Avant garde, ambient, experimental, and installation-worthy stuff from a true great, these are less tracks and more sonic moments contributing to a wider, singular work that's good enough to fully immerse you.
Review: Since launching two years ago, Tony Higgins and Mike Peden's J-Jazz series has become an indispensable guide to Japan's modern jazz scene. The third volume continues in a similar vein to its predecessors, gathering together sought-after, overlooked and little-known cuts from across the jazz spectrum (think spiritual, modal, fusion, post-bop and Latin), all of which were recorded by Japanese artists in the 1960s, '70s and '80s. The standard of music is, somewhat predictably, breathtakingly high throughout, with highlights including the weighty post-modal bop of Koshuke Mine's 'Morning Tide', the sun-kissed Brazil-inspired brilliance of Hideo Shiraki's 'Groovy Samba', and a string of funk-fuelled, dancefloor-friendly workouts from Hiroshi Murakami & Dancing Sphynx, Shigeharu Muka and the Ryojiro Furusawa Quartet.
Terumasa Hino Meets Reggie Workman - "Ode To Workman" (15:20)
Review: BBE latest "deep dive" into a widely underappreciated style focuses on a particularly fertile period in the history of Japan's "contemporary jazz" scene. Curated by renowned Japanese jazz diggers Tony Higgins and Mike Peden, J-Jazz focuses on material recorded and released between 1969 and '84, a period the label says represents a "golden age" for jazz in Japan. The compilation is both a serious history lesson and hugely enjoyable to listen to, featuring a mixture of U.S-influenced jazz-funk, fusion, post-modal and deep, spiritual improvisations. Naturally, all of the material has never been released outside of Japan before, with the vast majority of tracks being either ludicrously rare or sought-after. Simply essential, all told.
Review: It's been a massive 2024 for chamber pop heroes The High Llamas. There's been nothing but crickets since 2016's Here Come The Rattling Trees. Now all-of-a-sudden they're creating queues at the pressing plant with six newly-printed albums released via the Drag City label. In addition to releasing one of the best albums of their oeuvre with their new album, Hey Panada, they're releasing all five of their out of print 90s albums. Of which this album, originally released in 1998, is them experiment with beats and synth and splicing that into their harmonic Beach Boys-esque DNA. It's an album that radiates with blissed-out psychedelia and playful musical contrasts and lush harmony. You can't go wrong here.
Review: Avant pop icons The High Llamas' founder Sean O'Hagan put his band on the back burner for a bit recently but by no means stood still. He's kept busy with his work as a film composer and arranger, even doing the score for Owen Kline's film, Funny Pages. But 2024 has seen a resurgence: the first High Llamas album since 2016 was released released and it was followed by a huge reissue announcement. Drag City is reissuing their five out of print 90s album on vinyl and Snowbug is the underdog within the collection but an underrated gem. It's O'Hagan's take on all manner of world-folk, 60s Ethiopian music and classic Brazilian pop. O'Hagan, who is a recording member of Stereolab, had an impressive cast of top players join in for the sessions. However, guest vocalists Laetitia Sadier and Mary Hansen from Stereolab are particularly noteworthy, bringing a bit of voodoo to the breezy morning-after vibe.
Reflections In A Plastic Glass (3 Point remix) (5:05)
Review: Originally released in 1998 this remix showcases some of the most creative digital music masters of the day: Mouse On Mars, Jim O'Rourke, Kid Loco, Schneider TM, Stock, Hausen & Walkman, Cornelius and The High Llamas themselves. Whilst the influence of the Beach Boys on Sean O'Hagan's band is well documented, less is noted about the influence of Krautrock on them. This album serves to highlight that aspect of their sound. The Schneider TM remix is particularly exciting as no one quite sounds like Schneider - he brings a dark tone and makes beats in unorthodox ways that sound entirely original and hypnotic. It's also great to see experimentalist Jim O'Rourke on here - he and O'Hagan have contributed to a Stereolab album together and maintain their fertile creative kinship. Cornelius' remix of 'Homespin rerun', meanwhile, goes in an exotica direction and brings a lot of energy to the table, whilst keeping things left-field and off-kilter.
Review: Hawaii, released in 1996 by The High Llamas, is a celebrated album that showcases Sean O'Hagan's intricate arrangements and homage to the lush sounds of Brian Wilson and The Beach Boys. This deep dive reveals O'Hagan's journey from his early days in Microdisney to forming The High Llamas, highlighting albums like Santa Barbara and Gideon Gaye. Hawaii features 29 tracks blending Moog, banjo, strings, and brass, creating a musical paradise. It recapturing the charm of the 60s pop era, with The Irish Times describing it as a tribute to when popular music was genuinely popular. Despite being somewhat elusive on vinyl, the album still managed to breach the UK Albums Chart, landing at No. 62. O'Hagan's influences from various genres, including orchestral pop and exotic sounds, are apparent, as he sought to push musical boundaries and create something fresh, setting the stage for a rich legacy in modern pop music. This reissue makes this impressive release available again.
Review: Arriving almost six years on from their Grammy Award-winning eighth full-length Electric Messiah, Oakland, California stoner-sludge behemoths High On Fire return with the highly anticipated Cometh The Storm. Plumbing the depths of post-COVID woes, the increasing proverbial fire of the world at large, and our brittle purpose within the cosmos, these long-gestating beastly cuts offer up some of the most heaving tonal bedlam the trio have delivered in well over a decade, whilst simultaneously operating as their most sonically daring and expansive chapter yet by tapping into middle-Eastern influences and utilising Turkish instruments to craft a worldly, encompassing sense of global dread. When you absolutely, positively, require some of the most grooving, hefty, nihilistic sludge/stoner/doom available, you're always in luck when High On Fire rear their Cerberus heads.
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