Journal
- Friday, November 22, 2024
The Way Out of Easy, the first album from guitarist Jeff Parker and his long-running ETA IVtet—saxophonist Josh Johnson, bassist Anna Butterss, drummer Jay Bellerose—since their 2022 debut Mondays at the Enfield Tennis Academy, which Pitchfork named one of the Best Albums of the 2020s So Far, is out now on International Anthem / Nonesuch Records. Like that album, The Way Out of Easy comprises recordings from LA venue ETA, where Parker and the ensemble held a weekly residency for seven years. During that time, the ETA IVtet evolved from a band that played mostly standards into a group known for its transcendent, long-form journeys into innovative, groove-oriented improvised music. All four tracks on The Way Out of Easy come from a single night in 2023, providing an unfiltered view of the ensemble, fully in their element.
Journal Topics: Album Release, Artist News
- Tuesday, February 9, 2010
The wait is over. The official line-up for the 2010 Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival in Manchester, Tennessee, has been announced. The festival will be held from Thursday, June 10, through Sunday, June 13, and among this year's artists are three Nonesuch groups: The Black Keys, Punch Brothers, and Carolina Chocolate Drops. All three groups will be on tour in the coming months.
Journal Topics: On Tour, Artist NewsTuesday, February 9, 2010Today is release day for Recollection, the first-ever career retrospective from k.d. lang. The four-disc deluxe edition includes favorites like "Constant Craving" and "Hallelujah," tracks never before on k.d.'s albums, previously unreleased tracks, and a DVD of music videos and TV appearances. The first 500 orders in the Nonesuch Store include a limited-edition, signed print of k.d. To celebrate the release, kdlang.com has been updated with a new look and new content spanning k.d.'s 25-year career.
Journal Topics: Album Release, WebTuesday, February 9, 2010Christina Courtin, having just completed a short tour with Josh Rouse, is now set to hit the road again for two weeks with Mike Doughty, the former front man of the band Soul Coughing. Courtin will join Doughty starting a week from Saturday, at Poor David's Pub in Dallas, Texas, on February 20, then head through the Southwest and into California, rounding things out at Slim's in San Francisco on March 6.
Journal Topics: On Tour, Artist NewsTuesday, February 9, 2010Ali Farka Touré and Toumani Diabaté's last album together, Ali and Toumani, was recently named CD of the Week by WNYC's Soundcheck and has received a stellar 8.3 on Pitchfork. The site says the album's recordings "are uncommonly beautiful," captured with "uncompromising intimacy," giving "the feel of two of the world's greatest musicians in a room together, having a conversation and creating a document that will carry their legacy into the future."
Journal Topics: ReviewsMonday, February 8, 2010Pat Metheny's Orchestrion tour continues to wind its way through Europe. In advance of a show at London's Barbican Hall in London, Pat spoke with the BBC Radio 3's Jazz Line-up and with Jazz FM about the album the Observer calls "extraordinary," with the music "gripping as usual." The Edmonton Journal gives the album 3 1/2 stars, citing Pat's "brilliant guitar playing."
Monday, February 8, 2010With one more day to go before the release of Recollection, the first-ever k.d. lang retrospective, the singer-songwriter is featured on NPR Music. Citing Tony Bennett, who compares her to Billie Holiday, Edith Piaf, and Hank Williams, NPR agrees: "It's prestigious company that k.d. lang deserves to keep." k.d. spoke with BBC Radio 4's Today and with the New Zealand Herald, which states: "The words 'true professional' should only be applied to a handful of people in the music business. And k.d. lang is one of them."
Journal Topics: Artist News, RadioMonday, February 8, 2010Mardi Gras has come early in New Orleans as the city celebrates the Saints Super Bowl victory over the Indianapolis Colts. To mark the team's first-ever Super Bowl win and the final score of 31-17, the Nonesuch Store is taking 31% off the list price of The Bright Mississippi, New Orleans native Allen Toussaint's ode to the city's rich jazz heritage, on CD and vinyl.
Journal Topics: Artist NewsFriday, February 5, 2010The Magnetic Fields cross into Canada ... Carolina Chocolate Drops close out UK tour ... Christina Courtin opens for Josh Rouse in NYC, Philly ... Bill Frisell unveils his Baghdad/Seattle Suite in Minneapolis ... Richard Goode, Jonathan Biss give duo recital in Boston ... Kronos performs in Chicago, New Jersey ... The Low Anthem continues European tour ... Brad Mehldau goes solo at Harvard ... Pat Metheny sets up in Scandinavia ... Punch Brothers play benefit in LA ... Joshua Redman's James Farm plays Istanbul, Milan ... Sara Watkins winds down UK tour ... Wilco kicks off world tour in Montana ... and more ...
Journal Topics: On Tour, Reviews, Weekend EventsFriday, February 5, 2010David Byrne and Fatboy Slim have paired up for Here Lies Love, a 22-track song cycle about the life of former First Lady of the Philippines Imelda Marcos. Due April 6, the album includes two CDs, a DVD, and a 100-page book detailing the project. In addition to Byrne and Fatboy Slim, Here Lies Love features performances by Santigold, Florence Welch (Florence + The Machine), Sia, Steve Earle, St. Vincent, Natalie Merchant, Tori Amos, Sharon Jones, Nicole Atkins, and many others.
Journal Topics: Album ReleaseFriday, February 5, 2010Kronos Quartet performs at the McAninch Arts Center outside Chicago tonight. On the program are pieces from the group's latest release, Floodplain, including Aleksandra Vrebalov's ... hold me, neighbor, in this storm ..., which the Seattle Weekly recently called a "compelling, emotionally far-ranging tone poem." The A.V. Club Chicago spoke with Kronos's David Harrington about introducing audiences to new sounds. "The things that we do," he says, "are, hopefully, the beginnings of explorations for other people."
Journal Topics: On TourThursday, February 4, 2010The Low Anthem's European tour continues through next week. In a recent performance, says The Guardian, the band gave "a real barn-burner, swapping instruments with giddy abandon, and rattling through a set-list that swayed between tender, harmonious folk songs and ramshackle rock 'n' roll with sweaty, unstudied authenticity." The paper profiles the group and examines its success at respecting the past while creating something new.
Journal Topics: On TourThursday, February 4, 2010Tune in to Soundstage on PBS stations across the country, starting tonight, to catch Emmylou Harris, Shawn Colvin, Patty Griffin, and Buddy Miller in an in-the-round performance of their touring team, Three Girls and Their Buddy. The set list includes songs like Colvin's "Polaroids" and Harris's "Michelangelo," "Hold On," and "Love and Hapiness," the last of which you can watch online in a video preview of the episode at pbs.org.
Journal Topics: Television