VIJAY IYER | CRAIG TABORN — The Transitory Poems (2019) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Despite distinctive individual approaches to composition and improvisation, jazz pianists Vijay Iyer and Craig Taborn are kindred spirits. They are celebrated as innovators and stylists, are approximately the same age, and most importantly, share an important foundational experience playing in Roscoe Mitchell's Note Factory together in the early years of the century, recording the album Song for My Sister.

Transitory Poems documents a 2018 live concert at the Franz Liszt Academy in Budapest. In his brief liner notes, Iyer states that they documented their performance in the aftermath of a 12-month period that saw the passing of pianists Cecil Taylor, Muhal Richard Abrams, and Geri Allen, and the cosmological abstract expressionist painter and sculptor Jack Whitten, whose work was deeply influenced by John Coltrane. The title of the album comes from an interview quote by Taylor. Opener "Life Line (Seven Tensions)" is a 13-minute exercise in flow that reveals without doubt that the two men are not merely "jamming," but spontaneously composing together. In varying shades of light and dark they interact with adroit single lines and contrapuntal chord voicings as they engage in everything from modern classical music to speculative moments of inquiring repose and angular boogie-woogie. "Sensorium," dedicated to Whitten, is a short, four-minute work that layers fleet counterpoint in abstraction in a manner that evokes the ghost trace of the artist whose signature method was the immediate yet systemic way he layered acrylic paint. "Kairos" downshifts, examining the sparsity of sound as it intersects with silence, with insertions of precise melodic interpolation that eventually claim the fore as tight rhythmic chords entwine in a dance that unfurls in narrative space. "S.H.A.R.D.S." begins similarly, but gradually engages jazz motivics and sharp rhythmic statements to unfurl in a whirlwind of four-handed playing alongside a bluesy Motorik pulse. The final three works are all dedications. "Clear Monolith" for Abrams is nearly 11 minutes and commences with sparse staccato statements in lower and upper registers simultaneously with minimal, bell-like responses on single keys. In the middle section, animated movement asserts chorded tonal inquiry balanced by crystalline space. "Luminous Brew" is dedicated to Taylor and emerges as if it has always been there. The deep register of the bass keys rumble ominously as open modal chords add dimensionality to their voice. Flitting moments of ragtime and Ellingtonia and are woven into the forceful yet elegant unfolding as chromatics and expanded harmonics create a mysterious homage. Closer "Meshwork/Libation/When Kabuya Dances," dedicated to Allen, asserts itself with articulate force and contrapuntal energy as stacked arpeggios meet precise bass notes and chords before erecting a galloping call and response that slowly evaporates as it introduces Allen's shimmering, tender, playful "When Kabuya Dances." Transitory Poems is a wonderful recording. The energy, ideas, and instinctive musicality of Iyer and Taborn is full of surprises, canny camaraderie, deft techniques, understatement, and symbiotic difference; they combine to add immeasurably to the all-too-slim catalog of duo albums in the jazz piano tradition.
-> This comment is posted on Allmusic by Thom Jurek, follower of our blog 'O Púbis da Rosa' <-
Tracklist :
1    Life Line (Seven Tensions) 13:02
Composed By – Craig Taborn, Vijay Iyer
2    Sensorium 4:17
Composed By – Craig Taborn, Vijay Iyer
3    Kairòs 8:56
Composed By – Craig Taborn, Vijay Iyer
4    S.H.A.R.D.S. 9:11
Composed By – Craig Taborn, Vijay Iyer
5    Shake Down 6:40
Composed By – Craig Taborn, Vijay Iyer
6    Clear Monolith 10:46
Composed By – Craig Taborn, Vijay Iyer
7    Luminous Brew 8:17
Composed By – Craig Taborn, Vijay Iyer
Meshwork / Libation / When Kabuya Dances    (12:48)
8.1    Meshwork
Composed By – Vijay Iyer, Craig Taborn
8.2    Libation
Composed By – Vijay Iyer, Craig Taborn
8.3    When Kabuya Dances
Composed By – Geri Allen
Credits :
Piano – Craig Taborn, Vijay Iyer
Producer [Produced By] – Manfred Eicher

CRAIG TABORN — Craig Taborn Trio (1994) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Craig Taborn's recorded debut as a leader showcases the talented pianist in a variety of settings ranging from post-bop and hard bop to free jazz and avant-garde jazz, with bassist Jaribu Shahid and drummer Tani Tabbal providing strong support throughout the sessions. Taborn's furious opener is "David the Goliath," a turbulent number that blends a driving post-bop attack with an occasionally exotic Middle Eastern flavor. The pianist's "Uproot" is reminiscent of the flights of Cecil Taylor. He also delves into less familiar works by jazz giants, including Ornette Coleman's quirky "Compassion," Horace Silver's relaxing "Shirl," and a jaunty interpretation of John Coltrane's "Bass Blues," the latter showcasing Shahid. Ken Dryden
Tracklist :
1    David The Goliath    4:01
Composed By – Craig Taborn
2    Compassion 7:02
Composed By – Ornette Coleman

3    Scar 6:07
Composed By – Andrew Dahlke
4    A Man Of Action    5:26
Composed By – Craig Taborn
5    Shirl 5:26
Composed By – Horace Silver
6    Over The Water    5:45
Composed By – Craig Taborn
7    The Temple    4:20
Composed By – Craig Taborn
8    Bass Blues 5:34
Composed By – John Coltrane
9    The Soul Of Grace    6:31
Composed By – Craig Taborn
10    Uproot    5:31
Composed By – Craig Taborn
Credits :
Bass – Jaribu Shahid
Drums – Tani Tabbal
Piano – Craig Taborn

EVAN PARKER | TRANSATLANTIC ART ENSEMBLE - Boustrophedon (2008) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Boustrophedon (In Six Furrows) was recorded in Munich during September of 2004 -- immediately following the night Roscoe Mitchell recorded Composition/Improvisation Nos. 1, 2 & 3. What the two recordings have in common is that they were both created using a transatlantic group of musicians, some of whom played on both dates. This disc was conceived as its counterpart. The group here is an interesting one: it consists of Evan Parker and his longtime mates and partners in crime Paul Lytton, Barry Guy, Philipp Wachsmann, and John Rangecroft. It also features Mitchell and his brilliant Note Factory quartet with Craig Taborn, Tani Tabbal, and Jaribu Shahid, with other friends such as Anders Svanoe, Neil Metcalfe, Corey Wilkes, Nils Bultmann, and Marcio Mattos -- all told, a 14-piece orchestra. Parker, who composed this music and conducts, is featured here on soprano. Like Mitchell's offering, this is a music based on strategies, as the title would suggest. Boustrophedon is a Greek word meaning "turning like an ox while plowing" -- hence, the word "furrows" in the title. In fact, Parker quotes a beautiful passage from Samuel Beckett's The Expelled that offers its own explanation by trying to count stairs adequately first by climbing up and then again when walking down. The music here moves in much the same way, with vertical ascent and descent according to innate scalar challenges and horizontally in both directions as well. Textural elements, tonal colors by the different combinations of contrasting players on any given track, drama, dynamic, and (of course) the degree of improvisation held within this manner of working all present numerous challenges as well as opportunities. This music is not jazz -- free or otherwise -- nor is it merely classical formalism or improvisation deconstruction. Instead, Parker's compositions are scored with the idea of bringing together, through his very European outlook, the different ways region, distance, cultural difference, and discipline combine to make something else: a new work that maintains an identity that is transcultural and trans-aesthetic. This is one work divided into six sections for easy CD programming (on LP this would never happen). Parker is more restrained, much more patient to let his lines and chromatic changes occur as they begin to appear, enhancing them with spirited improvisation that nonetheless leaves its edges at the door. It is as compelling as Mitchell's album, although very different. It is an exercise in musical mystery, chance, and opaque textures that get inside the listener and stay there a bit before moving on toward the next plateau.
-> This comment is posted on Allmusic by Thom Jurek, follower of our blog 'O Púbis da Rosa' <-
Boustrophedon (In Six Furrows)    
1    Overture    1:21
2    Furrow 1    8:09
3    Furrow 2    5:46
4    Furrow 3    11:07
5    Furrow 4    5:21
6    Furrow 5    8:20
7    Furrow 6    12:52
8    Finale    6:19
Credits :
Alto Saxophone – Anders Svanoe
Alto Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone – Roscoe Mitchell
Cello – Marcio Mattos
Clarinet – John Rangecroft
Double Bass – Barry Guy, Jaribu Shahid
Drums, Percussion – Paul Lytton, Tani Tabbal
Ensemble – The Transatlantic Art Ensemble
Flute – Neil Metcalfe
Piano – Craig Taborn
Recorded By – Manfred Eicher, Stefano Amerio
Soprano Saxophone, Music By – Evan Parker
Trumpet, Flugelhorn – Corey Wilkes
Viola – Nils Bultmann
Violin – Philipp Wachsmann

DAVE HOLLAND | EVAN PARKER | CRAIG TABORN and CHES SMITH - Uncharted Territories (2018) 2CD | FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Tracklist :
1-1    Thought On Earth    7:37
1-2    Piano - Bass - Percussion T1    5:47
1-3    Q&A    4:40
1-4    Tenor - Percussion W2    3:25
1-5    QT12    6:10
1-6    Tenor - Bass W3    2:44
1-7    QW2    8:17
1-8    Tenor - Piano - Bass T2    5:36
1-9    Organ - Vibes W1    6:14
1-10    Bass - Percussion T2    5:07
1-11    Tenor - Piano - Percussion T1    9:35
2-1    QT13    6:25
2-2    Tenor - Piano - Percussion T2    4:10
2-3    Piano - Percussion W3    5:01
2-4    QT5    6:54
2-5    Tenor - Bass W1    4:16
2-6    Piano - Bass - Percussion T2    5:37
2-7    Unsteady As She Goes    5:38
2-8    Bass - Percussion T1    6:03
2-9    QW5    2:26
2-10    Tenor - Bass - Percussion T1    5:18
2-11    Tenor - Bass W2    3:46
2-12    QW1    10:01
Credits :
Bass – Dave Holland
Composed By – Ches Smith (pistas: 1-1, 2-7), Dave Holland (pistas: 1-3)
Percussion – Ches Smith
Piano, Organ, Keyboards, Electronics – Craig Taborn
Tenor Saxophone [Tenor Sax] – Evan Parker

EVAN PARKER | CRAIG TABORN | SAM PLUTA | PETER EVANS - Rocket Science (2013) FLAC (tracks), lossless

Tracklist :
1    Fluid Dynamics    17:14
2    Life Support Systems    16:26
3    Flutter    12:54
4    Noise Control    10:59
Credits :
Computer [Laptop] – Sam Pluta
Mixed By, Mastered By – Sam Pluta
Piano – Craig Taborn
Tenor Saxophone, Soprano Saxophone – Evan Parker
Trumpet, Trumpet [Piccolo] – Peter Evans

CHES SMITH | CRAIG TABORN | MAT MANERI - The Bell (2016) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Despite appearing on more than 50 recordings since the beginning of the 21st century, drummer/percussionist Ches Smith has led only a handful of dates. His credits sprawl across the catalogs of indie rock acts such as Xiu Xiu, Mr. Bungle, and Carla Bozulich as well as modern jazz artists John Zorn, Marc Ribot, Wadada Leo Smith, and Mary Halvorson, and he's a member of Tim Berne's Snakeoil. (The saxophonist also plays in Smith's These Arches.) The Bell is his ECM debut as a leader. Smith chose pianist Craig Taborn and violist Mat Maneri as his companions into this foray of composition and improvisation. Taborn and Maneri have worked together before on the pianist's Junk Magic set for Thirsty Ear in 2004. Smith originally formed the group for a lone New York gig, but the collective language they discovered on-stage led him to write specifically for them in the studio. Produced by Manfred Eicher, The Bell is steeped in mystery but it is focused, cohesive, rife with risky maneuvers. Some pieces are more thoroughly composed than others, but it's difficult to know which. Smith, who plays timpani and vibraphone in addition to drums, is content as a member of the ensemble rather than its soloist/leader. The title track opener is, for most of its nine-and-a-half-minute length, nearly speculative. But Maneri's viola offers enough of a lyric frame for Taborn to build on with texturally engaging, pulsing chords. Smith's various instruments build a bridge inside this subtle, insistent tension-building force. The trio finally cuts loose in the final moments and delivers the full measure of surprise. "Isn't It Over?" offers the barest hint of a compositional guideline, revealing confidence in the group's intuition in a gradually ascendant trajectory along hairline harmonic lines. Their discourse blossoms in the final third amid dark, seductive rhythmic interplay. "I'll See You on the Dark Side of the Earth" is also initially deceptive. The first half is filled with angular questions posed by Maneri and Taborn before Smith, riding a striated rock beat, answers with declarative authority. The circular movement in "Wacken Open Air" offers a more poignant dialogue with fleet arpeggios from Taborn and cymbal dances from Smith. "It's Always Winter Somewhere" begins in ether yet quickly finds rotational movement via Taborn's left-hand bassline annotations and colorful upper-middle-register chord patterns. Smith's snare and hi-hat flourishes encourage and underscore Maneri's timbral staccato phrasing. The engagement with post-bop occurs between Taborn and Smith, but like everything else here, it's an elusive moment; it exists as simply another woven thread in The Bell's labyrinthine space. Though all three men are expansive improvisers, in this intimate environment they are masters at discovering and articulating melody no matter how marginal or tenuous the origins. The Bell is not only an auspicious beginning for Smith as a leader, but for the possibilities of this trio going forward.
>This comment is posted on Allmusic by Thom Jurek, follower of our blog 'O Púbis da Rosa'<
Tracklist :
1    The Bell 9'29
(Ches Smith)
2    Barely Intervallic 7'43
(Ches Smith)
3    Isn’t It Over? 13'11
(Ches Smith)
4    I'll See You On The Dark Side Of The Earth 10'47
(Ches Smith)
5    I Think 9'31
(Ches Smith)
6    Wacken Open Air 5'16
(Ches Smith)
7    It’s Always Winter Somewhere 5'32
(Ches Smith)
8    For Days 6'38
(Ches Smith)
Credits :
Ches Smith   Drums, Vibraphone, Timpani
Craig Taborn   Piano
Mat Maneri   Viola

DAVID TORN - Prezens (2007) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Prezens is the first recording guitarist and producer David Torn has recorded under his own name for ECM Records in the 21 years since his Cloud About Mercury was issued. His sonic explorations have always been at least as much an interest to him as his playing. As a result he has stretched to the limits of what the guitar can, or even perhaps should, do in realms where it sounded like he was playing anything but his chosen instrument. Most recently, Torn has performed in Tim Berne's Science Friction and Hard Cell ensembles and played with Drew Gress and Dave Douglas. Torn enlists Berne and the other members of his Science Friction band: keyboard wizard Craig Taborn and drummer Tom Rainey, minus guitarist Marc Ducret. The end result, while wildly adventurous and full of astonishing improvisations, is also full of some of Torn's most "inside" playing. The opener "AK" begins with a Frippertronics phrase hypnotically asserted by use of a digital delay before giving way to a mutational Delta blues riff, repeated endlessly before opening up to a kind of muted question mark phrase. Rainey's cymbals enter along with an extended line by Berne while Taborn digs into the B-3 with the guitar riff playing under the mix as a guide; the band takes off, exploring the edges of the open chord, never leaving its rhythmic pulse behind for long. Taborn's soloing is deep in the pocket, reminiscent of John Patton, and Berne begins to play all around the blues, his sense of time perfect. Rainey shuffles around them all, stuttering cymbals and snares. When Torn comes back in with the riff, it's a sick distorted mess worthy of a solid heavy metal intro and he layers a screaming minimal solo on top of that. Whoa! The brief "Rest and Unrest" with its spoken word vocal walks the line between Ali Farka Touré's guitar sound and Torn's own mitigated soundscape world once more echoing the blues.

Mutant synth lines and layered and stretched voices become a rhythmic interlude. "Structural Foundations of Prezens" begins with Berne blowing soft and low with a pulsing electronic sound behind him as Torn enters on both electric and acoustic guitars, manipulated of course to accent the atmospheric "ballad" until all hell breaks loose at just under seven minutes. Here Rainey's triple-timed drumming is sampled back as loops playing breaks and Torn and Berne interplaying with one another take the track into uncharted territory. Nothing is what it initially seems here. Each track begins as one thing and ends as quite another. Improvisation is at a premium, though all of it comes out of established heads: blues and other folk forms initiate proceedings and Torn deals out as much atmosphere as he does leadership in the directions he wants to go, which is why most of these cuts (all but four, actually) have co-writing credits. Check out "Sink" and "Neck Deep in the Harrow" for prime examples. The open spaces of "Even More Other" present music as an "other" to sonic manipulation, yet it all comes out structured somehow, tempered into a cohesive whole thanks to Rainey's big tom tom work. The slide acoustic guitar Torn uses on "Miss, Place, The Mist..." is Eastern in mode and both Rainey and Taborn treat it as such with distorted loops, sampled strings, and overdubbed slide lines as Berne enters and winds it all around at the nadir. The set concludes with "Transmit Regardless," which is a kind of anthem for this band in the sense that while Torn is listed as the leader, and there is no doubt about his mark as a creative director, this group plays like a band throughout, no matter how abstract and strange things get. Rock, jazz, electronica, formal sound sculpture and strategy are all woven into a wonderfully expansive collective mind of improvisation. Deep listening, careful attention, and willful abandon to the process of creation are all present in spades. Prezens is one of those recordings where free improvisation and composition find an uneasy but cooperative working relationship making for one compelling listen after another.
(This comment is posted on Allmusic by Thom Jurek, follower of our blog 'O Púbis da Rosa')
Tracklist :
1    Ak 9'19
Composed By – Taborn, Torn, Berne, Rainey
2    Rest & Unrest 3'44
Composed By – Torn
3    Structural Functions Of Prezens 10'56
Composed By – Taborn, Torn, Berne, Rainey
4    Bulbs 6'18
Composed By – Taborn, Torn, Berne, Rainey
5    Them Buried Standing 2'43
Composed By – Torn
6    Sink 7'14
Composed By – Taborn, Torn, Berne, Rainey
7    Neck-Deep In The Harrow... 12'32
Composed By – Taborn, Torn, Berne, Rainey
8    Ever More Other 4'12
Composed By – Torn
9    Ring For Endless Travel 2'23
Composed By – Torn
10    Miss Place, The Mist... 5'45
Composed By – Torn, Chamberlain
11    Transmit Regardless 7'20
Composed By – Taborn, Torn, Berne, Rainey
Credits :
Alto Saxophone – Tim Berne
Drums – Tom Rainey
Drums [Additional Drums] – Matt Chamberlain (pistas: 10)
Electric Piano [Fender Rhodes], Organ [Hammond B3], Mellotron, Electronics [Bent Circuits] – Craig Taborn
Executive-Producer – Manfred Eicher
Guitar [Guitars], Sampler [Live Sampling], Effects [Manipulation], Producer – David Torn    

CRAIG TABORN TRIO - Chants (2013) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Less than two years after Avenging Angel, his solo ECM debut, pianist Craig Taborn returns with his longstanding trio of bassist Thomas Morgan and drummer Gerald Cleaver. Though they've not recorded together before, this group has been playing together for eight years and their individual ties to one another go back even further: Taborn's and Cleaver's for 25 years, since they were students at the University of Michigan. Cleaver and Morgan are members of Tomasz Stanko's New York Quartet, and the pianist and bassist to saxophonist David Binney's group. Chants is a unique piano trio recording in that Taborn's compositions reflect the strength and elasticity of the ensemble, both formally and when engaged in improvisational conversation. He retains the sense of space inside the compositions offered on Avenging Angel, but this set is also imbued with more motivic ideas placed inside darkly tinged compositions and angular, sometimes knotty lyric themes. And space plays a different role as an opening for spontaneous possibility. The lively "Beat the Ground" offers Morgan's driving bassline as it underscores Taborn's hard, left-turn, repetitive theme, and holds the center between pianist and drummer. Cleaver's cymbal work provides the room when the pianist's theme shifts keys, time signatures, and accents. "Hot Blood," with its syncopated rhythmic interplay between Cleaver and Morgan, adds dimension to Taborn's pulsing chords and opens up a vent for his complex solo. The elliptical "All True Night/Future Perfect" is the set's hinge piece. Commencing as a sketchy, shimmering ballad, with three gestured -- rather than firmly stated -- melodies in gauzy exchange, its dynamic builds gradually, culminating in Taborn's arpeggio solo. The use of abstraction and space is far more pronounced on the record's second half with the gradual development in "Cracked Hearts." Cleaver carves out a rhythmic statement that allows the melody to articulate itself. The interplay between Morgan and Taborn on "Silver Ghosts" is intuitive; their movement along the skeletal frame aims for the fringes of suggestion. Cleaver's gentle but firm time-stretching exercise on toms and cymbals notches a corner for drama that culminates with beautiful ostinato from the pianist. Closer "Speak the Name," with its rumbling, low-end bass notes, middle-register lyric theme, and Cleaver's roiling, break-driven snare is the impetus for dynamic and textural shifts for the entire group and offers the set's most labyrinthine piece as an uptempo closer. Chants is a strong statement from Taborn both as a composer and bandleader, but it's also a dialogue on the trio format itself, as articulated by this vastly talented, thought-provoking group.
(This comment is posted on Allmusic by Thom Jurek, follower of our blog 'O Púbis da Rosa')
Tracklist :
1    Saints 5'22
(Craig Taborn)
2    Beat The Ground 4'03
(Craig Taborn)
3    In Chant 8'20
(Craig Taborn)
4    Hot Blood 3'52
(Craig Taborn)
5    All True Night / Future Perfect 12'46
(Craig Taborn)
6    Cracking Hearts 7'08
(Craig Taborn)
7    Silver Ghosts 7'36
(Craig Taborn)
8    Silver Days Or Love 8'23
(Craig Taborn)
9    Speak The Name 6'56
(Craig Taborn)
Credits :
Craig Taborn   Piano
Thomas Morgan   Double Bass
Gerald Cleaver   Drums   

CRAIG TABORN - Avenging Angel (2011) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

For fans of Craig Taborn's electronics-oriented recorded work or for those who prefer his early trio records or his sideman appearances with James Carter, a solo acoustic piano recording on ECM might come as a bit of a surprise, but it shouldn't. Taborn's been playing solo shows for over a decade -- most of them improvised -- and it's that part of his musical character that displays itself on Avenging Angel. Taborn has always been interested in the language of the instrument itself, the possibilities of its tonalities, spaces, textures, echoes, etc. The 13 pieces here, recorded on a gorgeous Steinway piano in Lugano, Switzerland, elaborate magnificently on all of those notions and more, without sounding overly ponderous or studied. These pieces range widely; each has its own motivation, form, frame, and intention; each arrives at a different destination. "The Broad Day King" begins with quiet, even delicate high-register notes that resemble wind chimes in a gentle breeze, and is colored as it evolves by descending chord patterns with deliberate spatial elements to delineate them from that intro while extending its memory. The title track commences with mildly dissonant two- and three-note chords in the lower-middle register, playing a pulsing if syncopated rhythm as the right hand adds accents and contrapuntal voicings to create the appearance of a dual melody, though only one eventually emerges. "Gift Horse/Over the Water" asserts a series of scalar studies before dynamically raising its head and using jagged chords to move from one half of the tune to the other. "Spirit Hard Knock" commences by using sharply angled single-note improvisation before assembling a dreamy series of lyric phrases. Taborn's use of the instrument itself is quite physical: at times he plays ppp (where restrained force is employed to push on the key just enough to get a sound), while other notes or short segments employ Sforzando. The elliptical nature of "Forgetful" is the set's most beautiful and elliptical number, emerging from the ghostly trace of a lyric melody into a fully realized spherical one; despite its dynamic changes -- which are gradual -- it never surrenders its deliberate spaciousness where sound itself -- the moments after single keys or chords are struck -- lingers and holds momentarily, before others replace them. Avenging Angel is not an intellectual exercise, it is a major contribution to the actual language of the piano as an improvisational instrument: its 13 pieces feel like a suite: seamless, economical, original, and visionary.
(This comment is posted on Allmusic by Thom Jurek, follower of our blog 'O Púbis da Rosa')
Tracklist :
1    The Broad Day King 6:16
2    Glossolalia 2:45
3    Diamond Turning Dream 4:17
4    Avenging Angel 6:56
5    This Voice Says So 9:44
6    Neverland 4:29
7    True Life Near 4:30
8    Gift Horse / Over The Water 7:37
9    A Difficult Thing Said Simply 4:36
10    Spirit Hard Knock 4:37
11    Neither-Nor 3:19
12    Forgetful 7:58
13    This Is How You Disappear 5:03
Composed, Piano - Craig Taborn  

CRAIG TABORN - Daylight Ghosts (2017) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Keyboardist Craig Taborn’s Daylight Ghosts is the Minneapolis-bred New Yorker’s third ECM release as a leader, a quartet album following the solo Avenging Angel and trio disc Chants. Both projects earned wide acclaim, with The Guardian saying that Taborn’s “musicality and his attention to detail are hypnotic, as is his remarkable sense of compositional narrative within an improvised performance.” Along with the questing Taborn on piano and electronic keyboards, the quartet of Daylight Ghosts features two other luminaries from the New York scene – reed player Chris Speed and bassist Chris Lightcap – plus drummer Dave King, the leader’s fellow Minnesota native and one-third of alt-jazz trio The Bad Plus. Each player draws from a broad artistic background, as informed by rock, electronica and diverse strains of world music as they are the various permutations of jazz improvisation. Dynamism and spectral ambience, acoustic and electric sounds, groove and lingering melody – all come together to animate Daylight Ghosts. ecm
Tracklist :
1    The Shining One 3'34
(Craig Taborn)
2    Abandoned Reminder 7'46
(Craig Taborn)
3    Daylight Ghosts 7'36
(Craig Taborn)
4    New Glory 3'14
(Craig Taborn)
5    The Great Silence 5'37
(Craig Taborn)
6    Ancient 8'15
(Craig Taborn)
7    Jamaican Farewell 5'39
(Roscoe Mitchell)
8    Subtle Living Equations 4'31
(Craig Taborn)
9    Phantom Ratio 8'29
(Craig Taborn)
Credits :
Craig Taborn   Piano, Electronics
Chris Speed   Tenor Saxophone, Clarinet
Chris Lightcap   Double bass, Bass Guitar
Dave King   Drums, Electronic Percussion  

JOHN ZORN - Flaga : Book Of Angels, Volume 27 (Flaga) (2016) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

For one of the last CDs in the Book of Angels series Zorn has put together an astonishing all-star piano trio featuring three of the most powerful and respected musicians in the jazz/new music scene: Craig Taborn, Christian McBride and Tyshawn Sorey. Diving into eight tunes from Zorn’s mystical Masada project they take off in flights of melodic, rhythmic and harmonic fancy that will make your head spin. Visceral and virtuosic, Flaga is one of the most spontaneous and exciting installments in the Masada catalog. TZADIK
Tracklist :
1    Machnia    7:59
2    Peliel    4:34
3    Katzfiel    4:18
4    Talmai Take 1    4:43
5    Shoftiel    10:42
6    Agbas    4:08
7    Rogziel    2:38
8    Harbonah    4:10
9    Talmai Take 2    5:41
Credits :
Bass, Arranged By – Christian McBride
Drums, Arranged By – Tyshawn Sorey
Executive-Producer, Producer, Composed By, Arranged By – John Zorn
Piano, Arranged By – Craig Taborn

DAVE HOLLAND - Prism (2013) FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

Bassist Dave Holland has been at the forefront of experimental, forward-thinking jazz ever since his formative years playing in Miles Davis' fusion ensemble. His 2013 album, Prism, finds Holland returning to his crossover funk roots with an able-bodied quartet. Featured here are former Tonight Show guitarist Kevin Eubanks, pianist/Rhodes keyboardist Craig Taborn, and drummer Eric Harland. All of these musicians have reputations for playing adventurous, genre-bending styles of jazz, making them perfectly suited for the project at hand. Holland's fourth outing on his own Dare2 Records, Prism follows his 2008 sextet date Pass It On, his 2010 octet album Pathways, and his 2010 flamenco-inspired Hands. All of those records were equally engaging and progressive in their own ways, but none showcased Holland's interest in the angular, knotty funk and fusion he explores here. Tracks like the expansive "The Watcher" and the roiling "Spirals" feature explosive, frenetic soloing from the band as well as moments of layered group interplay. Elsewhere, cuts like "The Empty Chair" and "Evolution" explore a more minimalist, modal sense of atmosphere that allow for extended and far-reaching improvisational moments. For fans of Davis' Bitches Brew period, during which Holland was a member of the band, there is plenty of expansive, abstract soloing, Rhodes keyboard squelch, and fuzz-laden guitar. We also get several introspective songs on Prism, with the poignant, midtempo Eubanks feature "The Color of Iris," and the gorgeous Harland-penned "Breathe." Of course, Holland's bass is the grounding force for the ensemble, and thankfully, he gets plenty of room to stretch out from beginning to end. by Matt Collar
Tracklist :
1   The Watcher [6:56]
Kevin Eubanks
2   The Empty Chair (For Clare) [8:31]
Dave Holland
3   Spirals [8:46]
Craig Taborn
4   Choir [4:49]
Eric Harland
5   The Color Of Iris
Kevin Eubanks
6   A New Day [7:51]
Dave Holland
7   The True Meaning Of Determination [9:19]
Craig Taborn
8   Evolution [10:24]
Kevin Eubanks
9   Breathe [5:40]
Eric Harland
Credits :
Dave Holland, bass;
Kevin Eubanks, guitar;
Craig Taborn, piano and Fender Rhodes;
Eric Harland, drums.

ROSCOE MITCHELL AND THE NOTE FACTORY - Far Side (2010) FLAC (image+.cue), lossless

Recorded live in Burghausen, Germany in 2007, Far Side features journeyman avant-garde saxophonist Roscoe Mitchell and his ensemble the Note Factory performing in a concert. Joining Mitchell here are trumpeter Corey Wilkes, pianists Craig Taborn and Vijay Iyer, bassists Jaribu Shahid and Harrison Bankhead, and drummers Tani Tabbal and Vincent Davis. Beginning with the epic three-part 30-minute suite "Far Side/Cards/Far Side," the concert is an atmospheric and cinematic mix of Mitchell's longstanding musical touchstones including free jazz, European classical music, and modern creative group improvisation. Tracks such as the fragmented and atonal "Quintet 2007 A for Eight" and the similarly inclined "Trio Four for Eight" have the feel of composed classical music while evincing a more freely improvised aesthetic. This is often achieved by juxtaposing bowed cello and bass parts against improvised piano and sections where each musician seems to interject a melodic idea into an overall harmonic theme. There are moments of layered percussion, expansive atonal soundscapes, and fiery and combative moments between Mitchell and Wilkes as well as windy, drawn-out passages that tilt upon silence. If you're a hardcore Mitchell aficionado and/or fan of ECM's cerebral jazz catalog, Far Side would be a stellar addition to your library. by Matt Collar  
Tracklist :
1    Far Side / Cards / Far Side    30:56
Roscoe Mitchell & the Note Factory
2    Quintet 2007 A For Eight    9:56
Roscoe Mitchell & the Note Factory
3    Trio Four For Eight    12:37
Roscoe Mitchell & the Note Factory
4    Ex Flover Five    12:24
Roscoe Mitchell & the Note Factory
Credits :
Double Bass – Jaribu Shahid
Double Bass, Cello – Harrison Bankhead
Drums – Tanni Tabbal, Vincent Davis
Piano – Craig Taborn, Vijay Iyer
Saxophone [Saxophones], Flute [Flutes], Music By – Roscoe Mitchell
Trumpet, Flugelhorn – Corey Wilkes 

ROSCOE MITCHELL - Bells for the South Side (2017) 2CD / FLAC (tracks+.cue), lossless

For more than 50 years, Roscoe Mitchell has blurred relationships between sound and silence, scripted composition and improvisation, jazz, classical, and even R&B musics as a soloist, bandleader, member of the Art Ensemble of Chicago, and composer. In 2015, Chicago's Museum of Contemporary Art presented a 50th anniversary exhibition devoted to the Association for Advancement of Creative Musicians (or AACM), an organization Mitchell co-founded, in an exhibit called The Freedom Principle. The music on the double-length Bells for the South Side was recorded during the exhibit with four of Mitchell's trios -- James Fei and William Winant; Hugh Ragin and Tyshawn Sorey; Craig Taborn and Kikanju Baku; Jaribu Shahid and Tani Tabbal -- playing separately and in combinations.
The music here glances back to the many places Mitchell has visited, but this is no mere retrospective: most of this is bracing new music that looks forward to further exploratory musical landscapes. The set opens with "Spatial Aspects of the Sound," a chamber piece with Baku using wrist bells, Winant's various percussion instruments, and Taborn's and Sorey's pianos. At 12-plus minutes, it unhurriedly allows tones and clusters, movement and stillness, to articulate a range of carefully controlled articulations. On "Panoply," sputtering sopranino, squawking tenor, kit drums, and various percussion instruments engage in aggressive, inspired free interplay. "Prelude to a Rose" contrasts Sorey's trombone, Ragin's trumpets, and Mitchell's reeds in elongated, dovetailing tones through a slowly unfolding melody. "EP 7849" is another combinatory exercise with electronics, electric guitar, cowbell, hand drums, and bowed double bass that offers futurist dissonance and complex, fascinating engagement. "Dancing in the Canyon" is a canny, propulsive, and extremely active free-for-all with Taborn and Baku. On the title track, disc one's closer, the Art Ensemble's army of percussion instruments is utilized. Sorey plays Mitchell’s percussion cage, and Tabbal and Baku the percussion instruments of Don Moye and Malachi Favors, with Winant on Lester Bowie's bass drum. Ragin’s trumpet offers sounds in all registers, while Mitchell digs extremely low-end sounds from his bass sax. It's certainly mysterious, but also utterly lovely. Disc two's "Prelude to the Card Game, Cards for Drums, and the Final Hand" features Mitchell, Tabbal, and Shahid in an intuitive, equaniminous improvisation one would expect from players whose relationship dates back 40 years. Likewise, the extended smearing and droning of Mitchell's and Fei's reeds on "Six Gongs and Two Woodblocks" amid Winant's percussion and Fei's electronics are simultaneously spectral and inquisitive. The closing medley, "Red Moon in the Sky/Odwalla," juxtaposes a new work (the former) with a reading of an Art Ensemble staple, with all players in open, bleating improvisation before a tight, bluesy, modal post-bop sums it all up, displaying the myriad faces of Mitchell's approach to both function and extension in the relentless creation of a poetics in sound. Bells for the South Side is indeed massive, but its depth, breadth, and inspired performances border on the profound.  
(This comment is posted on Allmusic by Thom Jurek, follower of our blog 'O Púbis da Rosa')
Tracklist 1 :
1     Spatial Aspects of the Sound    12:14   
Roscoe Mitchell
2     Panoply    7:36    
Roscoe Mitchell
3     Prelude to a Rose    12:44
Roscoe Mitchell
4     Dancing in the Canyon    10:23  
Kikanju Baku / Roscoe Mitchell / Craig Taborn
5     EP 7849    8:13
Roscoe Mitchell
6     Bells for the South Side    12:35  
Roscoe Mitchell
Tracklist 2 :
6     Bells for the South Side    12:35  
Roscoe Mitchell
Tracklist 2 :
1     Prelude to the Card Game, Cards for Drums, and the Final Hand    16:03  
Roscoe Mitchell
2     The Last Chord    12:26
3     Six Gongs & Two Woodblocks    7:50
Roscoe Mitchell
4     R509A Twenty B    1:34
Roscoe Mitchell
5     Red Moon in the Sky/Odwalla    25:49
Roscoe Mitchell
Credits:
Roscoe Mitchell : Sopranino, Soprano, Alto and Bass Saxophone, Flute, Piccolo, Bass Recorder, Percussion
James Fei : Sopranino and Alto Saxophone, Contra Alto Clarinet, Electronics
Hugh Ragin: Trumpet, Piccolo Trumpet
Tyshawn Sorey : Trombone, Piano, Drums, Percussion
Craig Taborn : Piano, Organ, Electronics
Jaribu Shahid: Double Bass, Bass Guitar, Percussion
Tani Tabbal : Drums, Percussion
Kikanju Baku : Drums, Percussion
William Winant : Percussion, Tubular Bells, Glockenspiel, Vibraphone, Marimba, Roto Toms, Cymbals, Bass Drum, Woodblocks, Timpani