Every week our staff of CD Reviewers bring you the best in Independent CD releases. Making a Scene is considered the number 1 resource for the independent musician and the fans that love them.
cd review, jazz, jazz CD, Jazz Review, roots
Bobo Stenson Trio Sphere ECM European piano trios, many of whom come from a classical background, often sound very different from their American jazz counterparts. Such is the case for Swedish pianist Bobo Stenson who made his debut with ECM a whopping 52 years ago with Underwear and has remained in the ECM stable with […]
Vince Ector Vince Ector Organatomy Trio+ – Live at the Side Door Self-released Veteran jazz drummer and composer Vince Ector leads his jazz organ trio plus one in a live set recorded in January 2020 at Connecticut’s popular jazz venue, the Side Door Jazz Club in Old Lyme, CT. Vince Ector Organatomy Trio+ – Live at […]
americana, blues, blues rock, indie Blues, Rock, roots, roots rock
Big Shoes Fresh Tracks Qualified Fresh Tracks is the American Roots Supergroup Big Shoes’ follow-up to their acclaimed 2018 Step On It! Big Shoes originally formed as a “tribute project” to recreate the early music of the iconic band Little Feat, thus the name. As they developed it became evident that the group boasted good […]
americana, blues, blues rock, indie Blues, Rock, roots, roots rock
Mike Zito & Albert Castiglia Blood Brothers Gulf Coast Records Mike Zito and Albert Castiglia’s dozens of individual albums all point to their first collaboration working as well as it does. Not to mention that they’re apparently good buddies. The title Blood Brothers encapsulates their bond and shared spirits ideally. Zito and Castiglia have long […]
cd review, jazz, jazz CD, Jazz Review
Margherita Fava TATATU Self-released TATATU is the debut recording for Italian-born, Knoxville, TN-based pianist and composer Margherita Fava who has assembled a top tier quartet for her highly lyrical, soulful original six compositions. She nods to Thelonious Monk and to Jerome Kern with her two covers. Joining Favre, who forges a group sound versus a […]
cd review, jazz, jazz CD, Jazz Review
Ally Fiola & The Next Quest Interblaze – featuring Jeff Coffin Self-released Nova Scotian alto saxophonist and film composer Ally Fiola delivers her second album, the contemporary jazz, New Orleans flavored Interblaze. Her guest accompanists are quite impressive beginning with multi-Grammy nominated tenor saxophonist Jeff Coffin (Dave Matthews Band, Bela Fleck and the Flecktones) and […]
americana, blues, blues rock, indie Blues, Rock, roots, roots rock
Otis Taylor Banjo… PS Audio/Octave While Otis Taylor’s 15th album doesn’t bear the thematically driven title like his 2017 Fantasizing About Being Black, the more plainly titled Banjo… speaks to similar themes. Taylor says this about the album, where, in fact, only four of the eleven tunes feature him playing banjo – “This is not […]
americana, Indie Rock, Rock, roots, roots rock, singer-songwriter, songwriter
JP Ruggieri Gradually Descend Into Chaos Self-released For those who follow The Wood Brothers or the excellent album from singer/songwriter Jarrod Dickenson, guitarist and fellow singer/songwriter JP Ruggieri may be a familiar name. To the rest of the you, this may serve as an introduction although Gradually Descend Into Chaos is his second full-length album. […]
cd review, jazz, jazz CD, Jazz Review
Simon Moullier Isla Self-released Scanning the album photograph and instrumentation for this quartet, one might think that emerging and prolific vibraphonist and composer Simon Moullier presents an ethereal, almost New Wave-like sound. Well, that’s dead wrong. This quartet swings! Isla is Moullier’s third album in less than three years and while the others were rendered […]
americana, blues, blues rock, indie Blues, Rock, roots, roots rock
The Cash Box Kings Oscar’s Motel Alligator Records Blues fanatics of course, but certainly the culturally minded and perhaps most crucially, regular Joe’s, all should spend at least one night in a classic Chicago blues club. Add it to the bucket list, because soaking up that vibe with a blistering band tearing it down can […]
American music, Book, filmmaker
Robert Mugge Notes from the Road – A Filmmaker’s Journey through American Music Sager Group LLC Readers of these pages have likely seen one, more likely several of the music filmmaker Robert Mugge’s documentary-like music films focused on American roots music and the many branches thereof. Mugge’s films are not documentaries in the narrative and […]
americana, blues, blues rock, indie Blues, Rock, roots, roots rock
John Primer Live at Rosa’s Lounge – Teardrops for Magic Slim Blues House Productions Guitarist and singer John Primer releases his second album in the space of only six months, with Teardrops for Magic Slim, a live recording from Chicago’s blues haven, Rosa’s Lounge. The late Magic Slim (Morris Holt) was Primer’s second famous boss, […]
americana, Indie Rock, pop, roots, roots rock, songwriter
The Band of Heathens Simple Things BOH Records The title to the 1978 Nick Lowe classic, Pure Pop for Now People, popped into my head while listening to Simple Things, The Band of Heathens’ eighth album of original material and 13th overall. If this isn’t pure popular music for everyone right now, I don’t know […]
cd review, jazz, jazz CD, Jazz Review
Christopher Hale Ritual Diamonds Earshift Music Bassist-composer Christopher Hale reimagines Korean ritual drumming and contemporary jazz, creating mysteriously beautiful sound rich in rhythmic complexity and harmonic colors for Ritual Diamonds. In some respects, this is similar to, almost a sequel to the concept album Disruption: The Voice of Drums released in 2022 by the same […]
cd review, jazz, jazz CD, Jazz Review
Vivienne Aerts Typuhthang Self-released Like you, this writer is having trouble pronouncing the album name. In fact, for a self-released project, this is an incredibly ambitious and unusual one. Vocalist, performer, and composer Vivienne Aerts has gathered 100 next-generation female musicians to launch a special touch for International Women’s Day on March 3. In collaboration […]
americana, blues, blues rock, indie Blues, Rock, roots, roots rock
Rhythm Krewe Unfinished Business Rhombus The nine-piece horn band, Rhythm Krewe, from southern California, evoke those glorious West Coast blues records from a decade ago, many appearing on the long defunct Delta Groove label. This band, originally called Floyd & The Flyboys, predate those recordings, having begun in 1990. Like so many musicians in the […]
cd review, jazz, jazz CD, Jazz Review, making a Scene
Scott Petito Many Worlds Planet Arts Bassist, multi-instrumentalist, composer, and producer Scott Petito has gathered a stunning group of luminaries for his wide ranging, aptly named Many Worlds. These are the musicians you’ll hear – saxophonist Bob Mintzer, vibraphonist Mike Mainieri, trumpeter Randy Brecker, drummers Steve Gadd, Peter Erskine and Omar Hakim, percussionists Mino Cinelu and Bashiri Johnson, pianists Rachel Z Hakim and Kevin Hays, bassist Larry Grenadier and vocalist Anna Maria Jope. The […]
americana, Country, indie country, roots, roots rock, singer-songwriter, songwriter
Jaimee Harris Boomerang Town Folk N’ Roll/Thirty Tigers On just her second album Jaimee Harris has proven to be an impressive singer-songwriter, creating vivid character sketches, a myriad of emotions, and an honest way of expressing her own personal feelings through her narratives. She echoes Springsteen and Gretchen Peters to name just two. Those alone […]
cd review, jazz, Jazz Review, making a Scene
Mark Ortwein It Was Time Terra Voce The kneejerk reaction when learning that Indiana-based musician, composer, and educator Mark Ortwein was a one-man woodwind section playing tenor, alto, soprano, and baritone saxes, along with bassoon, electrified bassoon, clarinet, bass clarinet, and flute was that perhaps this would be a self-indulgent exercise. As it turns out, […]
cd review, jazz, Jazz Review, making a Scene
Leap Day Trio Live at the Café Bohemia Giant Steps Arts The Leap Day Trio (Matt Wilson, Jeff Lederer, and Mimi Jones) christen the reopening of Greenwich Village’s famed Café Bohemia sixty years later. What a story! The club originally opened in 1955, when Charlie Parker offered to play the room for free drinks. The […]
cd review, jazz, Jazz Review, making a Scene
Alex Weiss Most Don’t Have Enough ears & eyes The socially conscious Most Don’t Have Enough is the third album for tenor saxophonist Alex Weiss and his first with his working quintet since 2019, Glad Irys. This adventurous, fiery unit has Dan Blake on soprano saxophone and Yana Davydova on guitar, forming a formidable front […]
americana, roots, roots rock, songwriter
Various Artists Tribute to a Song Poet: Songs of Eric Andersen Y&T Music / EARecords This massive 3-CD and digital tribute to the living legend folk artist Eric Andersen has been available since early in 2023 but we’d be remiss not to inform you about it, even now. It’s a staggering list of artists paying […]
blues, blues rock, indie Blues, jazz, Organ, roots, roots rock
Tim Carman Trio Key Lime Color Red Music Fans of the blues trio GA-20 no doubt recognizes the talents of those players, in this case our reference is to Boston-based drummer Tim Carman, the leader of his eponymous organ trio. Yes, this classic soul-jazz in the spirit of 60s icons Big John Patton, Jimmy Smith, […]
cd review, jazz, jazz CD, Jazz Review, making a Scene
Tomer Cohen Not the Same River Hypnote Tomer Cohen is an Israeli-born jazz guitarist making his debut on Not the Same River, introducing us to his sound which incorporates folk, Israeli music, and jazz in a trio format. His bandmates have strong ties to the SF Jazz Collection – bassist Matt Penman and drummer Obed […]
cd review, jazz, jazz CD, Jazz Review, making a Scene
Don Aliquo Growth Self-released Veteran reedist Don Aliquo, originally from Pittsburgh, but resident of Nashville for the past two decades, may still be a relatively new name as he is not part of the more publicized jazz scenes in New York or Chicago. Aliquo was mentored from childhood by his father, the still active 93-year-old […]
cd review, jazz, Jazz Review, making a Scene
Joe Locke Makram Circle 9 Veteran vibraphonist and composer Joe Locke reunites his quartet for an album that feels both old and new at the same time. The ‘old” are the two standards that bookend the album’s seven originals, either penned by Locke or band members with Locke doing all the arranging. Locke’s quartet features […]
americana, indie country, roots, roots rock, singer-songwriter, songwriter
Buddy Mondlock Filament Self-released Buddy Mondlock is one of the better, albeit lesser known Nashville-based singer songwriters. After all, any songwriter who co-writes with Guy Clark is in a lofty category, just be virtue of that. Yet, there’s much more here on Mondlock’s latest, Filament, than just “The Dark,” the co-write with Clark. The album […]
Leon Lee Dorsey w/ Mike Clark and Russell Malone Cantaloupe Island Jazz Avenue 1 The bass-drum team of Leon Lee Dorsey and Mike Clark are on a certifiable roll. This writer has reviewed three of their efforts, all with pianists – Manuel Valera, the late Harold Mabern, and most recently Mike LeDonne. The duo now […]
cd review, jazz, Jazz Review, making a Scene
Christopher McBride Ramon KYO Music Saxophonist and composer Christopher McBride’s Ramon is a more than appropriate album for Black History Month as he weaves in the four pillars of Black music, blues, gospel, soul, and R&B as well as a suite devoted to the unfortunate murder of Trayvon Martin. The recent Grammy winner with Steven […]
cd review, jazz, Jazz Review, making a Scene
Ann Hampton Calloway Fever: A Peggy Lee Celebration Palmetto Having heard Ann Hampton Calloway sing recently, there’s a bluesy, sultry style to her vocals that should interest the readers of this blues-oriented publication. Calloway has all the key attributes of nuance, power, range, and emotion as well as the presence of the best entertainers, and […]
cd review, jazz, jazz CD, Jazz Review
Jesse Davis Jesse Davis Live at Smalls Jazz Club Cellar Music Group and SmallsLIVE Living Masters Series Admittedly some readers of these pages may have first associated the name Jesse Davis with Taj Mahal’s late guitarist, better known as Jesse Ed Davis. Yet, alto saxophonist Jesse Davis has been a staple within the jazz community for nearly forty […]
cd review, jazz, jazz CD, Jazz Review
East Axis No Subject Mack Avenue We don’t associate the label Mack Avenue or Christian’s McBride’s Brother Mister Productions with improvised, avant-garde offerings except for his own New Jawn but that has changed with the issuance of this quartet, East Axis and their debut, No Subject. Based on the sounds heard here, more of this […]
Bill Warfield and the Hell’s Kitchen Funk Orchestra Time Capsule Planet Arts Jazz, blues, and soul lovers will all find recognizable fare on this large ensemble recording from Bill Warfield and his famed Hell’s Kitchen Funk Orchestra as they cover such gems as “I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel to Be Free,” “Light […]
cd review, jazz, jazz CD, Jazz Review
Planet D Nonet Blues to Be There A Salute to Duke Ellington Eastlawn The Planet D Nonet is a Detroit-based group, actually numbering ten, lead by percussionist and music personality RJ Spangler and trumpeter/vocalist James O’Donnell. Prior to this salute to Duke Ellington the band has engaged in what they feel are neglected jazz and […]
Dave Stryker Prime Strikezone As readers of these pages know, jazz/blues guitarist Dave Stryker is prolific yet this offering, Prime, is his first featuring his working trio – organist Jared Gold and drummer McClenty Hunter, each of whom have issued albums as leaders as well. This represents the classic soul-jazz organ trio with eight new […]
Diego Rivera Love And Peace Posi-Tone Bandleader, composer, educator and saxophonist Diego Rivera returns for his fourth release for PosiTone with the inspired Love And Peace. Rivera fronts a quartet, backed by the label’s mainstay rhythm section of pianist Art Hirahara, bassist Boris Kozlov, and drummer Rudy Royston. We have covered Rivera on these pages […]
cd review, jazz, Jazz Review, live jazz
Dave Liebman Live at Smalls Cellar Music Group – Smalls Live Living Masters Series He’s played for over sixty years and attained NEA Jazz Master status, so who can blame saxophonist and composer Dave Liebman for electing to play free jazz at this stage of his career – “I have been recording since I was […]
americana, asleep at the wheel, Country, indie country, roots, roots rock, songwriter
The Shootouts Stampede Soundly Music The Shootouts never expected to engage in this level of glittering hoedown showdown, and certainly not so quickly following the success of their 2021 Top 10 Americana album, Bullseye. But they could not get out of the way of this Stampede, certainly not with Ray Benson driving it. The renowned […]
americana, blues, blues rock, indie Blues, Rock, roots, roots rock
Sunny War Anarchist Gospel New West It’s been a remarkable run for the punk-blues artist Sunny War, known for her fingerpicking acoustic guitar skills and her deceptively casual, quiet approach to songs, many of which are topical. While her early independent records cast her mostly in a blues vein, her music encompasses much more as […]
cd review, jazz, Jazz Review, roots
Ben Wolfe Unjust Resident Arts Bassist, bandleader and composer Ben Wolfe’s 2019 Fatherhood, a mix of jazz and classical was so provocative, it left us curious as to what his next move would be. The wait is over. Wolfe returns Unjust, eschewing the classical side of his personality for more of a free, improvised jazz […]
americana, roots, roots rock, singer-songwriter, songwriter
Helene Cronin Landmarks Self-released Landmarks is the follow-up to singer-songwriter Helene Cronin’s acclaimed 2019 debut, Old Ghosts and Lost Causes, yet she brings a more fully realized louder and denser sound to this effort. Comparing the two, one notices several similarities though as the main drivers for both are Cronin and producer Matt King who […]
americana, blues, blues rock, indie Blues, roots, roots rock
The Matt Swanton Band The Matt Swanton Band Independent Matt Swanton is a rock blues guitarist who has been playing since 9 years old. Matt has since gotten to share the stage with the likes of Albert Castiglia, Mike Zito, Jeremiah Johnson, Papa Chubby, and Ronnie Earl. This year Matt was nominated by the Boston Blues […]
americana, blues, blues rock, indie Blues, Rock, roots, roots rock
Eddie 9V Capricorn Ruf Did you ever play a game with friends where you might give each other names – like bowlers or gangsters? Well, apparently while on the road with another band, the guitarist/singer Brooks Mason was in such a situation and thus the name Eddie 9 Volt (shortened to Eddie V) was bestowed […]
americana, Country, country blues, roots, roots rock, singer-songwriter, songwriter
Pocono Jones & The Bear Live at Cambridge Sound Studios Self-released This is our second review for Pennsylvania-based folk/blues artist Paul Wilkinson, billed here as the The Bear in keeping with the solo effort from 2021, 400 Bears. He is joined by Pocono Jones, aka Brad Hinton for a live acoustic performance that took place […]
americana, roots, roots rock, singer-songwriter, songwriter
Jim Brunberg Songs of Stupid Hope Self-released Portland-based singer-songwriter Jim Brunberg is no newcomer though he has been out of the limelight in terms of recorded music for the past fifteen years, but he hasn’t strayed from some aspect of music. He’s long been an owner of multiple music venues in Portland and has composed […]
afro jazz, cd review, jazz, Jazz Review
Derrick Gardner & The Jazz Prophets Pan Africa Impact Jazz Trumpeter, composer, and bandleader Derrick Gardner has been regarded prominently ever since his 2005 debut with Slim Goodie. He has also received international acclaim for his 18-piece ensemble Derrick Gardner & The Big dig! Band, highlighted by their critically acclaimed 2020 recording debut Still I Rise, which we covered […]
cd review, jazz, Jazz CD Review, Jazz Review
Christine Correa Just You Stand and Listen with Me Sunnyside Vocalist Christine Correa and her hand-picked quartet do an admirable job recasting the iconic We Insist! Freedom Now Suite from Max Roach, Oscar Brown Jr., and Abbey Lincoln in their version, Just You Stand and Listen with Me. The prevailing notion of course, is that […]
americana, blues, blues rock, indie Blues, roots, roots rock
Johnny Nicholas A Tribute to Moon Mullican, Volumes 1 & 2 Valcour Records Aubrey Wilson “Moon” Mullican (1909-1967) is considered by many to have been the king of honky-tonk pianists during the 1930s and ‘40s. None other than Jerry Lee Lewis covered several of Mullican’s songs and sang his praises for the ways he bridged […]
blues, indie Blues, jazz, jazz CD, Jazz Review, roots
Yvonnick Prené Listen! Sunnyside One can count the number of jazz harmonicists practically on one hand, at least the most well-known ones such as Grégoire Maret, Hendrik Muerkens, and the legendary Toots Thielemans. Enter upstart chromatic harmonica master, Parisian born, New York-based Yvonnick Prené. If we’re not mistaken Prené’s previous recording was a trio date, […]
Tyler Mitchell Octet Featuring Marshall Allen Sun Ra’s Journey Cellar Music Group – SmallsLIVE Living Masters Series Bassist Tyler Mitchell and alto saxophonist/EVI Player Marshall Allen first met as band members of the cosmic Sun Ra Arkestra in the mid-eighties. Of course, the venerable now 98-year-old Marshall, the Arkestra’s current director, has been a member of the band since […]
