Enrico
Pieranunzi, Marc Johnson, Joey Baron
Live In Japan
CAM JAZZ
After five recordings on the CAM JAZZ label, the trio of Italian pianist
Enrico Pieranunzi, bassist Marc Johnson and drummer Joey Baron have
garnered much critical acclaim while bringing jazz to audiences around
the world. Their latest groove is a two-CD set recorded live in Japan,
in front of fans that obviously are digging what these boys are dishing
out.
Too be honest, a small disclaimer should be added here: although this
writer played violin for over a decade, can use a tuning fork correctly
and read sheet music (something you probably won’t hear talked
about on American Idol), my knowledge of jazz is, shall we
say, somewhat limited. Not that that’s much of a surprise: Here
in KC we have the Jazz Foundation down at 18th and Vine, where they’ve
been hipping it up for decades, and probably 95% of cowtowners have
never even heard of the place. Jazz is like skeet shooting or mountain
climbing or studying 15th century Bavarian tapestries: Either you love
it or you don’t, baby.
That being said, the seventeen tracks here are a full gambit of styles,
some short and sweet, like “Aurora Giapponese,” while others
are 15-minute long marathons filled with hat-tipping solos. Everything
here is competent and professional…and frankly a little dry. Oh,
these guys know what they’re doing; it’s just that this
is really classical jazz, made for connoisseurs not us BBQ
and beer people. It probably doesn’t help that the Japanese audience
clap in perfect unison, with nary a hoot or holler.
So if you want to support that thing called jazz, get down to the Foundation
(where recently the liquor board was shocked, just shocked to discover
they were serving alcohol!), a get your own groove on…and don’t
forget to holler! — Brandon Whitehead (posted 05/25/07)
All
Out War
Assassins in the House of God
Victory Records
It’s rather fitting that a Google search for the metal-core
band All Out War also calls up an online war-gamer’s site and
a bunch of Middle Eastern guys espousing Armageddon. All this resembles
classic death metal — fast, loud, angry and driven by fans who
probably have serious neck problems in their forties (which they would
consider a metal fan’s badge of courage).
It’s been almost four years since their last album Condemned
to Suffer, and fans of the “brutal” have indeed suffered
since, forcing themselves to listen to tepid crap that couldn’t
even make one ear bleed.
That being said, All Out War’s newest opus, Assassins in
the House of God is light-years beyond all that screamo crap and
a welcome change from the limp-wrist-eye-shadow-wearing bands who spend
more time working on their hair than doing something truly metal, like,
say, eating a live bat and vomiting blood.
A big advantage is 15 years of experience for the five (bassist Erik
Carrillo, drummer Lou Luzzini, who is brutal, guitarists Jim Antonelli
and Jim Bremer and Mike Score on vocals, who is very possibly double
brutal), who have survived numerous lineup changes, disbandings, implosions
and probably some beheadings as well. As this writer happens to be a
big fan of a Sunday night cable television cartoon about a band whose
name involves mortality and a time piece, this stuff brought back the
glory days of Slayer and their like, putting a smile on the face and
brutal murder and destruction in the heart, as any good metal should.
At this point in the review there would often be some lyric quoted…but
screw that. Here is a quick selection of some of the words these guys
like to use: “annihilation,” “genocide,” “crucified,”
“cursed” and, of course, “damnation.” Any questions?
Say what you like about this music, that it’s violent, cynical
and godless and, well, very loud, but there is a simple reason why this
genre has survived everything from the Judas Priest back-masking trial
to those horrible days of big hair and spandex — and either you
will get this or you won’t. —Brandon Whitehead
(posted 05/18/07)
Electron
Love Theory
Colors of the Galaxy
Electron Records
One of the most telling qualities about electronica music is the mood
it evokes, and how well it maintains that mood. Done well, it fits perfectly
in the iPod world of personal tunes, like a good soundtrack on the latest
20-something TV drama. That being said, really good electronica is almost
Zen-like in its ability to sooth the ears and inspire inner contemplation.
Luckily for fans, Electron Love Theory demonstrates such ability in
its latest album Colors of the Galaxy, a lovely and light mix
of crisp arrangements and lush vocals that make it one of the most listenable
records of the year.
The creation of songwriter/producer Jeff Leisawitz, ELT is already
a media darlin’, having been featured on MTV’s Punk’d,
Road Rules and The Real World, which is hardly a surprise
given how perfect this music is for soundtracks (you could use any of
the thirteen tracks here in the opening sequence of the latest light
comedy-drama without hesitation), and there are already several “remix”
versions floatin’ out there on the big world-wide inter-web.
While some tracks here are a little long, that’s a quibbling
complaint for such a high quality sound. Leisawitz deserves the praise
(as do the various magnificent vocalists, but sadly their names are
as great a mystery as all those missing White House emails…) for
creating some excellent music — no theory about it. —Brandon
Whitehead (posted 05/04/07)
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