Ugly Beauty: Milner on Music's Top Jazz of 2020
My ten fave jazz records of 2020: featuring Mary Halvorson, Ambrose Akinmusire, Allison Neale and more!
New Releases
Ambrose Akinmusire - On the Tender Spot of Every Calloused Moment (Blue Note)
A wonderful record from one of my fave trumpeters working today, this one mixes post-bop blowouts (“Tide of Hyacinth”) with slow-burning ballads (“Roy”) to great effect. The ensemble is great throughout, but it’s Akinmusire’s thin, almost reedy tone that cuts through everything and sticks with the listener. Recommended.
Jeremy Pelt - The Art of Intimacy (HighNote Records)
A big change in pace from last year’s suite The Artist, Pelt’s latest record is a look back at the classics, played with minimal, but exquisite backing (George Cables on piano, Peter Washington on bass). Pelt’s playing is nothing less than tasteful throughout The Art of Intimacy, giving the album a feeling of, well, intimacy. It’s like he’s playing right in front of you, a small private show after-hours. It’s the jazz album that even non-jazz heads will like this year.
Mary Halvorson’s Code Girl - Artlessly Falling (Firehouse 12)
Throughout Artlessly Falling, the music makes wild tonal shifts and turns; songs turn on a time from vocal jazz to bursts of noise. Halverson’s playing is alternately slow and melodic, frantic and jagged, while drummer Tomas Fujiwara’s playing at times takes on a ominous, blistering timbre. The shorter songs are key this record, however. “Wall and Roses” has Halverson playing jagged, atonal lines against a pounding rhythm section, but it’s juxtaposed against quiet, melodic sections with singing. It creates an atmosphere where the music blasts out unexpectedly, leaping out at listeners. Keep both an open mind and an open pair of ears, and you’ll there’s a lot here to chew on.
Lionel Loueke - HH (Edition Records)
An album of Herbie Hancock tunes - hence the title - played on guitar? Doesn’t sound that compelling, does it? But Loueke isn’t the run-of-the-mill player. He makes his guitar sing and moan, grunt and thrust. His rendition of “Watermelon Man” doesn’t have the same funky energy as the one on Hancock’s Headhunters, but it’s got a drive of its own, building into a frantic groove. Elsewhere he turns the slick electro of “Rockit” into an almost latin-tinged guitar showcase, while “Driftin’” is borne along with Loueke’s vocalizing.
Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah - Axiom (Ropeadope Records)
Recorded live at the Blue Note in New York mere days before the COVID-19 pandemic shut down everything, Axiom deftly mixes the old and new, standards (sort of) and originals, giving newcomers a chance to hear Scott and band in full flight. And okay, maybe David Crosby’s “Guinnevere” isn’t exactly a standard, but Miles Davis’ version - which Scott re-interprets here - should be. The electric keyboards, soaring percussion and Scott’s playing, which goes up and down the register, occasionally with a reverb that sounds almost ghostly, are as compelling as anything he’s played. And that’s just one performance. Throughout this record, and especially on the lengthy deluxe edition, this ensemble shines. One question remains: are they always this good?
Charles Tolliver - Connect (Gearbox Records)
Back after a long absence, Tolliver’s latest record sounds like a welcome blast from the past. The hard-driving backbeat of Lenny White sounds like it’s coming straight from Tony Williams; Tolliver’s tone is bright and full, his playing brimming with energy and vigor. If you told me “Blue Soul” was recorded in 1970, not 2020, and I might have even believed you - it’s got this old school post-bop vibe down pat, and wouldn’t sound out of place next to his Strata-East period. I guess that’s another way of calling this music timeless?
Thumbscrew - The Anthony Braxton Project (Cuneform)
Anthony Braxton’s music is infamously - and unfairly - seen as dense and complex, cold and un-swinging. But Thumbscrew - a trio of Mary Halvorson, Tomas Fujiwara and Michael Formanek - dive into Braxton’s archives to celebrate the composer’s 75th birthday. It’s Halvorson, herself an alum of Braxton’s groups - who steals the show with her jagged guitar leads and on the solo version of “Composition 14,” she gives the piece a slow, almost droning quality. But all across The Anthony Braxton Project, the pieces are played with a sense of fun and adventure, making this music less academic and warmer than Braxton’s solo records typically seem.
Artemis - Artemis (Blue Note)
The self-titled debut from a septet of familiar women in jazz, this was a welcome surprise for me: I’m not on the Blue Note mailing list (yet), so I came across this without any hype or expectations. I loved it. From the slow arrangement of Lee Morgan’s standard “The Sidewinder” to the tasty groove they build up on “Frida” and “Step Forward,” this record shows off all seven members, albeit not at the same time.
Alison Neale - Quietly There (Ubuntu Music)
Neale’s playing has, for me, the same kind of vibe to it as Stan Getz. Namely, a big heart, a sharp tone and a slight tendency a Latin-esque groove. The first time I queued this one up, I actually had to go and double check who I was listening to, I was that caught off guard. “Quietly There” kind of exemplifies what I’m talking about - from the bossa nova beat to Neale’s understated playing, I kept thinking I had mistakenly put on some forgotten Verve record from 1966 or something. It’s compelling and entertaining in spades; I can’t wait to hear more from Neale and company.
Ugly Beauty - Ugly Beauty (self-released/Bandcamp)
The debut from a group that insists they don’t play jazz (well, that’s just like your opinion), this power trio runs through over a dozen Monk originals, giving them a vibe Monk likely never thought possible. “Mysterioso” is slow a moody, with shimmering drums and atmospheric guitar; “Epistrophy” opens with a burst of feedback and slams into a hard-driving rocker. Easily the most exciting, unexpected re-imaging of Monk’s music since Hal Willner’s tribute album That’s the Way I Feel Now. It’s probably the best once since then, too.