Date: October 8, 2017
Venue: Galway Jazz Festival (Ireland)
Review by Fiona Mactaggart (Photograph by sus)
An award for ‘friendliest festival’ might well go to the Galway Jazz Festival, this 4-day long event utilizing an eclectic range of venues and heaving with musical treasures. Tonight the venue is an up-market restaurant, the musical fare a veritable aural banquet offered by the new trio of pianist-extraordinaire, Simon Nabatov.
Artist: Amy Denio
Title: The Big Embrace
Label: Spoot Music
Genre: folk rock/world/contemporary/field recordings/jazz; and improvised music
CD Review by Dawoud Kringle
Amy Denio is an interesting musician. Based in Seattle, WA, she is known internationally as a record producer, composer, improviser, singer and multi-instrumentalist (voice, alto saxophone, clarinet, accordion, acoustic and electric guitars, electric bass, and theremin). Denio co-founded The Tiptons Sax Quartet and Drums, recorded with Bosnian metal/punk/folk group Kultur Shock, recorded and toured with Austrian trio Die Resonanz Stanonczi, and co-founded Ama Trio with Correo Aereo. She toured as a solo artist, and has collaborated and recorded with Matt Cameron, Bill Frisell, Chris Cutler, Guy Klucevsek, Pauline Oliveros, Tarik Abouzied, Francisco Lopez, Danny Barnes, the Relache Ensemble, Faust, Fred Frith, Hoppy Kamiyama, KMFDM, Il Parto delle Nuvole Pesanti, Ronin, and Chuck D’s Fine Arts Militia (as part of the Experience Music Project in Seattle). Denio scored two animated films by Thomas Edward: Pangaea’s Brood, and Synchrony in Estrus. She also scored Jamie Hook‘s feature film The Naked Proof. She also produced the soundtrack for choreographer Pat Graney‘s piece Girl Gods, and the soundtrack to choreographer David Dorfman’s piece Sky Down. She’d earned many awards and fellowships, and recently became a member of Musicians for Musicians (MF).
Venue: Black Gate Club at the Galway Jazz Festival (Eire)
Date: October 5th, 2017
Review by Fiona Mactaggart
The subdued lighting of the basement venue is well suited to this thoughtful and measured set, the small space only intensifying the calming effect of the delicate and beautiful melodies traced by pianist Tuomas A Turunen over a web spun by drummer and band leader, Emil Brandqvist.
Artist: Amelie Daniel
Title: Oiseau de Nuit
Label: Rodproduction
Genre: French Pops
CD Review by Dawoud Kringle
All photos courtesy of Amelie Daniel
Date: November 12th, 2017
Venue: Joe’s Pub (NY)
Concert Review by Joe Yanosik & Claudia Yanosik
Photographs by Claudia Yanosik
The two dozen or so patrons that attended Joe’s Pub last Sunday for a concert by the French band Lo’Jo were treated to a unique and wonderful blend of world music styles and sounds. The venue was only half full, understandable for an early afternoon (12:30PM) show, and the audience seemed to be mostly comprised of French expats and longtime fans, but the band gave everyone there a show to remember.
