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Excellent work from a player we love more and more with each new album – Roberto Gatto, an artist we love equally both for his work as a leader, and on the drums! The set features a slightly larger group than usual – Gatto's Lysergic Band, with alto from Gaetano Partipilo, tenor and soprano sax from Max Ionata, trombone from Roberto Rossi, and trumpet from Giovanni Falzone – all horn players who are used sparingly, in really wonderful ways to flesh out the music, and give it a great deal of individual personality! This is less an ensemble recording than a shifting set of voices that have found some great space to come together – working under Gatto's strong guidance in these moody blends of darkness and light. Other players include Battista Lena on guitar and Alessandro Lanzoni on piano – and titles include "The Swinging Cats", "Lysergic", "Take The Dark Train", "Deep", "Fall", and "Queen Porter March

Tremendous work from this young group – a set that embraces a range of modern jazz traditions, then pushes them forward strongly to the next generation! The lineup here features some of the sharpest talents of the current Windy City underground – James Falzone on clarinet, Jason Adasiewicz on vibes, Jason Roebke on bass, and Tim Daisy on drums – all players who feel each others' strengths instantly, and find ways of coming together that are even greater than the sum of the already-strong parts! Falzone's clarinet is especially amazing – a fresh new voice on the instrument that pushes past even John Carter or Jimmy Giuffre – showing us that the instrument can really carve strong modern lines, when in the right hands. Adasiewicz's vibes are always a treat – and ring out beautifully – and both Roebke and Daisy have the right sort of freewheeling rhythms to set even more fire to the other two players. Titles include "Ukranian Village", "Carol's Burgers", "Chicago Spaces", "Brooklyn Lines", "Jazz Searching Self", and "Alone At The Brain".

An amazing little record from the free-thinking scene in Uruguay at the end of the 60s – a strange mix of styles, but a brilliant one too! Limonada only ever cut this one record, but it's a real masterpiece – a blend of 60s beat group instrumentation, candomble rhythms, and some of the headier styles floating around the Brazilian and Peruvian scenes at the time – modes that were experimental, but always playful, and are handled here by Limonada in a sound that's instantly appealing, no matter what your language or politics! The record has a tremendously groovy sound from the very start – a compressed, slightly psychedelic sound that features lots of weird twists and turns, but always moves back into a straightforward groove in the nick of time. The production alone is worth the price of admission – at a level similar too, but rougher than, some of the Tropicalia work of the time – and titles include "Ojos Que Miran Lejos", "Pies Descalzos", "Lejos Estas", "Barrio De Casas Bajas", "Veo Luz En La Ventana", "Cambiar La Rosa", and "Viejo Tambor". Deluxe reissue package too – heavy vinyl and cover, and an insert with notes!

The Delmark debut as a leader from drummer Frank Rosaly – and a very unique little record! Rosaly's a player we've really dug on other folks' records, and his vision here at the helm is pretty darn great – a real change from some of the modes used by his avant Chicago contemporaries – almost more poetic at points, although filled with sharp edges throughout! The record was composed for use in a documentary about Chicago scrap recyclers working the alley of the city – and Rosaly brings a really human, personal sort of feel to his music – even though the overall approach is still based on improvisation between group members too. The lineup features James Falzone on clarinet, Jason Stein on bass clarinet, Jason Roebke on bass and cracklebox, Keefe Jackson on tenor and bass clarinet, and Jason Adasiewicz on vibes – which adds some particularly great tones to the metallic narrative. Rosaly also plays a bit of percussion, piano, and electronics – and titles include "Adrian", "Bedbugs", "Driven", "Yards", "Wet Feet Splashing", "The Dark", and "Tragically Positive".

Tremendous work from this young group – a set that embraces a range of modern jazz traditions, then pushes them forward strongly to the next generation! The lineup here features some of the sharpest talents of the current Windy City underground – James Falzone on clarinet, Jason Adasiewicz on vibes, Jason Roebke on bass, and Tim Daisy on drums – all players who feel each others' strengths instantly, and find ways of coming together that are even greater than the sum of the already-strong parts! Falzone's clarinet is especially amazing – a fresh new voice on the instrument that pushes past even John Carter or Jimmy Giuffre – showing us that the instrument can really carve strong modern lines, when in the right hands. Adasiewicz's vibes are always a treat – and ring out beautifully – and both Roebke and Daisy have the right sort of freewheeling rhythms to set even more fire to the other two players. Titles include "Ukranian Village", "Carol's Burgers", "Chicago Spaces", "Brooklyn Lines", "Jazz Searching Self", and "Alone At The Brain".

Beautiful sounds from the Chicago scene – a set that really showcases the new developments in the avant side of the spectrum in recent years! The group's made up of important players who've really helped push things forward with their own music – James Falzone on clarinet, Jason Adasiewicz on vibes, Jason Roebke on bass, and Tim Daisy on drums – with key help from Jeb Bishop on trombone, Josh Berman on cornet, Keefe Jackson on tenor and bass clarinet, and Fred Lonberg-Holm on cello and electronics! The musicians' resumes should more than speak for themselves – but the difference here is that there's kind of an "historical modern" feel to the sound – a vibe a bit like some of the 482 releases in recent years – reaching back over 50 years of leftfield expression, but finding a new voice for it in the 21st Century. Things are almost always swinging, although never straight ahead – and the interplay of clarinet and vibes is especially nice, even when other horns are present. Titles include "Breakfast Feud", "Memories Of You", "Rose Room", "Other Doors", "Six Appeal", "The Wang Wang Blues", and "AC/DC Current".