A very cool project – one that was initiated by the late Tony Allen in collaboration with Detroit keyboardist/percussionist Jeff Mills – and which is carried forth here by a trio with a really soaring, far-reaching vibe! Percussion is at the core – played both by Mills and by Prabhu Edouard, who adds in all this great work on tablas, which grounds the acoustic side of the record – as Jean Phi Dary plays keyboards along with Mills, and really sends the whole thing climbing to the skies! There's a mix of jazz and broken beat energy going on here – although the beats certainly aren't broken, and we're using that reference to indicate some of the best spiritual inspirations of the 4Hero generation. Yet these guys are definitely onto something new, and very much their own – on titles that include "Rising Water", "Words Of Wisdom", "Peace Pipe", and "Metamorphosis". CD

A very cool project – one that was initiated by the late Tony Allen in collaboration with Detroit keyboardist/percussionist Jeff Mills – and which is carried forth here by a trio with a really soaring, far-reaching vibe! Percussion is at the core – played both by Mills and by Prabhu Edouard, who adds in all this great work on tablas, which grounds the acoustic side of the record – as Jean Phi Dary plays keyboards along with Mills, and really sends the whole thing climbing to the skies! There's a mix of jazz and broken beat energy going on here – although the beats certainly aren't broken, and we're using that reference to indicate some of the best spiritual inspirations of the 4Hero generation. Yet these guys are definitely onto something new, and very much their own – on titles that include "Rising Water", "Words Of Wisdom", "Peace Pipe", and "Metamorphosis". LP, Vinyl record album

A cool combo from the Japanese club jazz scene – but one who's even more acoustic and classic-sounding than most of their contemporaries! The vibe here is right up there with the best groups we love on the Ricky Tick label – an acoustic quintet that's heavy on trumpet and tenor, laid out over soaring rhythms from piano, bass, and drums – all pure jazz all the way through, with a definite 60s sort of vibe – and a very strong focus on upbeat numbers and groovers! The trumpeter, Yusuke Orita, is especially strong – and blow these brilliantly bold lines on flugelhorn as well – and drummer Takao Ito has this romping quality to his kit that really keeps the whole album moving along strongly. Pianist Daisuke Takeuchi adds in some nice lyrical touches – and titles include "Harvest", "Everybody Knows That", "Flash By Flashback", "Hope For World Peace", "Session A", and "Last Dancer". (Jazz, New Grooves) CD

Although Blue Note is probably one of the most iconic record labels on the planet, the company's also done a great job of reinventing itself as the years go on – always showing that they've still got an ear for the same sort of new talent that made Blue Note so important back in the day! This time around, the label's following a bit of the spirit of their previous Re:Imagined set, in that they're also working with a fair bit of young artists from the UK scene – but the set list is also maybe a bit less slavish to hits from the Blue Note catalog, which really opens up the overall sound of the record with a mix of very different vocal and instrumental contributions! As before, the scope is great, and the package is a double-length one – with titles that include "Fort Worth" by Binker Golding, "It" by Yazz Ahmed, "Through The Noise" by Nubiyan Twist, "Don't Know Why" by Partheope, "Morning Side Of Love" by Ego Ella May, "Green With Envy" by Oscar Jerome & Oscar #Worldpeace, "Lost" by Daniel Casimir with Ria Moran, "Epistrophy" by Theon Cross, "Feel Like Making Love" by Kay Young, "Harvest Moon" by Maya Delilah, "Infant Eyes" by Reuben James, and "Where Are We Going" by Venna & Marco. (Jazz, New Grooves) LP, Vinyl record album