Mindblowing work from a tenorist we only just discovered with this amazing debut album – a deeply spiritual player who comes off beautifully on this set of original compositions! Nat Birchall blows with a range of feeling that takes us back to the 70s best of Pharoah Sanders, Billy Harper, and Clifford Jordan – and he puts his tunes together with a similar feel too – letting them build organically, often with the group just finding the rhythm at the start – then hitting a groove that lets Birchall's horn blossom wonderfully in sound – reaching forth with rich tones that are simply wonderful – over piano, bass, drums – and some guest trumpet by Matthew Halsall on one track (by the way, check out Halsall's album on the same label – it's another gem!) Titles include "Akhenaten", "Many Blessings", "Nica's Dance", and "A Prayer For". CD

Sweet keyboards from Phil France – a player who's more than content enough to let his instrument take the lead, often in these flowing soundscapes that are even more evocative than on his previous album for Gondwana – but a musician who also manages to echo some deeper currents, but with a surprisingly small amount of effort! Many of these songs have a meditative quality – similar to the shift the Gondwana spiritual jazz label has taken in recent years – and France picks up and drops rhythmic elements throughout the set – sometimes to augment the cyclical flow of his keyboard lines, sometimes as a way to give that energy a bit more direction. Phil handles most of the instrumentation on the album, but has two guest drummers – and titles include "The Breaks", "Circle", "Bells", "River", "Prophet", "The First Thing That You Say", and "Mr Jackal". CD

A stellar second album from UK jazz trumpet talent Matthew Halsall – with a soulful depth that pushes him to the forefront of the contemporary British scene! There's an easygoing, but wholly passionate feel on his own solos, and to his players that really hits us deep – which include Gavin Barras on bass, Gaz Hughes and Marek Dorcik on drums, Nat Birchall on sax, and on 3 of the 6 pieces, Rachael Gladwin on harp – lending a spiritual jazz texture to Halsall's timeless overall style. Fantastic stuff! Titles include 6 original compositions: "Colour Yes", "Together", "I've Found My Joy", "Mudita", "I've Been Here Before" and "Me And You". CD

A stellar second album from UK jazz trumpet talent Matthew Halsall – with a soulful depth that pushes him to the forefront of the contemporary British scene! There's an easygoing, but wholly passionate feel on his own solos, and to his players that really hits us deep – which include Gavin Barras on bass, Gaz Hughes and Marek Dorcik on drums, Nat Birchall on sax, and on 3 of the 6 pieces, Rachael Gladwin on harp – lending a spiritual jazz texture to Halsall's timeless overall style. Fantastic stuff! Titles include 6 original compositions: "Colour Yes", "Together", "I've Found My Joy", "Mudita", "I've Been Here Before" and "Me And You". LP, Vinyl record album

Never-issued work from trumpeter Matthew Halsall – most of it recorded during the year of 2008, a time when Halsall was first really starting to make a name for himself – and also working with the great tenorist Nat Birchall! Birchall is on most of these tracks, and together the pair move into territory that's along the more meditative side of the spectrum than their first few albums – spiritual jazz, but of a slow-building style that often frequently features work on harp from either Stan Ambrose or Rachael Gladwin – in a mode that's clearly inspired by the Impulse Records material of Alice Coltrane, but which also has a very personal vibe – given the strong solo work of both Halsall and Birchall. The set also features two Indian-styled tunes, recorded with sitar and tabla – and titles include "Life", "Oneness", "Distant Land", "Stories From India", "Loving Kindness", "Stan's Harp", and "The Traveller". LP, Vinyl record album

A really incredible album – a set that's filled with far more soul and feeling than you might guess from the youthful image on the cover! Matthew Halsall's a pretty young player, but his sound here is really amazing – not just on his own trumpet solos, but on the overall feel of the album – which is beautifully composed, and put together with a sense of spirit that takes us back to Strata East at its most sophisticated in the 70s! There's a really beautiful balance here – ambition in the writing that recalls other UK efforts from The Heritage Orchestra or Nostalgia 77 Octet – but an execution that's much leaner overall, deeply personal lines played by a relatively small combo – quintet formation on all numbers, featuring Halsall's trumpet alongside great reedwork on soprano sax, flute, alto, and tenor – supported by soaring rhythms on piano, bass, and drums – all handled with the majesty of an early 70s McCoy Tyner album, or some of the other great modally-inspired work of the American post-Coltrane generation. Tremendous stuff throughout – a record that held us rapt from start to finish – with 5 original compositions that include "On The Other Side Of The World", "Reflections", "Freedom Song", "Sending My Love", and "Sachi". CD

A really incredible album – a set that's filled with far more soul and feeling than you might guess from the youthful image on the cover! Matthew Halsall's a pretty young player, but his sound here is really amazing – not just on his own trumpet solos, but on the overall feel of the album – which is beautifully composed, and put together with a sense of spirit that takes us back to Strata East at its most sophisticated in the 70s! There's a really beautiful balance here – ambition in the writing that recalls other UK efforts from The Heritage Orchestra or Nostalgia 77 Octet – but an execution that's much leaner overall, deeply personal lines played by a relatively small combo – quintet formation on all numbers, featuring Halsall's trumpet alongside great reedwork on soprano sax, flute, alto, and tenor – supported by soaring rhythms on piano, bass, and drums – all handled with the majesty of an early 70s McCoy Tyner album, or some of the other great modally-inspired work of the American post-Coltrane generation. Tremendous stuff throughout – a record that held us rapt from start to finish – with 5 original compositions that include "On The Other Side Of The World", "Reflections", "Freedom Song", "Sending My Love", and "Sachi". LP, Vinyl record album

Warm waves of soul from Noya Rao – a jazzy quartet who make their lead female vocals blend perfectly with their keyboards! The approach is simple and unadorned – really beautiful keys from Tom Henry, who seems to be playing Fender Rhodes on many tracks – and these lyrics from Olivia Bhattacharjee that effortlessly blossom and flower with the rhythms – which themselves are played live on bass and drums, but with a crisp crackle that's definitely learned from more contemporary rhythm patterns! The liveness of the instrumentation makes a nice change from some too-programmed soul records – and really opens up the set – on titles that include "Dreaming (parts 1 & 2)", "Midas", "Fly", "Golden Claw", "Azimuth", "This Time", "Same Sun Will Rise", and "I Feel". CD

A very cool little combo – one that almost sounds like a funk band working with broken instruments! Stuff are really out to do something new here – borrowing bits of jazz and funk, then weaving together a sound that's equal parts acoustic and electric – but which has lots of fuzz and strange sonic qualities on the second half – thanks in part to the group's use of unusual instruments, including the wind synth – and their great ear for skittish, offbeat rhythms! The whole thing is maybe an extension of some of Madlib's jazzier work from years back – but airier at times too, and less tied to hip hop – with titles that include "Galapagos", "Delta", "Slug", "Strata", "Spinning Leaf", and "Vault". LP, Vinyl record album

A very cool little combo – one that almost sounds like a funk band working with broken instruments! Stuff are really out to do something new here – borrowing bits of jazz and funk, then weaving together a sound that's equal parts acoustic and electric – but which has lots of fuzz and strange sonic qualities on the second half – thanks in part to the group's use of unusual instruments, including the wind synth – and their great ear for skittish, offbeat rhythms! The whole thing is maybe an extension of some of Madlib's jazzier work from years back – but airier at times too, and less tied to hip hop – with titles that include "Galapagos", "Delta", "Slug", "Strata", "Spinning Leaf", and "Vault". CD

Never-issued work from trumpeter Matthew Halsall – most of it recorded during the year of 2008, a time when Halsall was first really starting to make a name for himself – and also working with the great tenorist Nat Birchall! Birchall is on most of these tracks, and together the pair move into territory that's along the more meditative side of the spectrum than their first few albums – spiritual jazz, but of a slow-building style that often frequently features work on harp from either Stan Ambrose or Rachael Gladwin – in a mode that's clearly inspired by the Impulse Records material of Alice Coltrane, but which also has a very personal vibe – given the strong solo work of both Halsall and Birchall. The set also features two Indian-styled tunes, recorded with sitar and tabla – and titles include "Life", "Oneness", "Distant Land", "Stories From India", "Loving Kindness", "Stan's Harp", and "The Traveller". CD

Sweet keyboards from Phil France – a player who's more than content enough to let his instrument take the lead, often in these flowing soundscapes that are even more evocative than on his previous album for Gondwana – but a musician who also manages to echo some deeper currents, but with a surprisingly small amount of effort! Many of these songs have a meditative quality – similar to the shift the Gondwana spiritual jazz label has taken in recent years – and France picks up and drops rhythmic elements throughout the set – sometimes to augment the cyclical flow of his keyboard lines, sometimes as a way to give that energy a bit more direction. Phil handles most of the instrumentation on the album, but has two guest drummers – and titles include "The Breaks", "Circle", "Bells", "River", "Prophet", "The First Thing That You Say", and "Mr Jackal". LP, Vinyl record album

Japanese electric Miles, featuring 2 long tracks – "Zimbabwe" and "Gondwana" – spread out over the course of a sweet double live set! The album gives Miles and the group plenty of room to groove and stretch out – hitting notes that are both funky and noisy, often at the same time! Michael Henderson lays down some great bass work on the set, and major solos are by Sonny Fortune, Pete Cosey, and Reggie Lucas! Great stuff – and more proof that Miles in the 70s was a very very deep place! LP, Vinyl record album

Ruby Rushton is the name of the group, not an individual member – and it's also a name that's sure to be at the top of your list once you hear this incredible debut! The album's got this fantastic blend of funky and spiritual grooves – all played with a quality that's soulful, but effortless – almost vintage, but never trying to sound forced or copycat at all – just this easy-flowing groove that's incredible, and which kind of gives the record an instant classic sound from the very first note! Edward Cawthorne is the ersatz leader – as he wrote and arranged the whole set – but his work on flute and saxes is just one part of the album's wonderful groove, which also includes trumpet from Nick Walters, keyboards from Aidan Shepherd, bass from Fergus Ireland, drums from Eddie Hick, and percussion from Joseph Deenmamode – a lineup who seem to be tied together in soul and spirit right from the start. The London-based group are rock-solid throughout – hitting territory that's maybe more soulful than some of the spiritual currents of the Gondwana Records scene a few years before, but with an equal sort of depth. Titles include "Trudi's Mood", "Moonlight Woman", "Prayer For Yusef", "Where Are You Now", "Elephant & Castle", "The Camel's Back", "Song For Christopher", "Tisbury Truckin", "Together At Last", "Charlotte Emma Victoria", "Trudi's Mood (part 2)", and a nice remake of Herbie Hancock's "Butterfly". LP, Vinyl record album

Beautiful keyboard lines from Phil France – served up here in a mode that's partly jazz, maybe partly more laidback – and often in the kind of slow-building style we love on other records on the Gondwana label! There's almost a meditative vibe to the music – somewhere in the Carlos Nino/Miguel Atwood-Ferguson mode, but maybe more compact – as Phil's keyboards are mixed with light use of violin and cello, plus some additional sound elements as well – all in a way that makes us almost think that France would be great at scoring soundtracks, although these instrumental tunes have a nicely changed-up sense of complexity overall. Much deeper than just the usual "soundscape" album you might mistake this one for – with tracks that include "December", "Animator", "London Park Hotel", "Kubrick", "Joy Of Brass", and "The Swimmer". CD