Tuesday, May 13, 2014

NEW RELEASES: GRANT GREEN - IDLE MOMENTS; MID CENTUR MINX; LITTLE DRAGON - NAHUMA RUBBERBAND

GRANT GREEN - IDLE MOMENTS

A warmly melodic session from Blue Note's greatest guitarist! The sound of the set's as evocative as the title – an idle moment of space between the notes, explored by Green's tight single-note work on guitar – and wonderfully supported by a lineup that includes Joe Henderson, Bobby Hutcherson, and Duke Pearson. Hutcherson and Pearson are always a treat together – bringing out the best exotic side of each other, and crafting a set of spiritually soulful grooves that are really great! The album's got 4 long tracks – exploratory and open, in the best manner of Green's mid 60s work – and titles include "Nomad", "Idle Moments", and "Jean De Fleur". (Amazing limited edition reissue pressing – with heavy vinyl and gatefold cover!) ~ Dusty Groove

MID CENTUR MINX: FEMALE VOCAL SEDUCTION FROM THE FIFTIES & SIXTIES

One of the coolest sets of female vocal jazz we've ever heard – a package that goes way past the overdone torch song cliches or the bluer-toned weepies – and reminds us that at the heart of the matter, all the best singers from the time still had an undeniably sexy appeal! The collection features a few bigger names, but most are relatively lesser-known – the kind of singers who were more than happy to stick to the underground and just get the odd recording date here and there – because it meant that they never had to go pop or try to sacrifice their craft in the hopes of a hit record. Titles include "Off Shore" by Ethel Ennis, "For Heaven's Sake" by Anne Phillips, "Beyond The Next Hill" by Beverly Kenny, "Blue City" by Shirley Horn, "A Stranger In Town" by Lurlean Hunter, "Shangri-La" by Dolores Gray, "Baltimore Oriole" by Barbara Lea, "Can't We Be Friends" by Toni Harper, "Along With Me" by Jane Fielding, and "Travlin Light" by Marcy Lutes. ~ Dusty Groove

LITTLE DRAGON - NAHUMA RUBBERBAND

Dreamy, soul-steeped avant pop sounds from Sweden's Little Dragon! The group has been delivering with atmospheric production, high quality songs, and timeless, genuine soul for long enough that we could consider them veterans by this point – and we're glad they continue to do their thing with fresh, distinctive style. Singer Yukimi Nagano is a big part of the appeal, and she really flourishes on this one – infusing the synth pop styled tracks and the more subtle mood pieces with an indispensable soulful integrity. Includes "Klapp Klapp", "Mirror", "Pretty Girls", "Underbart", "Car Rider", "Paris", "Lurad", "Nabuma Rubberband", "Only One", "Killing Me", "Pink Cloud" and "Let Go". ~ Dusty Groove

 

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