Music
Welcome to the Music section. Here I post updates on new records from bands or composers that I enjoy, especially in contemporary jazz, fusion jazz, and modern classical.
-
Not generally my kind of music, but I found Tessa Rose Jackson’s The Lighthouse, released early this year, extraordinary. Creative, melancholic when needed, and a voice that’s simply too good. The music evokes perfectly that feeling of being alone on a quiet afternoon, staring at a coastline. The kind of album you can listen to…
-
I’ve been listening for a while now this amazing Bristol band, Ishmael Ensemble, led by Pete Cunningham. I came across Soma Centre, which immediately caught my attention – brilliant tune. Then I listened Visions of Light, their second album, which is fantastic – loads going on in terms of style, ideas, voices, synths and rhythm. Then…
-
Rubio, the Chilean band led by Fran Straube, just dropped their new album Venus & Blue. Some great tunes, others not really my thing. I thought it would have more of the really good stuff they played at their Tiny Desk in Washington DC back in October 2025 – hopefully that’ll come out soon! Great…
-
Gogo Penguin, the absolutely brilliant fusion-jazz trio from Manchester, released their new album Necessary Fictions a few months ago, and it’s a great listen. There are some excellent tracks on it, including contributions by Daudi Matsiko and violinist Rakhi Singh. They toured the album worldwide, and I was lucky enough to see them front row…
-
The great Hania Rani, one of my favourite contemporary composers by far, released her new album Non Fiction – Piano Concerto in Four Movements last week. An important departure from what she’s been composing in the last few years (notably Ghosts and Home), though not a radical one — some clear reminiscences of Inner Symphonies…
-
Can you remember the last time you found an album you just couldn’t stop playing? For me that’s Highlines (2020), by the French trio Foehn Jazz. I’ve had it on repeat for the past four months and still haven’t tired of it. It’s a very elegant mix of melodies, instrumentation, and rhythm. It’s definitely much better…
-
Boom! What a brilliant piece, Bloom, by Bill Laurance with the Untold Orchestra. It came out about a year ago, but I’ve listened it so many times that I can’t help but write a quick ‘review’. It’s simply amazing–so much going on. The composition is full of details; you get strings and piano blending together…
-
Not exactly a new release (it came out in 2023), but I couldn’t resist posting about Fragmente, the beautiful album by Berlin-based composer Felix Rösch. There’s a lot going on here—complex, beautifully melancholic, great taste. A few standout tracks: In Memory of a Honey Bee (I’d love to know the story behind that one), Driven…
-
Daniel Herskedal, the brilliant Norwegian brass and tuba player, has released his latest album, Movements of Air. Great news that after a few beautiful—though at times overly calm—solo projects, his longtime collaborators Eyolf Dale and Helge Norbakken are back. While not as sublime as Harbour (still my favourite by far), the album combines some of…
-
Immortal Onion, the fusion jazz super trio from Poland, recently released their latest album, Technaturalism. It’s very different from their (brilliant) earlier albums. I missed the finely crafted compositions found in Ocelot of Salvation — their first album and still my favourite — as well as in XD and Screens. But I suppose these guys,…
Sebastian Lewis 