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SLAMOGRAM
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SLAMOGRAM NEW SLAM CD RELEASES 1 JULY 2010. "Tőnk/Stump" SLAMCD 521 BARCODE 50 28386 05202 8 Mezei Szilárd was born in Senta, Vojvodina, at that time a Region of Yugoslavia and now in Serbia, as a member of the Hungarian minority in that multiethnic region. His music strongly reflects the contemporary culture of his homeland; in Mezei’s case the Hungarian fire is quite dominant. Mezei is a master of the art of combining composed and improvised musics, leading on viola his ensembles of various sizes. His Octet here presents 5 of his compositions recorded in Budapest, music depicting the real vitality of modern European jazz. "DIALOGUES"SLAMCD 523 BARCODE 50 28386 052326 An all-star Italian trio - Sebastiano Meloni piano, Nicola Cossu double bass, Roberto Dani drums play a dozen improvisations recorded in Cagliari in 2009. Sebastiano Meloni says: "Our music is almost completely improvised, apart from a few themes.We try to uncover what music can express in itself, as well as the emotions we could convey with atonal free improvisations. We often decide which forms, sounds, timbres, or registers we are going to explore ahead of time. Our purpose is to make atonal improvisation a compositional language, which means strict rules and attention to form." Sebastiano Meloni has recorded a CD, "Improvised Pieces for Trio", with Tony Oxley drums and Adriano Orrù double bass. Roberto Dani recorded more than 60 CDs; he has played, among others, with Annette Peacock, Louis Sclavis, Kenny Wheeler and Dave Liebman. NEW SLAM CD RELEASES FOR APRIL 2010.
3 new CD albums.
Bar code: 5028386028321
Fred van Hove piano, Paul Dunmall tenor saxophone, Paul Rogers double bass, Paul Lytton drums.
Dunmall goes from strength to strength. This latest CD was recorded live at The Europa Jazz Festival, Le Mans in May 2008 in the unmistakable company of longstanding sidemen Paul Rogers and Paul Lytton and the titanic Fred van Hove on piano.
The abstract feeling artwork of the booklet is from a photo of some colourful graffiti taken by artist Andy Isham on his travels through the canals of central England.
"FREEDOM" SLAMCD 520
Bar code: 50 28386 05202 9
Stefano Pastor violin, George Haslam baritone sax, tarogato, Claudio Lugo soprano sax, Giorgio Dini double bass.
The Quartet was assembled by Stefano Pastor specifically to record some of his compositions and other improvised pieces, making up the suite ‘FREEDOM’. A very unusual line-up, violin, 2 reeds and double bass, the session was recorded in Genova, Italy, August 2009.
Giorgio Dini is proprietor of the Italian-based CD label ‘SILTA Records’; this CD is released simultaneously on SILTA and SLAM.
"DOMINO"SLAMCD 281
Bar code: 5028386028321
‘A world somewhere between Atlantis and Greenwich Village’ Other Music, Sheffield
This music draws on an ancient tradition: it owes as much to Aeschylus as it does to late-John Coltrane and Albert Ayler. The expressionism of the music - fragmented rhythms, atonality, deeply-felt melodic beauty - is there to intensify the unity of the drama. The pieces are like disconnected scenes: dialogue, recitative, chorus, aria. And the story is perhaps Mazeppa. ‘This is music played by people who want to be somewhere else and are doing something about it.’ Robert Sandall, BBC Radio 3. The voices in this unknown landscape are:
Greg Morgan - saxophones, composer. Background in classical and jazz. First release Spirit of Light (Slam ’96) attracted good reviews across Europe. Most recent release Nisir (Pella ’04) followed by touring in duo with Chas Ambler.
Dan Haywood - guitar. Formerly of alt-rockers The Puma-Sutras and now producing thirty-song album Dan Haywood’s New Hawks.
Pete French - organ. Artist, musician and gardener. Ex James Hunter; in duo Mood Index with novelist-singer Ian Marchant.
Chas Ambler - percussion, drums. Actor, drummer, singer-songwriter. Played with The Trees, Jamie Muir & Don Weller.
Jeff Barnes - drums. Composer of electronic music, string quartets; multi-instrumentalist, and inventor of The Wheel.
DECEMBER 2009 "GREAT MUSIC FOR A BLEAK MIDWINTER" 3 new CD albums. |
SLAMCD 280 "SATURNALIA" by JACKOUT
The album 'Saturnalia' by JackOut is the product of three London-based musicians, Gary Curson, Justin Paterson and Margo Sagov, who began to experiment with combining programmed beats and backing tracks with live and real-time playing in a home studioin the mid 1990's with available technology. Although the compositions were not necessarily derived from traditional instantaneous collective live performances, they were motivated by an attitude of improvisation in the idiom of modern jazz, by inventing and extending the sonic palette.
Gary Curson: alto and soprano saxes; dee-dar Justin Paterson: drums & percussion; programming; sampling, keyboards Margo Sagov: programming; sampling; electric and bass guitars; keyboards With guestsRoberto Bellatalla: double bass on tracks 1, 3 and 8; John Murray: electric bass on tracks 2 and 4;Mo Nazam: guitar sample on track 8.
SLAMCD 282 "STARLIGHT BARKING" BY STEKPANNA
Stekpanna fans will enjoy this set of typically hip, happening, and deeply groovy originals alongside a characteristically quirky deconstruction of the heavy metal classic Paranoid. Those new to the maverick Anglo-Scandinavian trio will find engaging melodies and expressive improvisation in a spacious sonic landscape – think EST with guitars, only cooler and wittier.
Mads Kjølby: electric & acoustic guitars
Steve Kershaw: double bass
Petter Svärd: drums & percussion
Seeds were sown in 2003 when Joel Taylor played in Moscow; a couple of years later Kip Reed played ‘Jazz Provinc' Festival in Russia with the Vintskeviches. This matured into the quartet and this studio recording in 2008
From Russia: Leonid and Nick Vintskevich (piano and saxophone)
and from USA: Joel Taylor (drums) and Kip Reed (bass guitar)
SLAMOGRAM SPRING/SUMMER 2009
NEW SLAM CD RELEASES FOR SPRING/SUMMER 2009
3 new albums and a SPECIAL
"Moment to Moment" (SLAMCD 279)
Paul Dunmall tenor saxophone, Matthew Bourne piano, cello, Dave Kane bass, Steve Davis drums.
The legendary powerful saxophonist Paul Dunmall teams up with the incredibly inventive trio of Bourne/Davis/Kane. The results sound like they have been playing together for years. Music of great depth and sincerity. Dunmall goes from strength to strength on this his latest SLAM release.
Recorded University of West England 22 June 2008. Engineered and mixed by Stephen Allan.
"The BIG Sax CD" (SLAMCD 406)
What a mammoth task this was but great co-operation from some great players – I even went to Havana and got Zalba in the studio for a special session.
A new compilation of contemporary baritone saxophonists from around the world with Carlo Actis Dato, Italy, Charles Evans, USA, George Haslam, UK, Mikko Innanen, Finland, Sergey Letov, Russia and Javier Zalba, Cuba. 18 original tracks of amazingly different artistic approaches to creation on the big sax.
"Chants" (SLAMCD 519)
Stefano Pastor ~ violin, viola, vocals, mandolin, guitars and percussion.
Incredible solo and overdubbing by the Italian master. A collection of originals and standards, including:
Naima, I'll remember April, Caravan, Easy Living, The song is you and There is no Greater Love.
"I think Stefano Pastor is the best thing that’s happened to the violin in our music since Stuff Smith" - Connie Crothers.
The Special
In co-operation with Silta Records of Italy we have produced a limited run special edition of SLAM’s best selling CD "Let’s call this … Esteem" (SLAMCD 501). This CD comes in totally redesigned packaging with card outer sleeve. Individually packed numbered and sealed this is a very limited run; SLAM has only 40 copies for sale which will be made available only to our direct customers. The price is our usual, £10.00 including postage.