Nick Jonas : Gut Punch Review
Tal Yahalom is a Brooklyn, New York-based Israeli-born guitarist, and composer. His musical focus is to put together a wide variety of beautiful components into a definite musical language. His influences are hard-bop, alternative-rock, impressionistic classical music, free improvisation, and contemporary songwriters from various genres. Lights Out is his second solo guitar release and one that Yahalom presents four original compositions, which are performed on classical and acoustic guitars. A collection of music that organically came together was composed, recorded, and brought to life entirely during the pandemic between July and September. Yahalom [...]
Nick Jonas is back with his fourth studio album called Spaceman. The American singer and songwriter released the album on March 12, 2021, through Island. This is the first solo release from the singer since Last Year Was Complicated (2016) and the first solo project to be released since the reunion of the Jonas Brothers in 2019. Spaceman orbits around an R&B leaning in contrast to the power-pop of his work with the Jonas Brothers. He enlisted the aid of producer Greg Kurstin for the eleven-track project. About Spaceman Jonas says, “So excited to start this journey with all of you. I made this album while doing what most of us have been doing this past [...]
Charles Lloyd & The Marvels are back with their third-album, Tone Poem. The quintet is the master saxophonist and flutist Lloyd with Bill Frisell on guitar, Greg Leisz on pedal steel guitar, Reuben Rogers on bass, and Eric Harland on drums. Released as part of Blue Note’s acclaimed Tone Poet Vinyl Series, the album boasts nine vibrant tracks consisting of Lloyd originals along with well-known compositions by Ornette Coleman, Thelonious Monk, Leonard Cohen, Gabor Szabo, and Bola de Nieve.
Ornette Coleman’s “Ramblin'” is a fun selection, with the recording capturing the joy and playfulness the five [...]
London-based composer Mike Lazarev is back with a beautiful mini-album called Out of Time. The ten songs flow and are constructed as a soundtrack to an imaginary film. Out of Time is the debut for his label and a standout work in his own high-ranking projects. “The protagonists of this imaginary film are constantly fighting against the fleeting moments on this plane. But it is less about death than it is about living. And most of all, it is all about time,” Lazarev writes. He is right: Out of Time is melancholic – movingly sad, but behind the sorrowful melodies lies a powerful affirmation of life, warmth, and the human [...]
Texas guitar slinger Ally Venable is back with her fourth album titled Heart Of Fire on Ruf Records. The album contains eleven tracks that feature originals by the singer, songwriter, and guitarist, as well as covers. The album was recorded at Blue Studio in Stantonville, Tennessee, with producer Jim Gaines. Venable speaks about the album, “On this album, I really wanted to create a tone of overcoming your struggles and persevering through them.” She further says, “My vision was to really spread a positive message of love.” She continues, “The world needs that right now.” Special guests include Rick Steff, [...]
Ace session guitarist Lyle Workman is releasing a new project titled Uncommon Measures. Workman’s studio, sideman, and film composing success were augmented by three well-received solo albums in the ’90s and early 2000s. However, with all that success, he had to put his own artistic visions on the backburner. “I absolutely love all the work I get to do with other artists and filmmakers,” he explains, “but sometimes you need to articulate your own thoughts and feelings as a writer, too. There’s a singular satisfaction that comes from creating something that’s a pure expression of yourself.” Workman [...]
