Vijay Iyer, Julian Lage and more: 5 new albums to spin for Jazz Appreciation Month
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It's so easy to swing into spring, with April marking Jazz Appreciation Month.
In Columbia, our mainstay "We Always Swing" Jazz Series and other groups will offer jazz events — including the Jazz Series' show with Arturo O'Farrill Quintet at Missouri Theatre Thursday. You can also listen through the month at home, with a music that keeps growing and moving forward while loving its roots.
Here are just five of many excellent early 2024 jazz releases you can buy or stream wherever you listen to music.
Keyon Harrold, 'Foreverland'
Who he is: Raised in the St. Louis area, now creating from Los Angeles, the trumpeter has collaborated with the likes of Gary Clark Jr., Robert Glasper, Beyonce, Gregory Porter and Maxwell.
What you'll hear: A beautiful mingling of jazz, gospel and soul that swirls around the listener like the very atmosphere.
Key tracks: "Beautiful Day" (with PJ Morton), "Well Walk Now (Perseverance)," "Don't Lie" (with Malaya)
Ethan Iverson, 'Technically Acceptable'
Who he is: Iverson is the former longtime pianist for The Bad Plus, an accomplished solo act/bandleader and one of our more thoughtful jazz historians.
What you'll hear: At the center of two different trios on the same record, Iverson bends tradition and invention together on originals and readings of Thelonious Monk and Roberta Flack.
Key tracks: "The Chicago Style," "'Round Midnight," "Piano Sonata" (in three movements)
Vijay Iyer, Linda May Han Oh, Tyshawn Sorey, 'Compassion'
Who they are: The remarkable trio behind 2021's "Uneasy" returns, led by New York native and pianist Iyer, with deep, sublime pockets created by Australian bassist Oh and New Jersey-born drummer Sorey.
What you'll hear: Intertwined and spiritually resonant jazz befitting the ECM Records stamp while always pushing the present tense.
Key tracks: "Arch," "Overjoyed," "It Goes"
Julian Lage, 'Speak to Me'
Who he is: At 36, a still-young guitarist with an old soul and remarkable resume — bearing his own work and collaborations with the likes of John Zorn, Nels Cline, Dave Douglas and Yoko Ono.
What you'll hear: Lage traverses the guitar's capabilities, working across style, mood and physical instrument to form a quiet powerhouse of a record.
Key tracks: "Hymnal," "Northern Shuffle," "Myself Around You"
James Brandon Lewis Quartet, 'Transfiguration'
Who they are: One of our most dynamic modern saxophonists — and a recent visitor to the Columbia Experimental Music Festival — leads an outfit featuring pianist Aruán Ortiz, bassist Brad Jones and drummer Chad Taylor.
What you'll hear: Music that is serene until it grows intricate, intricate and insular until it erupts in pure self-expression.
Key tracks: "Trinity of Creative Self," "Per 6," "Empirical Perception"
Aarik Danielsen is the features and culture editor for the Tribune. Contact him at adanielsen@columbiatribune.com or by calling 573-815-1731. He's on Twitter/X @aarikdanielsen.
This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Spin these 5 new albums for Jazz Appreciation Month this April
