LP version. 5th anniversary LP reissue of bassist Adam Hopkins' 2018 album, a great example of the Downtown / Brooklyn scene, using jazz as a jumping-off point to merge free playing, fusion, and rock into an enthusiastic and technically brilliant album of original compositions performed with the sextet of Anna Webber, Ed Rosenberg, & Josh Sinton on sax, Jonathan Goldberger on guitar, and Devin Gray on drums.
For the 5th anniversary of the album, which is also the 5th anniversary of OOYH Records, we are releasing Adam Hopkins - Crickets (OOYH 001) on LP for the first time, limited edition of 300 on 180g vinyl. This is the full original album, with the addition of the 2023 bonus track Grounded. Mastered and lacquer cut by Scott Hull at Masterdisk, and pressed at Gotta Groove Records, these sound incredible. The LP also features a redesign of the original art by TJ Huff (huffart.com), and includes a 22 x 11 poster insert.
Grounded was initially recorded as the first track of what was to become Crickets II by my NYC-based ensemble Crickets, and the follow up to the album of the same name from 2018. The track was recorded remotely from locations literally across the world in Winter of 2020/2021, which everyone knows was a time of minimal in-person recording opportunity. As the band further spread out over the next year, this consequently was the only documentation of the new material I had written for the group featuring Anna Webber, Josh Sinton, Ed Rosenberg, Jonathan Goldberger, and Devin Gray. Perhaps a reunion is a possibility down the line, but for now I'm thrilled to present this final Crickets track on the 5th anniversary of the original album's release.
Included here in digital format is Crickets (OOYH 001) from 2018 for the first time in HD at 88.2 kHz/24-bit, and the new track Grounded which will release on October 19, 2023. TJ Huff gave the album art a sweet redesign for the 5th anniversary LP release, in line with his more recent OOYH artwork. TJ also did the awesome single cover for Grounded in the 90s skateboard art style we initially conceived as the look for OOYH Records. All of the tracks featured on this page are included as part of the 5th anniversary LP release.
Crickets Press from 2018:
#2 Best Debut Album in the 2018 NPR Jazz Critics Poll // Best Debut Album of 2018 by El Intruso, Music and More, NYC Jazz Record, JazzDaGama, Jazz Trail, and Stalker 21. Best of 2018 on Avant Music News + Top 20 Best Albums of 2018 by Jazz Right Now + Best of 2018 (Jazz/Fusion) on Something Else! Reviews.
“Mixing jazz sophistication with punk aggression, bassist and label owner Adam Hopkins makes a striking debut.” -JazzTimes
“Crickets introduces Adam Hopkins as one of the few talents with the vision to make jazz directed at the current and future generations, not the past ones.” -Something Else! Reviews
“…compelling and unconventional jazz compositions juxtaposed with blowouts. This is a singular release and hopefully the first of many from Hopkins.” -Avant Music News
**** "Hopkins’ debut unpacks a thrill-a-minute suite rooted in grunge, indie, and punk.” -MOJO Magazine
“There is something different going on here than the usual Downtown noise/improv.” -Bruce Lee Gallanter, DMG
