Jazz & Improvisation / Trio

*300 copies limited edition* Sam Weinberg is a saxophonist and improviser living in New York City. Recent focus has been material for solo tenor saxophone, and trio music represented on Implicatures (Astral Spirits, 2023) which features Tom Rainey and Chris Lightcap.

"Here, then, are three men who have, if you will, won the argument already. They don’t need excess volume or headline soloing to get their message across. Their message is inscribed in elegant lower-case and rarely used aural fonts. You will find yourself leaning forward because not a note or whisper should be missed ..." - Brian Morton

*Limited edition of 600 copies.* The Bi Ba Doom trio, featuring saxophonist Chris Pitsiokos, bassist Luke Stewart and drummer Jason Nazary, will release their debut album Graceful Collision in the coming months. The trio Bi Ba Doom, in their recording debut with the album Graceful Collision, delivers five collective compositions (Skeletal Representation, Invisible Maze, Caught The Flicker, Graceful Collision and Limitless Fascination) in which free improvisation, ambient jazz, electronic music a…

Drummer Tilo Weber joins forces with bassist Petter Eldh (Koma Saxo) and Elias Stemeseder, who plays harpsichord and keys here on Weber's We Jazz debut, "Tesserae". The three musicians plus guests present a unique jazz trio sound for all times, without boundaries. Weber, based in Berlin, came to the attention of We Jazz Records with his his highly inspired drum work on Otis Sandsjö's Y-OTIS, and has since then also been awarded with the prestigious Deutscher Jazz Preis for the arrangement of the…

*Strictly limited one-time edition of 500 copies in deluxe gatefold sleeve.* The exemplary & well-traveled cornetist Kirk Knuffke here introduces a bold new trio – with bassist Michael Bisio & pianist Matthew Shipp – on an intimate & expansive double album. Gravity Without Airs features the three world-class musicians on both Knuffke compositions and in open form, together creating a tour-de-force of poetry and verve. “Rhythmically precise, New Orleans funky and full of grace, Kirk Knuffke’s mus…

"If music really is a form of rapid transportation, then I have found my mode of transport. Suspense brings apprehension before something happens. It’s a fact. The next time you’re in a snappy nightclub, tap your foot to the memories of your day fading out under the blue lights. The fiercest way to walk anywhere is on your toes. “Here I am,” you blurt out, but everyone already knows you, because a bass is a foghorn that guides us out of exhaustion. The days are doing a little number on us all of…

Gondwana Records present ‘Next Time Could Be Your Last Time’ – the debut album by Forgiveness, AKA Jack Wyllie, JQ and Richard Pike. Described as “not really jazz, not really new age, not really ambient or electronica”, instead they welcome you into a synaesthesia-inducing technicolour fantasy, full of wondrous emotive beauty. This genesis began with the sharing of music, burgeoning friendships, and the mutually-inspirational benefit of the collective power of a group dynamic, with each spurring…

*Limited edition of 500 copies.* Final Thaw is the debut from the new trio of John Kolodij (guitar), Jayson Gerycz (drums) & Dylan Baldi (saxophone). You will likely recognize Kolodij from his incredible Astral Editions album "First Fire • At Dawn" and you likely will recognize Baldi & Gerycz from Cloud Nothings (as well as Powers/Rolin/Gerycz, Monocot, etc)...and Iceberg doesn't really sound like any of those things, in the best way possible. "Final Thaw" features two sidelong workouts that bui…

*Limited edition of 250 copies.* Were We Where We Were is a recording of set of compositions by Michael Formanek, and performed here by him, saxophonist and clarinetist Chet Doxas, and drummer Vinnie Sperrazza, collectively as the Michael Formanek Drome Trio. These pieces were loosely grouped together as Palindrome Series 1 and Palindrome Series 2, from 2020. They started out as a series graphic scores that were then reinterpreted as conventionally notated music for this trio. The Drome trio lea…

*Limited edition of 200 copies.* A trio of violinist Alex Cunningham, drummer Thom Nguyen and saxophonist Patrick Shiroishi delivers a new release titled "Basket of Knives" on Astral Editions.

An all-round musician, Cristiano Calcagnile defines his trio with these words: "Anchored low and hanging high, the trio vibrates in the belly like a single string". A trio with double bass and drums that takes into account the more modern sonorities of this classic formation but at the same time insinuates and welcomes sounds and attitudes that come from the freest experiences in the history of improvised music. Giorgio Pacorig pianoGabriele Evangelista double bassCristiano Calcagnile drums, per…

In 1970, the Virgilio Armas Trio released De Repente on the tiny Discos A&B label, very likely a one-off, self-financed project. Virgilio Armas recalls: “The nightlife in Caracas of the 1950’s and 1960’s inspired me to record an album in 1970, with songs influenced by the Jazz, Bossa and Latin genres. De Repente was created with my beloved Piano, and my long-time musical partners Rodolfo Buenaño (bass) and Guillermo Tariba (drums).” The style is very much influenced by the harder post-Bossa Nova…

We Are Busy Bodies reissues Sadayasu Fujii Trio's 1977 album, Like A Child. Led by pianist, Sadayasu Fujii, the album includes jazz standards "A Sleepin' Bee" and "If I Should Lose You", along with original compositions.

On July 21st 2018, the third day of the 39th Konfrontationen Festival, Kaja Draksler played a blisteringly intense concert with the Peter Evans Quartet. The biggest surprise of the day, however, came a few hours later, when she joined forces with Dutchmen Ab Baars and Terrie Ex. The surprise was not the combination of these distinct personalities in itself. You could have seen that coming. The remarkable thing about it was the emotional pay-off and the sheer beauty of the performance. Like some …

*In process of stocking.* Three very young men in their CD debut. The leader is Artur Małecki 20-year-old drummer and composer who creat music with his musical friends: Michał Aftyka on double bass and bass guitar and Przemysław Chmiel on soprano and tenor saxophones. On Widoki you have a chance to listen to the most promising and youngest generation of the Polish jazz scene.

*In process of stocking.* The second album of all-stars trio feat. Marilyn Crispell on piano, Joe Fonda on bass, and Harvey Sorgen on drums!"Through many years of touring and recording, Marilyn Crispell, Joe Fonda, and Harvey Sorgen have left indelible marks on the history of jazz and improvised music, having performed and created work with a veritable who’s who of the national and international contemporary improvised music scenes since 1978. Paul Motion, Wadada Leo Smith, Anthony Braxton, Barr…

*In process of stocking. 2022 stock.* The magical interplay and incredible virtuosity of this exhilarating trio of string masters has made it one of the most beloved and acclaimed of all Masada ensembles. Back now by popular demand for their first studio recording in over five years, their telepathic interplay and endless creativity had never been stronger. Ten more tunes from the rich and inventive Book of Angels featuring moody ballads, hypnotic grooves, intense burners and of course the trade…

*In process of stocking. 2022 stock.* Laptop wizard Ikue Mori, master keyboardist Brian Marsella and classical percussion virtuoso Sae Hashimoto are Archipelago X, a dynamic new trio born during the 2020 pandemic. Recording at their home studios and exchanging tracks back and forth for months, the music is detailed, evocative and dramatically mysterious, blending electronica, classical, ambient, film soundtrack, pop and jazz into a remarkably original aggregate. Inspiring and engaging music by t…

*In process of stocking. 2022 stock.* One of the most versatile and active proponents of creative music, Karl Berger is a living legend who has been expanding the Jazz language since the mid-'60s. A pianist, vibraphonist, composer, arranger, conductor and educator of astounding energy and creativity, Karl has worked with many of the greatest names in New Music: Ornette Coleman, Don Cherry, Gato Barbieri, Anthony Braxton, Bill Laswell and countless others. Following up on his gorgeous 2010 releas…

*In process of stocking. Limited edition of 300 copies.* "Boiling Point" is the sophomore release from Gordon Grdina's Nomad Trio featuring Matt Mitchell (piano) and Jim Black (drums) and also follows up on 2021's Astral Spirits Grdina / Black duo release "Martian Kitties." The self-titled 2020 debut of Grdina’s Nomad Trio (Skirl Records) was hailed by PopMatters for setting up “loose structures for wild improvising [while also including] a healthy menu of hot unison licks and fleet melodies.” S…

*100 copies limited edition. In process of stocking* Dinzu Artefacts presents When The Circle Was Closed by Slow Bell Trio. Midwest trio that taps into the slower, more meditative side of improvisational music allowing for some deep listening.

NoBusiness presents Live at Jazz inn Lovely 1990, a new set of recordings by Masayuki JoJo Takayanagi, Nobuyoshi Ino and Masabumi PUU Kikuchi Recorded live by Sony TC-DM at jazz inn Lovely, Nagoya, Japan, October 9th, 1990. Track 1,4 & 5 improvised and composed by Masayuki JoJo Takayanagi, Nobuyoshi Ino and Masabumi PUU Kikuchi. Track 2 & 3 improvised and composed by Masayuki JoJo Takayanagi and Nobuyoshi Ino. Gigs produced by Katsuhiko Kawai 河合勝彦. Tapes provided by Koujiro Tanaka 田中康次郎. Mastere…

In 1952, Thelonious Monk, joined by Bassist Gary Mapp, Drummer Art Blakey and Drummer Max Roach, drove to an early iteration of pioneering Sound Engineer Rudy Van Gelder's studio in New Jersey, and entered a small and tightly-managed room that Van Gelder had strict technical rules for. In those recording sessions, and again in 1954, despite Van Gelder's tight management and an out-of-tune piano with tinny fidelity, Monk produced some of the most glorious music of his entire recording career and …

Following the releases of Kepos (2014 El Gallo Rojo Records) and Elpis (2020 Skirl Records), the trio featuring Zeno De Rossi on drums, Francesco Bigoni on tenor sax and clarinet and Giorgio Pacorig on piano is ready to release its third album This Is Always, out on April 22nd, 2022 on Hora Records. Recorded live at the legendary Jazz Club Ferrara (aka Torrione), the trio renews a 10-year long fellowship. It literally becomes a collective; the fact should not be surprising, given the equal natur…

Gothenburg trio Dark Horse present their new album "Listen", released by We Jazz Records. The band, comprising of John Holmström (piano), Alfred Lorinius (bass) and Mårten Magnefors (drums) recorded their second album in a remote cabin by the ocean in Norway, owned by Holmström's family. The natural sound of the album owes a lot to the relaxed surroundings and the result is some high degree of improvised music turning into collective composition as the music unfolds.  The album recording took pl…

Live DVD of Trio PAJ, formed in 2007 by percussionist Roland Auzet, Pierre Jodlowski and Michel Portal, recorded at the Grenoble Jazz Festival in 2010 and exploring jazz, improvisation and electronic music.

Suite by guitarist Marco Cappelli inspired by the characters of Fred Vargas's detective novels, played by the Marco Cappelli Acoustic Trio with Ken Filiano on double bass and Satoshi Takeishi on percussion.

Jinya Disc presents a live concert by New Direction recorded at Jazzbed, Tokyo on September 27, 1970. The album includes 2 tracks performed by Masayuki Takayanagi - Guitar, Kaoru Abe - Alto Saxophone, Bass Clarinet, Performer, and Hiroshi Yamazaki - Drums, Percussion. Masayuki 'Jojo' Takayanagi was a Japanese jazz / free improvisational musician. He was active in the Japanese jazz scene from the late 1950s. Was one of the earliest noise guitar improvisers, and the first (with Keith Rowe) to use …

** 2021 Stock ** Recording a Trio CD with sidemen the likes of bassist Gary Peacock and drummer Paul Motian? No, not only Keith Jarrett has taken that opportunity. The Italian Brussels based Augusto Pirodda must be about the best kept secret in the Belgian jazz scene. Augusto Pirodda knows how to choose his fellow musicians well. The Italian bass player Manolo Cabras has been for over 20 years at his side. Cabras has been on stage and recorded with the Toots Thielemans Quartet, Manuel Hermia Tri…

Superb performance recorded in Paris, March 1967, and broadcast on French radio station ORTF.From the very beginning, Los Angeles-raised Don Cherry (1936) displayed an anti-virtuoso attitude that contrasted with the ruling dogmas of jazz music. Cherry shunned both acrobatic exhibitions and radical experiments in favor of humility and pathos (thus appealing more to the rock crowd than to the jazz crowd). His style focused on the idiosyncratic timbres of his pocket trumpet and on languid phrases t…

** Edition of 75 White Vinyl ** If you’re reading this and know the incredible careers of Chris Corsano (US), David Maranha (PT) and Richard Youngs (UK) you can already imagine what you’re getting into… or maybe not. Opened up to virtually infinite possibilities, this is a blessed gathering by three of the most idiosyncratic and illuminated artists working in the sprawling field where the most defiant and unmapped music converge. Leading figures of the unnameable, each of them on his own has cre…

* First Release. Includes 12-page 8" x 8" booklet with photos, essays and credits, as well a 12-page 5.25" x 8.25" replica concert program by the Palo Alto High School International Club, and 16.5" x 10.5" replica concert poster. * Palo Alto is a previously unknown and unreleased live Thelonious Monk recording. After the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in 1968, racial tensions across the country rose. Palo Alto, a largely white college town in California, was not immune to the event…

Icepick is the super-power trio of some of the busiest musicians on this planet – American, Brooklyn-based trumpeter Nate Wooley, Norwegian, Austin-based bass player Ingebrigt Håker Flaten, and American, Upstate New York-based drummer Chris Corsano. «Hellraiser» is already the third album of this trio and was recorded live in February 2018, on the occasion of a gathering supporting the Option series at Experimental Sound Studios (ESS) in Chicago. Originally, this performance was slated for anoth…

Matchless Recordings presents a live concert by Eddie Prévost, Daniel Kordik and Edward Lucas recorded at All Saints Church, in High Lave, Essex, England during Spring 2019.The album includes four tracks performed by Eddie Prévost - Percussion, Daniel Kordik - Modular Synthesiser, and Edward Lucas - Trombone. "Four improvisations at All Saints Church, High Lave, Essex, England, during Spring 2019." - Matchless

Matthew Shipp (piano), John Butcher (saxophones) and Thomas Lehn (electronics) in a studio album recorded in France in 2017, a uniquely voiced collective trio of transformative improvisation, Lehn's additions and modifications blending perfectly with Shipp's solid foundations and Butcher's advanced technical expression, for an engrossing and expressive set of recordings. "They manage to perfectly combine the many elements of the music while always keeping their individual identities intact."- Ro…

The immaculate mess of Blunder originates from a three-piece impro group consisting of Mads Forby (drums), Kristian Poulsen (guitar) and Lars Greve (saxophones and clarinets). Their debut album Blunder presents a music that's hazy and patient, struck by a disarming sense of attentiveness. It's a slow dance around a malformed energetic forcefield, it's the pull of the vortex, sucking the listener into an elastic sound world of repetitive rhythmic structures and shamanistic summoning.

Recorded, mixed and mastered by Marc Schots in January 10th 2018 at Splendor, Amsterdam. Performed by Hupata! : Ada Rave - tenor saxophone, clarinet, Marta Warelis - piano, Yung-tuan Ku - percussion + objects, preparations, voices; featuring Marc Schots on track no.8. All compositions by Marta Warelis, Ada Rave, Yung-Tuan Ku. Special thanks to: Michael Moore.

Recorded at Static Age Records in Asheville, NC, June 10, 2018 by Dylan Jordan. Performed by Tatsuya Nakatani - percussion, Shane Parish - nylon string guitar, Zach Rowden - double bass. Mixed by Tatsuya Nakatani in Truth or Consequences, New Mexico, Summer 2019.

Taking their name from a Thelonious Monk quote, I Like To Sleep are three young Norwegian musicians, all 22 years old. "Nicolas and Øyvind first met in high school in Trondheim before they joined up with Amund in a youth big band. It soon became apparent that they shared the same musical background centered around 70s progressive rock, jazz, improvisation and classical music. Soon after the trio was formed, first for fun, but soon with higher ambitions, they won the prestigious "Young Jazz Music…

Peter Evans on trumpet and compositions, John Hébert on bass and Kassa Overall on drums. Recorded live at the Zebulon Cafe in March of 2012. Debut album by this rare trumpet - bass- drums trio. A review from Gapplegate Music Review: "Peter Evans was and is a trumpet player who never ceases to surprise me. When I first heard the solo album he did for Evan Parker a number of years ago I thought, "huh?" And it's been that way ever since, whether it's with MOPDTK, with others or on his own. He is a …