Cecil Taylor Unit (w/ Lyons / Silva / Cooper / Murray):
Live At Fat Tuesday's February 10, 1980 First Visit [CD + POSTCARDS] (ezz-thetics by Hat Hut Records Ltd)

The 2nd night of the superb, extended live performance from 1980 at NYC's Fat Tuesday jazz club, from the outstanding sextet of forward-thinking free improvisers, Jimmy Lyons on alto sax, Ramsey Ameen on violin, Alan Silva on double bass & cello, Jerome Cooper on drums & African Balaphone and Sunny Murray on drums, led by Cecil Taylor on piano in an ecstatic concert never previously released. ... Click to View

Hans Koch / Florian Stoffner:
Net (ezz-thetics by Hat Hut Records Ltd)

A limited release capturing the duo of two generations of improvisers — Hans Koch on clarinet and soprano saxophone, and Florian Stoffner on guitar — recorded in Koch's private Swiss studio, presenting six playful dialogs of remarkable mastery and pacing, where space becomes a third element, allowing their conversation to evolve with organic sophistication. ... Click to View

Max Johnson / Neta Raanan / Eliza Salem:
I'll See You Again (Adhyropa Records)

The debut release from NY bassist Max Johnson's new trio with Neta Ranaan on tenor saxophone and Eliza Salem on drums, featuring five Johnson compositions that explore the post-bop tradition, from the hard-driving "Barbarous Jape" to the sweeping ballad "Tiny Beautiful," plus an elegy originally written for mandolinist Matt Flinner"s trio, and our clear favorite, "Chestnut Squid"! ... Click to View

Bucher / Countryman:
Continuum (FMR)

Continuing their long-standing collaboration, American alto saxophonist Ricky Countryman, based in the Philippines, and Swiss drummer Christian Bucher explore space and time through fourteen succinct improvisations recorded at Strawberry Jams studio in Quezon City, blending pensive moments with dynamic interplay in a compelling journey of evolving musical dialogue. ... Click to View

Delta Saxophone Qt :
France's Gregory Songs Of Ice And Snow [CD EP] (FMR)

Setting three poems from prize-winning poet and visual artist Gregory Warren Wilson to music composed by pianist Paul Honey, each song based on the experiences and thoughts of people experiencing ice and snow, performed by the Delta Saxophone quartet of Christian Forshaw (soprano sax), Kathryn McGuiness (alto sax), Tim Holme (tenor sax) and Chris Caldwell (baritone sax). ... Click to View

Karen Borca / Paul Murphy:
Entwined (Relative Pitch)

Free jazz bassoonist Karen Borca, a former student of Cecil Taylor, reunites with drummer and percussionist Paul Murphy, both longtime collaborators in saxophonist Jimmy Lyons' band, here distilled as a duo, performing seven studio-recorded dialogs in Virginia -- each an expressive and articulate example of their remarkable technical skill and creativity. ... Click to View

Abdou / Gouband / Warelis:
Hammer, Roll and Leaf (Relative Pitch)

With a thoughtful approach to collective improvisation, saxophonist Sakina Abdou, pianist Marta Warelis, and percussionist Toma Gouband weave free music into a 60-minute arc of intimate, acoustic interplay, exploring collective themes like a torn canvas of echoes and fragments, where each gesture binds, stretches, and celebrates stories woven from ash and memory. ... Click to View

Michael Attias (Attias / Leibson / Pavolka / Ferber / Hoffman):
Quartet Music Vol. I: LuMiSong / Kardamon Fall [2 CDs] (Out Of Your Head Records)

With an ear to detail, Michaël Attias spent a year mixing and refining these four tracks, recorded after a post-pandemic concert at Barbes in Brooklyn, bringing to light four intricately melodic compositions performed with Michael Attias on alto sax, Santiago Leibson on piano & Wurli, Matt Pavolka on bass, Mark Ferber on drums and Christopher Hoffman on cello. ... Click to View

Anna Gadt / Marta Grzywacz / Natalia Kordiak / Gosia Zagajewska:
VoiceAct (Listen! Foundation (Fundacja Sluchaj!))

Recorded at Przeswit in Warsaw, Poland, Voiceact brings together Polish vocalists Anna Gadt, Natalia Kordiak, Marta Grzywacz, and Gosia Zagajewska in an avant exploration of the art of the voice, blending ancient music, contemporary classics, and folk influences across eleven improvised pieces that showcase a captivating range of vocal styles and possibilities. ... Click to View

Weirs and Magic Tuber Stringband :
The Crozet Tunnel [CASSETTE + DOWNLOAD] (Notice Recordings)

Recorded live in Virginia's Crozet Tunnel, Magic Tuber Stringband (Evan Morgan and Courtney Werner) and Weirs (Justin Morris and Oliver Child-Lanning) present a captivating collaboration blending Appalachian traditions with contemporary drone and song forms, exploring vocal harmonies, resonant acoustics, and the profound interplay between music and place. ... Click to View

Michael Attias / Simon Nabatov:
Dream Walks (Listen! Foundation (Fundacja Sluchaj!))

Dreamlike and evocative, Dream Walks is the second duo album from Michael Attias and Simon Nabatov, following 2021's Brooklyn Mischiefs, inviting listeners to transcend the physical world through telepathic improvisations, uncanny encounters, and surreal visions, capturing the essence of nocturnal wanderings and the ethereal interplay between two masterful musicians. ... Click to View

Marilyn Crispell / Harvey Sorgen:
Forest (Listen! Foundation (Fundacja Sluchaj!))

Superlative duo work from pianist Marilyn Crispell and drummer Harvey Sorgen, recording in the studio in Woodstock, NY, blending deeply attuned free collective dialogs with one composition from each artist, in an album of dynamic and evocative improvisation that moves from vivid storytelling to introspective meditations of vision and masterful artistry. ... Click to View

Gray / Alessi / Augustin:
Melt the Guns II (Rataplan Records)

Brooklyn-Berlin-based drummer and composer Devin Gray in the second volume of his hopefully named project in an evocative trio recording with trumpeter Ralph Alessi and pianist Myslaure Augustin, blending energetic and introspective moments in politically charged compositions that reflect Gray's inventive approach to modern jazz and his concerns for global democracy. ... Click to View

Elliott Sharp (w/ Coleman / Dulberger / Green II / Insell / Jiang / McKenzie / Salomon / Wooley):
Hudson River Compositions 1973-74 (zOaR Records)

Inspired by fireflies, birds, and the flow of the Hudson River while living in Germantown, NY, Elliott Sharp developed these compositions using traditional, graphic, & conceptual scores, presented here in a collage of sessions featuring Sharp on reeds & strings with Anthony Coleman, Nate Wooley, Shayna Dulberger, Hao Jiang, Terry L. Greene, Don McKenzie, Terry L. Green II, Sara Salomon, and Judith Insell. ... Click to View

Reut Regev's R*Time:
It's Now: R*Time Plays Doug Hammond (ESP)

Israeli trombonist Reut Regev and drummer Igal Foni join with legendary American composer and percussionist Doug Hammond, blending Hammond's reflective compositions and six-decade legacy — spanning blues, jazz, M-Base, and modernist works — with the boundary-pushing energy of the R*time quartet, for an engaging fusion of bold improvisation and musical insight. ... Click to View

Innovative Landscapes Laboratory:
Spontaneous Dimensions (Sublime Retreat)

Ukrainian composer Taras Opanasiuk explores spontaneous soundscapes, blending free improvisation with a meticulous compositional process as he transforms modular synthesizer sessions into five compelling sound collages that balance atmospheric electronics, musique concrète, and studio layering, in an imaginative and introspective journey through Opanasiuk's unique sonic palette. ... Click to View

Abcess Grenk:
Erguss Von Licht [CASSETTE w/ DOWNLOAD] (Copy This!)

Marc Myers, recording in Lincoln, Nebraska, is the creative force behind Abcess Grenk, merging analog electronics and experimental guitar in Erguss Von Licht, as a blend of synthesizers, modular synths, a Fender guitar, and a '69 Fender Deluxe Reverb amp, for richly layered and textured improvisations steeped in a DIY aesthetic that reflects Myers' decades-long evolution in sound exploration. ... Click to View

Svobodni III (Bennington / Hunger / Seyler / Thatcher / Jennings):
The Return To Catalhoyiik (ThatSwan!)

For their third album, Chicago-based Svobodni — co-led by synthesist Phil Hunger and drummer Jimmy Bennington — create an evocative narrative inspired by ancient civilizations, blending layers of Stockhausen- and Kraftwerk-influenced electronics, intimate saxophone, grounded bass grooves, and searching percussion for a rich electroacoustic improvisational work that defies genre. ... Click to View

Various Ensembles:
Evil Clown Shorties Volume 1 (Evil Clown)

Presenting 14 concise improvisations from 13 albums performed by 6 ensembles and 27 musicians, Evil Clown Shorties Volume 1 highlights the modular spirit of Evil Clown's roster, blending dynamic sonic concepts into standalone "Shorties" under 10 minutes each, crafted during soundchecks yet fully formed, providing an engaging sampler of the long-form works they complement." ... Click to View

Leap of Faith:
Solving the Constrained Dynamics (Evil Clown)

Leap of Faith's core duo, David Peck on woodwinds and Glynis Lomon on cello, voice & aquasonic, leads this modular Boston sextet of strings and winds in a live improvisation guided by their Broad Palette Aesthetic to influence improv with varied sonorities, an array of classical, jazz, and global influences, featuring standout guzheng player Jiaxin Wan. ... Click to View

Dunmall / Noble / Edwards / Sanders :
Disappearing Worlds (FMR)

Recorded live at Bristol Music Rooms in March 2024, this hard-hitting modern jazz session brings together Paul Dunmall (tenor & sopranino saxophones), Liam Noble (piano), John Edwards (bass), and Mark Sanders (drums & percussion) two fiery and exploratory conversations that blend free improvisation with structural cohesiveness, a thrilling and boundary-pushing session. ... Click to View

Szilard Mezei Tul A Tiszan Innen Ensemble:
Reveszem [2 CDs] (FMR)

Exploring Hungarian folk songs from Vojvodina through the lens of jazz, Révészem, the fifth album from Szilárd Mezei and his exemplary ensemble of musicians from Vojvodina, Serbia, and Hungary, showcases a variety of configurations interpreting and expanding on these strong melodies, transforming them into a fully embraceable set of intricate compositions and inspired arrangements. ... Click to View

Charles Gayle / Szilard Mezei Quartet Bass:
Oils (Listen! Foundation (Fundacja Sluchaj!))

A 2009 live performance at the 15th Magyarkanizsa Jazz Festival in Serbia between Hungarian violist and composer Szilárd Mezei and US saxophonist Charles Gayle, an evocative meeting of transcendent free jazz and compositional precision, weaving Mezei's intricate scores with Gayle's profound, soul-searching improvisations; a dynamic and fiery celebration of freedom and expression. ... Click to View

K. Lyle Curtis / Jaap Blonk / Alex Cunningham / Damon Smith / Kevin Cheli:
A Radio Of The Body 7 Neutrino Broadcasts Searching For 8 (Balance Point Acoustics)

Expanding on the insightful poetry of K. Curtis Lyle, who narrates seven evocative works alongside the freely improvising, chamber-oriented jazz trio of Alex Cunningham (violin), Damon Smith (double bass), and Kevin Cheli (drums, percussion & vibraphone), with free vocalist Jaap Blonk reinforcing and amplifying Lyle's words; a fascinating and thought-provoking exploration of sound and verse. ... Click to View

Room 31 (Sinibaldi / Patton):
Crazy Town (Positive Elevation / 577 Records)

Room 31's debut explores the sonic possibilities of avant-rock, jazz, beats, experimental sounds, and ambient textures, as drummer Marlon Patton and saxophonist Greg Sinibaldi, inspired by their NYC experiences, transform six improvisations into intricately edited compositions, blending spontaneous creativity with a unique and evocative sonic footprint. ... Click to View

Ornella Noulet:
Promise Of Faithfulness (Relative Pitch)

The debut solo album from French saxophonist Ornella Noulet, based in Brussels, performing on alto and soprano saxophones and bells, as she draws inspiration from Albert Camus as a commitment to artistic integrity, exploring new sounds and the spiritual dimensions of music through seven energetically introspective and experimentally rich solo improvisations. ... Click to View

Fennesz:
Mosaic (Touch)

Working in his new Seven Fountains studio in Vienna, guitarist and sound artist Fennesz developed these six works as a "mosaic" of elements derived from improvisation, composition and experimentation using unexpected influences and time signatures, each piece a richly immersive environment of bright harmonics with turns into intricately shadowed space. ... Click to View

Alva Noto:
Xerrox Vol. 5 (Noton)

Carsten Nicolai concludes his Xerrox series with Vol. 5, an emotional work blending conceptual image-to-sound themes and sweeping melodic compositions influenced by classical instrumentation, creating a richly layered and introspective sonic experience that encapsulates his evolution from minimalist glitch aesthetics to ambient neo-classical grandeur. ... Click to View

Modelbau:
Extricate (Sublime Retreat)

Re-modeling Modelbau, the long-running project of Frans de Waard (also of Kapotte Muziek, Beequeen, Goem, Zebra, Freiband, Shifts, &c), in a dark and atmospheric hour-long work of multi-tracked sound, evolving organically through 14 seamlessly connected sections that layer rich tonal and textural compositional elements, with a brooding and introspective urgency. ... Click to View

Gush (Gustafsson / Sandell / Strid) + Guests:
Gush 30 - Krakow 2018 [3 CD BOX SET] (Not Two)

The Gush trio — Mats Gustafsson on reeds and flute, Sten Sandell on piano, and Raymond Strid on drums — celebrate 30 years since their original formation, in extraordinary concerts at Alchemia and Manggha Hall in Krakow, joined by guests in three dynamic configurations — two sextets and a septet — for an unforgettable series of performances of irrepressible collective improvisation. ... Click to View