Contemporary Reviews

Contemporary Reviews2020-02-23T01:52:32+00:00

    Force Of Nature

    July 1, 2021

    O's Notes: Cody Carpenter has been involved in music his entire life with parents and grandparents who were artists. He plays keyboards and composes the music, a high-intensity effort for Memories and Dreams his latest progressive rock endeavor. Electronic keyboards and synthesizers dominate the sounds. It’s like an amusement park or arcade band. A series of drummers including Jimmy Brandy, Cody & Marco Sfogli on guitar, and bassist Jimmy Haslip make the rhythms vibrant. Our favorite is “The Grind”.

      Play Sgt. Pepper

      July 1, 2021

      O's Notes: Michael Wolff plays piano with drummer Mike Clark and Leon Lee Dorsey on bass. The trio tackles the timeless 1967 Beatles’  Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. They aren’t the first, nor will they be the last to reimagine this classic album. WCD managed to make it appreciable in the jazz trio format using arrangements that enhance but don’t disguise the originals beyond recognition making Play Sgt. Pepper a winner.

        Now Ear This

        July 1, 2021

        O's Notes: Bassist, composer, arranger and producer John Lang leads two sessions with 4-piece and 8-piece ensembles and an over-dub crew. It’s a slick contemporary jazz-fusion set, Now Ear This. We liked “Scarborough Cha”, “Pusherman”, “The Night Watch” and “Sis Boom Bah” with crisp solos across the quartet.

          February Meets

          July 1, 2021

          O's Notes: Jonathan Kane (d, g, b) and Dave Soldier (strings) put together four lengthy (8 to 16 min each) contemporary selections on February Meets Soldier String Quartet. Repetition is the theme on the opener “Hate To See You Go” as they etch good feelings into memory before Kane breaks out on guitar. We enjoyed their arrangement of “It Was A Very Good Year” and the solemn ballad “Requiem for Hulis Pulis” that follows. Four songs and 45 minutes of creative, progressive, jazz-fusion.