ObliqSound recording artist Somi makes her in-studio/on-air debut on WNYC’s Soundcheck with John Schaefer today at 2 pm! Somi will perform alongside platinum-selling electronic artist Moby, as they both perform live and chat in the Jerome L. Greene Performance Space.
Tune-in to www.wnyc.org for a live stream of Somi’s performance at 2PM EDT.
Don’t know Somi yet? Tune in to find out what other fans around the country discovered upon the release of If The Rains Come First. After a stunning review by Derek Rath on NPR’s All Things Considered, the album shot to #2 on the Billboard World Album Chart and #21 on the Billboard Heatseeker Albums this January. Who else is talking about Somi? We’ll share a few with you:
#1 Album - JazzWeek World Music radio charts
Somi: 2009’s Artist of The Year - Of Note Magazine
“The American born daughter of parents from Rwanda and Uganda, Somi’s songs — and her singing — are compelling blends of traditional music, jazz and her own utter originality.” - Don Heckman, International Review of Music
“Singer-songwriter Somi is one serious talent.” - All About Jazz
“Born to Rwandan and Ugandan parents in Chicago, honey-voiced world jazz singer Somi has had one foot in the traditions of East Africa and the other in American culture her entire life.” - WNYC Culture
“Somi joins the elite ranks of first-class world music jazz-influenced singers with this, her third CD.” — All Music Guide
“This music manages to speak its own language of unity, togetherness and love.” - SoulMattersMag.com
“Best of 2009: Neo-soul with a heavy slab of Africa and a little dash of jazz…and it’s never been done better than this.” - SomethingElseReviews.com
“Somi’s latest op us definitely reveals an artist whose musical concepts have grown and evolved…The compositions are all original and reflect the unique musical vision of the artist. Check out how elegantly “Hot Blue” flows along like liquid silk until it segues into a marvelous rump-shaking tama driven romp.” — First World Music
“Somi’s voice is full bodied and sure.” — Time Out NY
“A superb singer” — Vogue
“Somi makes music that is probably unlike anything else you’ve heard this year — or will hear.A career defining moment for a truly special performer. Highly recommended.” — DirectCurrentMusic.com
****
GET YOUR COPY TODAY!
Available now in stores in USA/Canada and digitally worldwide
Get one free download from the album, plus 20% your direct order from ObliqSound by clicking HERE
We’re thrilled to share the great news that ObliqSound recording artist Gretchen Parlato has just been nominated by the Jazz Journalists Association (JJA) for Best Female Singer of the Year in their annual awards contest.
Parlato, whose album “In A Dream” won top honors of Best Vocal Jazz Album of 2009 in the Village Voice Jazz Critics Poll, is nominated with the likes of Dee Dee Bridgewater, Roberta Gambarini, Sheila Jordan and Cassandra Wilson.
ObliqSound artist and harmonica phenom Gregoire Maret, and Blue Note Recording artist Lionel Loueke, who guests on “In A Dream” and recorded three albums with ObliqSound, are also nominated, among others.
Jazz and music publications around the USA happily reported on the nominations for the JJA’s annual awards, presented in a broad range of categories covering the music as well as those who cover and present the music. The awards will be given out at a special gala event held at City Winery in New York City on the afternoon of June 14, 2010. The event will be emceed by Terrance McKnight of WQXR-FM.
Read more information and full list of nominees on the JJA Jazz Awards website.
Join us by spreading the news and following ObliqSound on Twitter, and sharing our good news. And don’t forget to pick up a copy of “In A Dream” today!
Ma Foya, the first single from British/Nigerian bassist Michael Olatuja’s award-winning album Speak features vocals by the late, great Lynden David Hall. With lyrics in both Yoruba and English, intense African rhythms, and an assortment of remixes from such notable studio impresarios as John Morales, Duce Martinez and Jason Michael Webb of the SubUrban remix team, this track encompasses the essence of Olatuja’s artistic vision. Each remixer applies his own creative brush strokes while keeping the focus on the soul, groove and deep spirituality that lie at the heart of the song.
The title “Ma Foya” is Yoruba for “Don’t Be Afraid,” a message the echoes throughout the track. Heavily promoted at this year’s Winter Music Conference, these remixes are now being heard on dancefloors around the world and will surely among this summer’s dance anthems.
Ma Foya is dedicated to the loving memory of neo-soul vocalist Lynden David Hall, who blessed the record with his signature vocal style. Hall passed away in 2006.
John Ellis is gearing up for a busy 2010. On February 23, ObliqSound will release Puppet Mischief, the Brooklyn saxophonist’s second album with his New Orleans-based band Double-Wide, which in addition to Ellis features Brian Coogan on organ, Matt Perrine on sousaphone and Jason Marsalis on drums, plus special guest Gregoire Maret on harmonica and Alan Ferber on trombone. The recording continues the former New Orleanian’s love affair with the Big Easy, drawing inspiration from the rich vein of music the city has given the world, while also taking cues, in Ellis’ own words, from “carnivals, state fairs, children laughing, clowns and dancing.”
Ellis, now 35 has never been an artist who stays in one artistic place very long. Born in North Carolina, he took piano lessons as a child, soon switched to clarinet, and first became seriously drawn to music when he heard the music of legendary ragtime composer Scott Joplin. After moving to New Orleans, Ellis’ jazz chops improved radically as he gigged with the likes of Ellis Marsalis and Walter Payton. After three years in the Big Easy, he went north to New York City, graduating from the New School and settling into the city’s thriving jazz scene. Along the way, Ellis spent six years as a member of jazz guitarist Charlie Hunter’s group, cutting four albums with them while also developing his own sound. He cut his debut as a leader, The Language of Love, in 1996, then didn’t record under his own name again until 2002, when he released the critically acclaimed Roots, Branches and Leaves. That was followed by One Foot in the Swamp (2005), By a Thread (2006), and 2008’s Dance Like There’s No Tomorrow, his first with Double-Wide.
Puppet Mischief’s highlights begin from its very first funky moments. The leadoff track, “Okra & Tomatoes,” takes its title from a phrase that represents life’s perfect pairings. That’s followed by “Fauxfessor,” a tightly synced, off-kilter New Orleans romp full of surprising twists. Among the album’s other standouts are the wild, teasing title track, featuring a stunning harmonica solo by Maret, and the back-to-back “Carousel” and “Dubinland Carnival.” The former, which Ellis calls a “wistful circus tune,” takes on a bluesy patina and incorporates several dramatic transitions, while its companion piece, which Ellis likens to the feel of a Fellini film, features an epic sax-trombone conversation and some of Marsalis’ most fired-up drumming of the set.
The release of Puppet Mischief follows up one of the busiest years in Ellis’ career, one that saw him accompanying a diverse array of musicians ranging from Sting to Mos Def to the Cuban drummer Ignacio Berroa, touring Europe with the John Patitucci Trio and other artists and, most significantly, the debut of The Ice Siren, Ellis’ hour-long through-composed narrative composition for string quartet, tuba, percussion, guitar, vibes, winds and two singers. The piece, a collaborative effort with playwright Andy Bragen, debuted at the Jazz Gallery in New York in May 2009.
March 6 | Jazz Gallery | New York, NY
For full artist biography, photos, audio clips from Puppet Mischief and more, check out these handy websites: www.obliqsound.com
Click below to read the full review and hear the track - Weak can’t be heard anyplace else in full until the album’s release on August 25th, so enjoy and spread the word! Read, listen, and pre-order now on Amazon.com.
Surely, you already have Massimo Biolcati’s album Persona on your iPod, but did you know you could easily have his handiwork on your iPhone, too? In addition to being a masterful bassist and composer as a soloist on Persona, and as a member of Gilfema, he’s also the developer of the iRealBook for iPhone.
A professional tool for touring jazz musicians or jazz students, the iRealBook:
is a collection of chord sheets of jazz standards, jazz classics, brazilian classics and more. With the iPhone’s back lit display, sheets can be easily read in a dark jazz club. How many times have you been at a jam session or a gig where someone calls a tune and you don’t know the chord changes? Well, sweat no more, with iReal Book you’ll have the chord changes to all the songs you need in your pocket.
Be an early adopter - check out the iPhone app and Persona - and tell your friends.
ObliqSound artist Gretchen Parlato is featured in Documentary Channel’s new 4-part series “Icons Among Us: Jazz in the Present Tense”. The series premieres Monday April 20 at 9 p.m. ET/PT. Watch Gretchen in Mon, April 27th’s episode, at 9pm - “Icons Among Us - 12 Notes In Real Time”
Telecasts are Mondays at 9pm, on April 20 & 27, May 4 & 11.
Other familiar faces in the series include ObliqSound’s Gilfema leader and Blue Note recording artist Lionel Loueke, and recent ObliqSound guest artists Aaron Parks (on Parlato’s upcoming In A Dream), Anat Cohen (on Gilfema + 2), Jeff Ballard (on Persona), and Herbie Hancock (Lionel Loueke’s Virgin Forest).
Missed it? The full series will repeat and re-run many times. Check telecast times at IconsAmongUs.com
Documentary Channel is on Dish Network channel 197 & NYC TV channel 25. More info on the series at The Documentary Channel
Good news sounds so much better in French…Music critic Jacques Denis of France’s Vibrations Magazine has featured John Shannon’s American Mystic among his Best Albums of 2008.
Look out Boston, here comes Gilfema! On January 14, Gilfema will unveil their newest disc Gilfema + 2 at their USA album debut at Boston’s legendary venue The Regatta Bar. Lionel Loueke, Ferenc Nemeth and Massimo Biolcati will be joined by guest clarinetists John Ellis and Joris Roelofs to present the music of this “melodious, rich album (eMusic),” with “vital, inventive music that recalls both Africa and a summer day in Central Park (Rhapsody).
The live concert isn’t until January, but last night, Jeff Turton of Boston’s WFNX sounded the alarm that “Gilfema is coming!” on the station’s popular Jazz Brunch podcast. (Sorry, it’s Boston, we really wanted to yell “The British are coming!” like Paul Revere. Sue us!) Go to WFNX.com today and download the in-depth podcast interview with Lionel Loueke and hear some of the album’s top tunes. Stay tuned for more area appearances with the trio and guests - including a live in-studio session at Worcester, MA’s WICN Public Radio.
Listeners around the nation got a chance to hear from Lionel Loueke last week on NPR’s News & Notes, when he was invited to appear on the December 23rd show. He talked with host Farai Chideya about his unique fusion of jazz and African sounds, the new album, and even fit in the time to perform a track from Gilfema + 2 normally done in a quintet formation…Listen now on NPR and tell all your friends - preferably “plus two” at a time.
After an 8 city tour in the US opening for Maceo Parker at legendary venues including the Fillmore in San Francisco and the Roxy in West Hollywood, Grand Pianoramax has just finished a European tour with Mike Ladd, including shows in Paris, Berlin, London, Edinburgh, Zürich, Lisbon and the Cully Jazz Festival. After Europe, Grand Pianoramax played three memorable nights to full capacity crowds at the Blue Frog in Mumbai, India - which you can see for yourself in the Grand Pianoramax photo gallery on iLike.
This intense touring activity and new album The Biggest Piano In Town in stores now have received rave press reviews and profiles in many top US and Europe publications including BPM, Edinburgh Evening News and Metro London. Watch videos from recent in-studio sessions and concerts, plus read excerpts from the critics’ comments right here and read Downbeat Magazine’s June issue feature about Grand Pianoramax leader Leo Tardin below.
(click image to read the full article)
Do you think the new disc is really the biggest in town? Leave a comment and let us know…
Parlato, whose album “In A Dream” won top honors of Best Vocal Jazz Album of 2009 in the 
Ma Foya, the first single from British/Nigerian bassist Michael Olatuja’s award-winning album Speak features vocals by the late, great Lynden David Hall. With lyrics in both Yoruba and English, intense African rhythms, and an assortment of remixes from such notable studio impresarios as 
