A few years ago I went completely bonkers for an album of electronica from a European label–Rasmus Kjaer’s Turist. It sounded like the proverbial breath of fresh air because keyboardist Kjaer was so adept at […]
It’s been over three years since A Winged Victory for the Sullen’s most recent release, 2021’s Invisible Cities. What’ve AWVFTS’s Adam Wiltzie and Dustin O’Halloran been doing since then? Droning? Orchestrating? Bumming around their adopted […]
Some of my favorite jazz albums aren’t really jazz at all. Sometimes they’re classified as jazz because they don’t fit anywhere else. This music might be heavy on improvisation, heavy on extended jams, but light […]
The arrival of Lyn Stanley‘s latest album, Black Dress Ballads, just so happened to coincide with the arrival of an impressive new vinyl rig–the J. Sikora Initial Max turntable with two 12″ tonearms. Whenever I […]
It’s the dead of winter right now, and I often spend the bad weather days listening to gentle and introspective music while staring out the windows at all that snow. My musical choices usually gravitate […]
This is the perfect time of year for the Benjamin Gisli Trio and their new album, Line of Thought. The holidays are over and now we northerners can look forward to a period of hibernation, […]
Words and Photos by Paul Ashby Niecy Blues Exit Simulation (Kranky US) I can’t recall ever calling anything “Album of the Year.” It’s a new thing with me. Although potential competition may have seemed significant, […]
Johnny Hodges was certainly a legendary saxophone player, but his career as a bandleader and composer was sometimes overshadowed by his stint with the Duke Ellington Orchestra. Not a bad problem to have, of course, […]
During the five or more years I’ve covered contemporary jazz releases, I’ve often lamented–to mostly myself–that so many album titles were, well…basic. It’s almost a tradition in jazz, to name albums in very obvious ways […]
I have to admit I’m a fan of modified pianos, if you can call it that. There are prepared pianos, of course, where a variety of devices are attached to the wires on the soundboard, […]
After spending the last few years reviewing a dang plethora of contemporary jazz releases as well as classic reissues, I’ve come to certain conclusions. One, which is surprising, is that only now am I truly […]
“The Weight” came to me when I was sixteen in 1968, from a Sony transistor radio tuned to KMPC-AM and its top forties programming that reached throughout Greater Los Angeles. From its first notes—Robbie Robertson’s […]
I’ve been planning this move to a bigger house with a bigger listening room for most of the year, and since it’s such a secluded location I’ve been chomping at the bit to crank the […]
After listening to the latest from 2L Recordings, An Old Hall Ladymass, I have but one question. What is an organetto? In this day and age we have the Google so I shouldn’t be asking […]
Yes, it’s been months since I’ve written a music review. As I mention in my upcoming test of the Audio Note UK CDT One/II transport, I’ve had quite a busy 2023–five high-end audio shows in […]
Right before the holidays I traveled up to Seattle to meet with PTA senior contributors Grover Neville and Mohammed Samji to hear Mo’s Wilson Audio/Dan D’Agostino/dCS/Transparent system. Early in the listening sessions, Mo put on […]
Thanks John Daversa and Tal Cohen, for sending me on a wild goose chase with your new album The Art of Duo, Volume One. It’s been a few weeks since I’ve been able to review […]
I know, two 2L Recordings in a row, but this is the best time to listen to the latest releases from this Norwegian label–in the middle of the winter. I managed to escape the last […]
While I haven’t written about music for a while, I’ve liked a good many musical things since I last scribbled for this fair outlet in March 2020 (!). Reflections regarding 2022/21’s favored and favorite 2021 […]
Acute Inflections’ Let Go has instantly become one of my favorite demo albums because it’s so pure and simple–just a singer with accompaniment from a stand-up bass. It helps that Elasea Douglas has one of […]
Copyright PT Audio 2009-2023