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If it takes a village to raise a child, as the proverb says, then it certainly takes at least that much to nurture a big band. Pianist and bandleader Orrin Evans has long used “the Village” to refer not only to his family-like cohort of fellow musicians in the Captain Black Big Band, but also to the extended family of fans, supporters and inspirations that have carried the ensemble to a Grammy nomination and its status as one of the most thrilling and revered in modern jazz. Featuring both taut, but keenly focused ensemble playing and raucous, spirited soloing, their new CD “The Intangible Between” reflects the ever-growing chemistry of the core ensemble while celebrating Evans’ open-door policy toward collaborators new and old.
Like many of his fellow Angelenos, Jake Reed has played many different roles since arriving in L.A. a dozen years ago. Depending on the day, audiences might think of him as an inventive small-group jazz drummer, as in the work with the convention-defying trioKAIT; as a dynamic rock powerhouse in the John Bonham mold; as the whispering pulse behind folk singer-songwriters or retro-jazz crooners; as a virtuoso swinger anchoring the Bill Holman Big Band; or as the subtle percussion evincing the emotional resonance of films like Alexander Payne’s “Downsizing” or the James Brown biopic “Get on Up.” With the release of his multi-faceted debut album, “Reed Between the Lines,” Reed finally gets to showcase all of his talents in one dazzling project.
Also this week, ace multi-reedist and composer Brian Landrus brings together a remarkable quartet featuring pianist Fred Hersch, bassist Drew Gress and drummer Billy Hart along with brilliant young players Michael Rodriguez on trumpet and Sara Caswell on violin on “For Now”;
Dan Wilensky’s seventh recording as a leader, “All in All,” features Portland, Oregon veterans Clay Gilberson on keyboards and Bill Athens on bass, and a superb young newcomer on the scene, drummer Michah Hummel collaborating on ten Wilensky originals;
and bassist and composer Fred Randolph is joined by trumpeter Erik Jekabson for “Mood Walk.”