A Review:
Third World Love, Songs and Portraits (Anzic Records)

I meant to review Songs and Portraits, the fourth release from Third World Love, almost a year ago, but the entire universe conspired against it. The universe now appears to be occupied with other things, so here we go.

Unafraid of melody and committed to the groove, Third World Love comprises Avishai Cohen (brother to Anat) on trumpet, Yonatan Avishai on piano, Omer Avital on bass, and Daniel Freedman on drums. The first three guys hail from Israel, and they bring strong Middle Eastern influences to the table. (Freedman is a native Brooklynite.) All four of them share a willingness to entertain other musical influences, from rock to Arabic to African. They may also share a single brain; it’s hard to explain the tightness of their ensemble playing otherwise. And what playing it is—spontaneous and combustible jazz at a very high level of technical proficiency. Continue reading →

A Review:
Omar Sosa, Eggun: the Afri-Lectric Experience (Otá Records)

I’ve seen it happen in live performances: Some interior door swings open, and the musician connects with something else. Music pours out
irresistibly, the performer as much in its thrall as the audience, an open channel between this world and another—a messenger of light.

Cuban-born pianist/composer Omar Sosa is one of those musicians, and as with all of them—Ravi Shankar, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Regina Carter, to name a few—I now listen to his work with my ears tuned to a slightly different frequency, alert for the transformative communion. Eggun, like many a Sosa recording, opens that channel.  Continue reading →