12/23/2009
Rob Garcia's "Perennial" chosen one of the 10 best jazz albums of 2009 by The New York Observer

By Devin Leonard
On some nights, the drummer Rob Garcia plays traditional jazz with filmmaker-clarinetist Woody Allen at the Café Caryle. On others, you can find playing him playing the more gnarly contemporary variety that would make the crowd at the Upper East Side waterhole run for the exits. On Perennial, Mr. Garcia splits this difference between these two extremes. The album sounds a bit like a thoroughly modern version of a Lennie Tristano session from the early fifties. In other words, Mr. Garcia is a thinker. But his music is warm and unpretentious. Perhaps most delightfully, he writes melodies you find yourself humming long after Perennial is over.

Read Full article HERE

12/1/2009
Any Cotton's Last Stand at the Havemeyer Ranch review on E-music.

A first-rate ensemble of jazz's brightest minds make sparks
Avishai Cohen, Chauncey Yearwood, Kris Bauman and others join together with the Williamsburg, Brooklyn-based bassist/composer Andy Cotton for a freaked-out, molten session of jazz/funk fusion that recalls the gnarliest, most soulful and hardest-grooving portions of Bitches Brew-era Miles. Slow, loping reggae grooves, grainy, soulful blues vocals and cooled-out Augustus Pablo-style melodica further stir the stylistic pot.

Read full article HERE

11/28/2009
ACT, Perennial, The Road Ahead and Last Stand... Reviewed at Something Else Reviews

11/27/2009
The Road Ahead reviewed by Boston Herald

By Kevin R. Convey
Friday, November 27, 2009 “The Road Ahead” (BJURecords): B
It’s hard to imagine that we are already entering the post-Brad Mehldau era of jazz pianists, but young, New England Conservatory-trained keyboardist Ingram is proof. That’s no knock on the now-New York-based Ingram, whose thoroughly enjoyable debut portends a bright future. Still, it’s clear he has not broken free from his major influences, including Mehldau’s synthesis of Bill Evans and Keith Jarrett and frequent choice of rock songs for covers. Once Ingram does so, “The Road Ahead” suggests he’ll be hard to stop. Download: “For No One.”

11/25/2009
Review of ACT on Allabout jazz and Hartford Courant by Richard Kamins

ACT - Ben Wendel/Harish Raghavan/Nate Wood - (BJU Records) - Here's another fine trio recording for your delectation. Saxophonist Wendel (best known for his work with Kneebody as well as his impressive debut on Sunnyside earlier this year), bassist Raghavan (most recently with pianist Taylor Eigsti) and drummer Woods (gigs with Chaka Khan, pianist Billy Childs and others) got together for a couple of days in Woods' father's studio and just played. One can hear the influence of the classic Sonny Rollins' trio recordings (they play the master's “Pentup House“) but this is no “retro" CD. What you hear is free of artifice - it sounds like the trio is having fun, enjoy being with each other, digging into the songs, no need to set the world on fire, just let the music go where it may. That “liberating" feeling permeates the music,from the free-flowing “Break“ to the lovely reading of Elvis Costello's “Shamed Into Love" (first recorded by classical vocalist Anne Sofie von Otter.) Raghavan's “Title" reminds this listener of Trio Air, especially in the independence and interaction of the rhythm section and the way Wendel wraps his saxophone lines around the bass and drums. Wendel overdubs bassoon and piano for “What Was“, the final track, giving the tune more structure but no less power than other cuts. “ACT“ is creative music that demands you pay attention but pays the attentive listener back by being honest. Can't ask for more than that. Read the full article HERE

11/12/2009
Review of Rob Garcia's "Perennial" and Randy Ingram's "The Road Ahead" on Hartford Courant

By Richard Kamins
Perennial - Rob Garcia 4 - (BJU Records) - Part of the allure of drummer/composer's Garcia 3rd CD as a leader was the anticipation of hearing the young saxophonist Noah Preminger and pianist Dan Tepfer. Preminger, a Hartford-area native, had an excellent debut CD last year ("Dry Bridge Road") while Tepfer has shown remarkable range, working with Lee Konitz, Paul Motian and Ralph Towner. Garcia gives his youthful charges plenty of room and challenging musical structures to play with. Preminger's tenor playing has a softer edge yet he shows no trepidation in digging into the music. His inquisitive yet playful romp through the multi-sectioned "Vortex" is a treat - he's not a "muscular" player like John Coltrane or Michael Brecker but one who employs a softer, Lester Young-like, tone in most instances.....
Read the full article HERE

11/4/2009
Review of Rob Garcia's "Perennial" and Randy Ingram's "The Road Ahead" on Allaboutjazz

By Terrell Kent Holmes
Pianist Randy Ingram's fine new recording, The Road Ahead, exemplifies smooth jazz, though thankfully not in the sense of the FM radio genre. Ingram, bassist Matt Clohesy and drummer Jochen Rueckert play with such skill that they almost make it sound effortless. Ingram composed several of the tunes here, varying in range from the cool "Rock Song #3" to the samba groove of "Dream Song" and the elegant ballad "Hope." The trio does a beautiful job on the Beatles' "For No One," where Ingram's brooding bass notes in the intro are picked up nicely in Clohesy's affecting plucked solo. Rueckert's lovely brushes caress the melody of "Spring Can Really Hang You Up the Most." Playing Ornette Coleman sometimes can be like navigating a minefield, but the group handles "Round Trip" with aplomb, tap dancing among the mines..... Read the full article HERE

6/9/2009
All About Jazz New York features BJUR on their LABEL SPOTLIGHT

5/27/09
Daniel Kelly's "Obfyor" featured on Jazz.com

DANIEL KELLY: OBFYOR
TRACK Obfyor
CD Emerge (bjurecords BJUR 006) Musicians: Daniel Kelly (piano), Chris Tarry (bass), Jordan Perlson (drums). Composed by Daniel Kelly.
Recorded: Brooklyn NY, August 27-28, 2008

“Obfyor” takes a direct, organic approach to drum ‘n’ bass, bringing the harmonic finesse of jazz to bear upon it to boot. Tarry and Perlson’s driving pulse continues after a couple of go arounds with the surreptitious theme straight into Kelly’s treacherous solo on the second chord progression as he throws it into overdrive. The intensity lets up but the tempo is retained for a segment where the leader’s probing chords adds more intrigue before gradually returning the original two patterns. But this time, Perlson hyperkinetically solos underneath the piano with destructive force. 

Daniel Kelly made up the word “Obfyor” for this song. Likewise, he showed some inventiveness within the song itself. Reviewer: S. Victor Aaron.

Link to the article HERE

5/20/2008
New BJUR Cds reviewed by Midwest Records

RECOMMENDED ROUND UP FROM THE MAIL BAG

BROOKLYN JAZZ UNDERGROUND
DANIEL KELLY/Emerge (6); GUILHERME MONTEIRO/Air (7); ARTHUR KELL QUARTET/Victoria (8):  The Brooklyn jazz scene continues along it’s guerrilla ways with new stuff from a bass man, a guitar man and a piano man, all off which are showing why they are ones you should lend an ear to in the quest for the jazz of tomorrow.  Solid stuff that has an edge without getting too hip for the room leaving everyone but hipsters in the dust.

Volume 32/Number 185
May 5, 2009
MIDWEST RECORD
830 W. Route 22 #144
Lake Zurich, IL., 60047
CHRIS SPECTOR, Editor and Publisher
©2009 Midwest Record

5/19/2008
Anne Mette Iversen is the NPR Download of the day

NPR.org, May 19, 2008 - Ornette Coleman said it best, in the title of one of his compositions: "Beauty Is a Rare Thing." It holds exceptionally true in jazz, though not for want of trying: The market is saturated with sultry vocalists and sweet-hued saxophonists aspiring toward beautiful balladry. But they don't often come together with the right musicians in the right way. And good luck finding a piece with the potential for that cathartic tension and release.

When all the parts come together, as in the "West" waltz from Anne Mette Iversen's Best of the West suite, the weight of beauty is staggering. The composer and bassist fuses a progressive string quartet of fellow Danes with her American jazz quartet in a way that places modern classical and swing in order seamlessly. Pianist Danny Grissett's sparkling touch is just what you didn't know you wanted from the opening solo. And when tenor saxophonist John Ellis reaches for the high notes, there's a little pinch — that slightly sour overtone which triggers a mysterious release of sentiment.

Ultimately, Iversen's intuition for delicately assembling these sounds imbues "West" with its strength of character. Few other arrangers can deter schmaltz when putting strings to swing. And even fewer possess her sense for dulcet harmonies and exquisitely developed form — the patient listener is rewarded with a probing, big-R Romantic, strings-only cadenza at the end. Rarer still is the mind that could put it all together in a way that proclaims itself as the work of an improvising musician. Beauty may be hard to find in jazz, but as Iversen proves, that doesn't mean it's dormant in familiar elements, waiting to be expressed.

5/16/2008
The Brookyn Eagle interviews BJURecords

Brooklyn Jazz Underground Goes Global
by Beth C. Aplin (beth@brooklyneagle.net), published online 05-16-2008

New Record Label Creates Publishing Platform For Brooklyn’s Latest Jazz Ambassadors

BROOKLYN — The Brooklyn Jazz Underground’s plan for starting its own record label was, not surprisingly, a creative process. A little collaboration, a little improvisation, and a do-it-yourself attitude enabled the group of 10 Brooklyn-based bandleaders, which formed in January 2007, to create their own platform to publish their own music.

Their goal is pretty simple. “We want to have good music put out — music that really matters, that is creative, adventurous, contemporary and the best quality possible,” says Alexis Cuadrado, a bassist/composer who runs the label with fellow bassist/composer Anne Mette Iversen. “We’ve worked hard to achieve that.”

The result is Brooklyn Jazz Underground (BJU) Records, an independent, artist-run label launched this spring with not one release but three: Cuadrado’s Puzzles, Iversen’s double disc Best of the West + Many Places, and Night For Day by Bernard Emer Lackner Ferber, a quartet led by BJU member Benny Lackner, a pianist/composer and Prospect-Lefferts Gardens resident.

Though major record labels struggle to define themselves in the digital age, BJU Records’ main concern is giving musicians full control. “As musicians, we know we don’t want to give up rights and royalties of the music we worked hard for,” says Iversen.

They were undaunted by their lack of business expertise and bolstered by their decades of collective experience as independent musicians who have managed every logistic from rehearsals to bookings to touring.

“From the beginning we decided that we were not going to run this record label in a traditional sense. It is artist-run in the sense that the artist does a lot of work for the release itself,” says Iversen, a Denmark native and Red Hook resident.

“It really has been rewarding,” she adds. “It was a lot of hard work in the beginning, but I think it will turn out good in the long run.”

A Coalition of Artists

The Brooklyn Jazz Underground has been described by the New York Times as “a coalition of artists united by aesthetics as well as geography.”

By pulling their resources together, the 10-member group has found that their individual workload is less while the attention paid their projects is more. Though they’ve branded themselves as leaders in Brooklyn’s jazz scene, they’ve still retained their modesty.

“There’s a lot more going on here [in the borough],” Cuadrado says emphatically. “We hope what we’re doing might reflect some of what is happening right now.”

Cuadrado’s new album, Puzzles, is a true Brooklyn-based product. A native of Barcelona, Cuadrado has lived in Brooklyn since 1999 and wrote the album while undertaking a nearly three-year, gut renovation of his Ditmas Park home. He even had the album recorded in his living room.

Iversen’s double-disc release includes an ode to Atlantic Avenue, where she lived for several years, as well as compositions performed by her jazz quartet and a string quartet, two genres that she has brought together in the past.

Now that BJU Records is off and running, perhaps a future project of the group could be a jazz venue in their home borough. Though BJU has a weekly residence at Park Slope’s Tea Lounge, all three of BJU Records’ CD release parties will be in Manhattan, where the exposure is greater and the venues are bigger. (May 23 at The Jazz Gallery for Puzzles, May 24 at The Jazz Gallery for Best of the West + Many Places, and June 14 at Smalls for Night For Day.)

“There are lots of clubs and bars with music in Brooklyn, but none are exclusively jazz,” says Iversen. “I think we need a jazz club in Brooklyn. I have a friend who’s looking into it.”

© Brooklyn Daily Eagle 2008

5/15/2008
Alexis Cuadrado on NPR Music

Alexis Cuadrado: Jazz from the Underground
By Josh Jackson
Hear an interview and performance on NPR Music

Credits
* Producer: Josh Jackson
* Mix engineer: David Tallacksen

WBGO, May 14, 2008 - The inspiration behind Alexis Cuadrado's Puzzles was initially visual. Mario Carrillo, the bassist's late father-in-law, created a double diptych — a series of four 5' x 8' panels. The huge canvasses, each containing a multitude of colorful jigsaw puzzle pieces, exist somewhere in the realm of pop art. Stare at them long enough, though, and you start to get lost.

Cuadrado, admittedly, is not much of a hobbyist. But he can find his own affinity with the puzzle. "On a deeper level, it's a reflection of everyday life. It's puzzling, just to get by everyday and do what you do. And be content with it."

He should be happy. The Catalan-born musician has achieved a rare feat: He has crafted his career largely on his own terms. With the Puzzles Quartet, he has found musicians who are on the same page.

"The best quality of these guys is that they are great improvisers. They really go in opposite directions and very unexpected places. I like that we can do that with the band, and I try to write music with that purpose in mind."

For Cuadrado, there's plenty of purpose, but he doesn't let analysis get in the way of spontaneity. "I try to drag myself into the process without judging much, and if the song survives for a couple months, a couple gigs, and it's cool, then that's it. It's in."

Cuadrado is part of the Brooklyn Jazz Underground, a collective of 10 bandleaders in a New York borough full of jazz musicians. The BJU meets monthly to talk about music, play records, and get down to business. It's even started its own record label.

"It's great to feel like we're part of a likeminded group of people," Cuadrado says. "We're going in the same direction. Everyone in the group is so adventurous. They're trying to challenge themselves and push the envelope with their own music."

These days, integrity counts for a lot. That's what keeps independent jazz relevant in a fragmented music industry. Musicians like Cuadrado and the Brooklyn Jazz Underground understand that it takes more than talent.

Listen to Cuadrado's three compositions, and you'll find every reason to take him seriously. Between the Puzzles Quartet and the Brooklyn Jazz Underground, he's found a way to make all the pieces fit.

Originally recorded Jan. 15, 2008.

AllMusic reviews "Night for Day", "Puzzles" and "Best of the West + Many Places"

Reviews by Alex Henderson

"Night For Day"

Night for Day was among the first CDs that came out on Brooklyn Jazz Underground Records when New York City's BJU launched the label in April 2008. This disc, which was recorded in December 2007, finds guitarist Will Bernard forming a quartet with acoustic pianist Benny Lackner, bassist Andrew Emer and drummer Mark Ferber; all four of them are given co-leader credit, and the musicians have a healthy sense of camaraderie. Except for Billy Strayhorn's "Heaven," Night and Day is devoted to original material--and that material essentially falls into the post-bop category. Tracks like Bernard's "Nothing to See," Lackner's "Pianohaus" and Emer's "Waltz" are on the cerebral side, although not to the point of venturing very far into the avant-garde. If one wants to look at Night for Day as an inside/outside project, the playing is about 95% inside and 5% outside. But despite the intellectual nature of the performances, Bernard's guitar solos often have a bluesy quality. The feeling of the blues, of course, is an essential ingredient of all jazz, be it hard bop, swing, avant-garde, Dixieland, cool jazz, post-bop, third stream, soul-jazz or fusion; so in that sense, all jazz is bluesy to a degree. But Bernard comes across as someone who has seriously studied the techniques of blues guitarists, and the interesting thing is the way he manages to sound bluesy and abstract at the same time. Despite the bluesiness in Bernard's playing, no one will mistake this 50-minute CD for a Howlin' Wolf or Magic Sam session. Instrumental post-bop is definitely the focus of this quartet, which paints an attractive picture of Brooklyn Jazz Underground Records on Night for Day.

"Best of the West + Many Places"

This two-CD set houses two projects by Danish acoustic bassist Anne Mette Iversen under the same roof. The first, Best of the West, was recorded in Copenhagen, Denmark in 2006 and unites Iversen's quartet (which also includes tenor and soprano saxophonist John Ellis, pianist Danny Grissett and drummer Otis Brown III) with 4Corners, a string quartet consisting of Tine Rudloff and Sarah McClelland Jacobsen on violin, Anne Lindeskov on viola and Mats Larsson on cello. And the second CD, Many Places, was recorded in New York City (Iversen's adopted home) in 2007 and finds her group playing by itself. Stylistically, Best of the West and Many Places (both of which were produced by Iversen and offer her compositions exclusively) are fairly different; both are relevant to post-bop, but while Best of the West combines post-bop with a strong Euro-classical/chamber music influence, Many Places' post-bop is decidedly straight-ahead. And the presence of 4Corners on Best of the West does a lot to give that disc its classical-influenced appeal. 4Corners are not simply relegated to the background on Best of the West; that string quartet enjoys a genuine dialogue with Iversen's quartet, and the two groups form a cohesive octet that has no problem finding some of the things that post-bop and chamber music have in common. Nonetheless, Best of the West is not for classical purists; the performances on Best of the West still swing even though they don't swing in the totally straight-ahead way that Many Places swings. Both discs are a creative success, and both are enjoyable demonstrations of what Iversen has to offer as an acoustic bassist, composer, producer and arranger.

"Puzzles"

There was a time when it was somewhat controversial in jazz circles for a group to have horn players but no type of keyboard instrument. When Sonny Rollins and Ornette Coleman led pianoless groups in the late '50s and early '60s, some jazz enthusiasts wondered why they purposely did without either a pianist or an organist. But in fact, those pianoless units that Rollins and Coleman led during their youth went down in history as great groups--and the pianoless option has worked well for many jazz improvisers since then. It clearly works well for Alexis Cuadrado on Puzzles, a post-bop-oriented date that was recorded in Brooklyn, NY in 2007 and finds the Barcelona-born bassist performing original material exclusively. Cuadrado employs organist Pete Rende on the good-natured "B&W Pop," but none of the other selections include any type of keyboard instrument--and most of the time, he leads a cohesive quartet that also includes Loren Stillman on tenor sax, Brad Shepik on electric guitar and Mark Ferber on drums. That quartet becomes a quintet when trombonist Alan Ferber is added on three tracks: the dusky "Quintessential," the impressionistic "Canon" and the catchy "East 10th Shuffle," which brings some blues-rock appeal to what is largely a straight-ahead jazz disc. But most of the performances are quartet performances, and the use of a pianoless, organless, sax-friendly quartet serves Cuadrado well on the perky "Bright Light," the angular "Abstract Rhythm" and the pensive "Levitation" as well as the mysterious "Tango" (which is actually more Brazilian-flavored than tango-flavored--the tune definitely wasn't written with tango purists in mind). Puzzles is a solid demonstration of what Cuadrado has to offer as a bassist, arranger, composer and group leader.

Allaboutjazz reviews "Puzzles" and "Best of the West + Many Places"

By Donald Elfman

Discuss Brooklyn continues to be a beautifully complementary alternative to the New York scene. The music that comes out of this borough is bold and audacious yet also eminently listenable and highly engaging. The independent artist-run Brooklyn Jazz Underground (BJU) label has as its stated goal the production of “creative and adventurous contemporary improvised music” on “quality recordings that define the shape of today's jazz.” Here are two fine examples of that aesthetic.

Alexis Cuadrado is a talented bassist and composer who is the co-founder of the BJU label. He shows himself on Puzzles to be a talented soloist who also knows how to write music that calls forth a group spirit as well as the notion of individual voices. And he does so with a sense of the possibilities inherent in a wide swath of American music.

The feeling hits you right out of the box as “Bright Lights” comes at us with a kind of pop/island feel. The ever-appealing Loren Stillman plays the main theme on the soprano with a pure, clear tone that calls the listener both to dance and listen. Each of the players follows with concisely expressive solo statements—guitarist Brad Shepik wailing 'fuzzily,' the leader smartly getting down, Stillman once again displaying a funky intelligence in a lovely solo that leads back to the opening theme. The compositions have all the feel of a classic approach with some new avenues subtly explored. There are grooves galore here, some beautiful abstraction and some good old-fashioned Blue Note-like tunes.

The other leader/composer here is also a bassist. Anne Mette Iversen has a background in jazz and classical composition and so the first part of her two-disc set <.i>Best of the West + Many Places is laid out like a classical work and the sound of the group—the leader with John Ellis (tenor and soprano saxophones), Danny Grissett (piano) and Otis Brown III (drums)—is augmented by a string quartet that adds color and some truly intriguing textures. The strings are never just there to play under the jazz group; it's a vital voice on its own that never sounds out of place in a jazz context. The whole disc is a suite and thus there's a progression of ideas. None of the eight players calls attention to themselves yet each has an important role to play in the overall direction of the music.

The second disc in the set collects music written over the course of the three years in the Iversen group's recording history. This is a more standard jazz quartet album with every player given a shot to burn and shine. The first tune—”Cataldo One”—is a powerfully appealing example of the composer's way with a tune and just how well her players absorb her lessons and make music that moves them forward.

Jazz Improv NY magazine interviews Anne Mette Iversen and Alexis Cuadrado.

Brooklyn Jazz Underground
By Eric Nemeyer

The Brooklyn Jazz Underground is an association of independent bandleaders with a shared commitmentto improvised music. Through cooperative effort, members of the BJU strive to create greater awareness of their work.

JI: Could you talk about how you met and how the Brooklyn Jazz Underground grew out of that association?

Alexis Cuadrado: We all knew each other from networking, playing together, playing in each others’ bands, or having seen each other’s bands. We had often spoken about being frustrated about being bandleaders, and being alone in the field and trying to get our projects moved ahead. That was about three years ago. Alan Ferber and myself sat and made a list of people who we thought would be interested in forming the collective. We ended up with ten people and we formed the initial collective. The idea was to pool our resources, to get more attention, and to outreach to the community where we are, and also to start different creative projects, and to inspire each other with this project. We started a website. We have done a couple of festivals. We have a number of podcasts, interviewing each other, and they are available on i-Tunes. Eventually, this developed into the formation of the record label. The collective is looking into becoming a non-profit organization. So, we have created two different entities that are totally linked together, that are legally and physically separate.

JI: Was there a written plan that you put together when you organized the Brooklyn Jazz Underground?

AC: We had a number of goals. We all wanted toshare our contact information because we are from different parts of the world. I’m from Spain so I know a lot of people from Spain and Portugal. Anne Mette is from Denmark. Jerome Sabbagh is from France.
We wanted to bring things to the table that wouldbe beneficial for all of us. We developed a system offunctioning as we went along. We didn’t have an establishedbusiness plan. We set baby-step goals andtried to achieve them, and learn how to achieve thema s we were going — kind of improvising.

Anne Mette Iversen: We worked for almost a year before we launched the Brooklyn Jazz Underground. Throughout that year we had meetings where we were trying to figure out how we were going to do this, what we wanted to achieve. For about a year and a half we have been looking at how it has worked, and if it works, and where are we now. We’ve found that it does work and that we’ve gotten a lot of really good things out of it. Because it has worked so well, we’ve decided to expand it by creating this record label.

JI: Are there members of the collective who bringbusiness experience to the group, or is there a business consultant with whom you are working, whoprovides advice.

AMI: None of us really has business experience. Alexis and I run the label. It is not a record label in the traditional sense. It is artist run. It is very independent.We are not putting money into artists. The label is really a tool for artists who would like to release their albums, using this vehicle. The artists receive all the profits from any sales.

AC: We created a legal platform with the label, so that we could publish, as a publisher. We also had quite a bit of help from friends who are lawyers, accountants. So it has been a long period of research to figure out what kind of company we wanted to form. How do we want it to work? We had to create an operating agreement. What’s an operating agreement? We didn’t know anything. We have learned as we’ve gone along. The basic philosophy is that we are a non-profit company, and the organization provides a tool for us. Perhaps, eventually, it may be for other musicians, although we are not sure about that. But, basically we wanted this as a tool to publish our own music.

JI: What are the musical goals that you have in working together?

AC: We haven’t really set a structure like “this is the way the music has to be.” We were looking more for a group of like-minded people — one that has a very strong creative personality. We also wanted people who were trying to put their work out there, and were working actively on putting out CDs, and setting up tours; and not someone with a nine to five job, and writes some music on the side. Everyone is seriously committed. That is basically the only requirement that we wanted from the members of the initial collective, and the record label has the same philosophy. We all have pretty high standards in how we want the music to be, so there’s a lot of trust between the members. When we organized these festivals, there were all these meetings, and we were hanging out, and talking about tax returns and things like that. Suddenly, you see people play, and you go “Wow, this band is great.” It has been very reassuring for all of us to know that everyone is very dedicated to the music.

JI: What kinds of challenges do you experience as independent artists and how is the collective helping you overcome those?

AMI: The challenge is that it is extremely difficult  to be a single musician, a bandleader, having to do all the work. This is including writing the music, running the band, getting rehearsal times together, booking the studios when you record, pay for the recordings, publish it afterwards, book the tours, do all the logistics. It’s like two, three, four full-time jobs when you’re doing that as a single person, a single bandleader. It is minimizing the workload of the individual that we are experiencing that the Brooklyn Jazz Underground does for us, and the record label does for us. In terms of reaching out to the public and the audience and the media, that’s probably where I get the biggest benefit from these two organizations.

JI: Could you talk about your musical background?

AC: I think I always had a creative personality. After a number of chances I ended up liking to play the bass, and loving to play jazz. When I was nineteen or twenty I was writing my own music, and having my own bands. It’s kind of just become what I do. I love playing as a sideman and freelancer. But there is always the itch of having my own creative project. I stopped worrying about why I do it. I just try to do it as best I can and have as much fun as possible.

AMI: I knew I wanted to play music when I was thirteen or fourteen. But I had to go through a lot of different ways. I was a classical pianist for a while. Eventually, I ended up playing the acoustic bass and playing jazz. I had no doubts anymore. I knew it was the right thing. My instincts were guiding me.

JI: Talk about your influences.

AMI: What has driven me more than single musicians has been when I have heard good music, or good writing. When I was playing electric bass, I was into Steve Swallow a lot, both his writing and his melodic playing was very inspiring. Because I had this long history of playing classical music, one of my main driving forces has been classical composition: Brahms, Beethoven, Dvorak. I also went through a period where Brazilian music was inspiring me. When I was younger, I listened to everything. It wasn’t just jazz music. AC: When I was a teenager I was into the pop music of the 1980s — luckily the good music. I feel like my music research moved backward. I started with music that was current at the time and then worked back and started discovering music from the 70s and  80s — like jazz fusion. Then I traced back to Miles Davis’second quintet, then back to bebop… Now when I listen to Louis Armstrong I am hearing things I couldn’t hear before. I am gradually getting more interested in classical music from the last century, and Baroque music. I go backwards in time as my life goes forward — kind of a little weird paradox. For me, it’s important that the music hits me at some emotional level. It doesn’t really matter to me if its punk rock, or Steve Reich, or Charlie Parker. I really  don’t want to have my mind boxed in by labels. I really listen to a lot of varied stuff. Miles Davis’ album Decoy, in the 1980s, was a breakthrough for me. I thought, “This is really cool. I want to do this.” Also, Jaco Pastorius.

AMI: I’ve had two periods in my life - one where I switched from classical piano to playing bass. That was definitely because I attended this summer jazz camp, and met some of the greatest jazz musicians. I was playing bass for a year, and one of the teachers said, “Forget about the piano. Play the bass.” I went home and quit the conservatory. When I came to New York, I met and took lessons with some of the great jazz musicians. They were very encouraging also.

AC: I was very fortunate to find this great bass teacher, Francois Rabas, who was very kind to me, showed me a lot. He is a super virtuoso, contemporary classical guy. I used to commute to Paris to study with him. He set me free to do what I wanted to do. I didn’t know whether I wanted to do jazz or study classical on the bass. He told me to do  whatever felt right and do it the best you can, and it will be cool.

JI: In the past, jazz musicians had the opportunity to apprentice in different bands that were touring and playing every night. The economy is different now every night. The economy is different now and those opportunities don’t exist. How has the absence of these opportunities, and the nature of being an independent artist, helped or hindered in your pursuit of your own voice and creative efforts?

AC: It still happens in a different way. I came from Europe and I’m now playing with a lot of players whose records I used to buy. Suddenly, I’m playing with somebody that I really admire. I’ve learned a lot by playing with musicians that I know, and from just being exposed to the New York scene. It is constantly inspiring for me. I go out to see music and get blown away a few times a month. Having conversations and traveling with people…I have a sense of community. It is very enriching.

AMI: My move to New York gave me some of that. I got to play a lot when I first got here. I’ve been here nine and a half years. If I had been playing five times a week, for ten years, my voice on my instrument would be more developed than it is at the moment. It’s just a slower process if you don’t get to play that much. I feel like my composing skills are developed much more. I know my own voice in my composition language. I do also playing-wise. But it may not come out as clearly on the instrument. I think that may have to do with the situation you were describing — by playing every night with the greatest of the greatest, and learning first hand.

JI: Tell us about your new albums on the Brooklyn Jazz Underground label

AMI: I have a double CD, with my jazz quartet, and the jazz quartet with string quartet. It is called Best of the West + Many Places. The quartet music came out of our playing together, new writing when we’ve been touring. The music with the string quartet evolved from my classical background. I wrote to fuse the two genres, but to try to keep the identity of each genre. I didn’t want the strings to be background for the jazz group. I really wanted all the musicians that they were playing serious music, and doing what they do best.

AC: In my case, it’s a band that I’ve been playing with the last couple of years. I have long relationships with all the members. It was a very homemade CD, that culminated with the formation of the record label. I have a music room here at home, and we rehearse all the material here. I decided that I was going to record the CD at home. So I hired an engineer and we recorded the CD in my living room. So, it’s very linked to the house where I live — my wife and I. We bought the house and we’ve been fixing it for the last four years. While we were working on the house, I was writing all this music. Both project grew together. Doing it here at home, it was a lot of fun and very relaxed. It has a strong identity. It was almost like the way the Blue Note records used to be made in  Rudy Van Gelder’s living room. There were a few panels between us. We weren’t using any headphones. The musicians sound phenomenal. They understand the personality of each piece. It’s pretty straight-ahead with influences of things I like, such as pop music, world music, Spanish music. It definitely has a jazz essence with a modern kind of take.

Hartford Courant Reviews BJUR Releases

Click HERE to download a PDF of these review

Richard Kamins | See! Hear!
April 10, 2008
CD Reviews: Underground? Music

I'm not sure if it's really a great marketing ploy to tell the world that your "jazz" is
"underground." I do understand that " jazz" can be a hard sell in this day and age.
But the artists who make up the Brooklyn Jazz Underground have put their artistry
where it counts and, that is, into the music that makes up the initial 3 releases on the
the BJU label.  Bassist-composer Anne Mette Iversen, the quartet of Will Bernard, Andrew Emer, Benny Lackner and Mark Ferber, and bassist-composer Alexis Cuadrado have CDs that make you sit up and listen and also hope they come around so that you can see them make their music come alive.

Best of the West & Many Places - Anne Mette Iversen Quartet with 4Corners (2CDs) - The Danish-born bassist has issued 2 separate sessions both featuring her fine quartet and the first ("Best of..") adding the string quartet 4Corners.  To me, this is a gutsy move and a logical one. Gutsy, because Ms. Iversen is not a known quantity outside of the New York City area and logical, because the twin recordings show the width and breadth of her writing, arranging and performing. Her working band includes the fine young pianist Danny Grisset, the talented saxophonist (and solo artist) John Ellis and the excellent drummer Otis Brown III.  4Corners is a string quartet based in Denmark, all 4 members coming from the ranks of the Danish National Radio Symphony Orchestra, and whose repertoire ranges from Mozart to Beethoven to Ravel to Shostakovich.  Iversen has made their contribution an integral part of "Best of..." - several tracks open with the strings only before the "jazz" quartet enters.  This is not soft, wimpy, "crossover, but an intelligent blend of classical and jazz components.  The 6 tracks, all named for directions, i.e. "North (Allegro"), "West (Menuet"), grab hold of the listener and make you pay attention. Opening the program with "North (Allegro"), the strings play a rapid staccato line before the bass, drums, tenor sax and piano enter.  One hears blues mixing with 20th Century classical influences, the strings wrapping their sound around the pulsing rhythm section. Ellis's solo moves rapidly over the lush piano chords and muscular drum work.  When the strings reenter, there is no diminution of the sound but an intelligent blending of sounds.  Elsewhere, "North West" is reminiscent of the West Coast (USA) sound of the Charlie Haden Quartet West, mysterious and languid, Grisset's solo echoing Bill Evans here and Herbie Hancock there. Brown III is one of those drummers who is freed from strictly keeping the rhythm (Iversen does a fine job holding the "bottom") and he pushes and shoves against the soloist, pausing to color with cymbal work, dropping out for the strings.  If you do not pay attention, a sameness seems to fall over the entire project but on closer inspection, this is music that has tension and resolution, has complex melodies that don't just serve as springboard for solos.  One feels that Iversen has spent plenty of time giving the music its structure through the string arrangements and also given her quartet the freedom to move freely within that structure. 

"Many Places", recorded 15 months after the program above (December 2007),  is the
AMI Quartet's second CD.  The program, understandably less complex than the
double quartet music, actually has more warmth and sharper interplay.  Perhaps it's
because the group has had more time to work together so that the bassist-composer has an even better understanding of what these particular musicians can do.  "Cataldo Ballad" is just gorgeous, taken at slow pace that every note seems heightened, sounds a bit clearer.  The bassist's work below the soloist is quite melodic. Here, it's the drummer keeping the bottom while Iversen plays counterpoint.  There are several "straight-ahead" tracks, with conventional theme -solo-theme structures.  Grissett does an impressive job shadowing Ellis's melody lines on "Out of the Atlantic", his chordal work echoing the melody.  The title track opens with a slow, bowed bass solo , before Grissett takes the reins and runs over a subtle, yet high-powered rhythm.  The pianist plays loping lines, phrases that remind one of McCoy Tyner without the pounding chords.  Ellis has a conversational style on tenor, seemingly in a dialogue with either the pianist or drummer. He and Brown have a funky chat on "Sambavian" - they push at each other, sax phrases chasing the active drum phrases, having fun. When Grissett steps forward for his solo, he bounces atop Iversen's repeated 5-note bass line (with some alterations.) "The Square in Ravello" is yet another lovely ballad with sweet, light. lines from Ellis while Brown III patters underneath. The saxophonist, whose own music often reflects his Southern upbringing and New Orleans tenure, does not push his own agenda. Instead, he alters his sound for this group, with less exaggeration in his phrasing, not actually eschewing the blues but imbuing his phrases with a lighter, cleaner, tone.  These 2 disks, with nearly 2 hours of music, go a long way to define Anne Mette Iversen.  She's not out to shock the listener nor does she "dumb down" her music. Her niche is post-bop, using the mid-60s sound of Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter as a guide but never imitating either.  While the Quartet's debut disk is quite solid, this music is more mature, with the band trusting each other's instincts so the results are more satisfying.

Night For Day - Bernard/Emer/Lackner/Ferber - This foursome came together while teaching at a summer jazz camp in 2007. Bernard (guitar), a native of the San Francisco Bay area, is best known for his forays into jazz-funk with a decidely New Orleans feel to his music. Lackner (piano), a native and resident of Berlin, Germany, has toured with his own trio since the breakup of Maroon, an eclectic band that mixed numerous styles. Ferber (drums), another Bay Area native, is an in-demand drummer who is an intuitive musician, creating sounds and rhythms that enhance the music.  Emer (bass), yet another
Californian, has studied and worked with many jazz artists and also is involved with creating music for stage productions. While one might easily expect Bernard's or Lackner's musical preferences to influence the band, what one hears is the result of the group creating its own sound.  The jazzy lilt to Emer's "Waltz" has room for Ferber to sparkle and Bernard to be highly melodic and "swinging" at the same time. Bernard's "Dry Tortugas" exhibits a bluesy Tom Waits feel and more than a touch of Bill Frisell in the guitar chords.  Lackner's rambling solo on the lower half of the keyboard moves easily as Ferber pops and sizzles below and Emer bounce along the beat. Bernard employs slide guitar on several cuts, reminding this listener of Dave Tronzo.  He uses it to great effect on the band's reading of Billy Strayhorn's "Heaven", lovingly and gracefully moving through the melody. The short piano solo is both articulate and dreamy, as if trying to define the song title in musical phrases. There's even a touch of the "wah-wah" pedal on Lackner's evocative "Snow."  Despite the brevity of that track, the piece has a meditative feel, a "tone-poem" with a painterly touch. More blues-like work on "Nothing To See", which evokes both Muddy Waters and mid-60s Blue Note recordings (Ferber channels Tony Williams underneath the solos.) "Night For Day" is music expands with subsequent listenings as one notices more and more of the textures, the short, pithy, solos and the excellent rhythm section.  One looks forward to live performances to see and hear how this quartet continues to grow.

Puzzles - Alexis Cuadrado - The Spanish-born bassist assembled a fine core group of musicians for this, his 3rd, CD as a leader.  Loren Stillman (saxophone) and Brad Shepik (guitar) make up the front line and the (seemingly) ubiquitous Mark Ferber (drums) supplies the rhythms.  Recorded in the bassist's living room, the program reflects the myriad influences of the bassist-composer's life.  "Bright Light" lives up to its name, with a "bright" soprano saxophone melody and "light" guitar flashes (though Shepik's solo gets a bit distorted), atop a rocking drum beat and bouncing bass lines.  "Quintessential" pairs Stillman's alto saxophone with trombonist Mark Ferber (the drummer's brother) for a multi-sectioned piece that reminds one of the Dave Holland Quintet.  Ferber (the drummer) really drives the piece, reacting to the soloists and goosing them on. "Organist Pete Rende adds more color to "B&W Pop", his warbling tone adding a gospel-ish feel behind the pretty alto sax melody. Shepik rides atop the crisp drumming, offering a blues-tinged solo that really swings. Cuadrado pays tribute to filmmaker Federico Fellini with the mysterious "8&1/2", an abstract work with a bow to Joe Zawinul's "In A Silent Way" and sly quotes from "The Third Man Theme." A quiet yet insistent bass line opens "Tango", a piece with a handsome descending melody line and an alto solo that builds off the theme and moves forward with grace and fire. The program closes with "East 10th Shuffle" and, yes, it's a blues with a solid backbeat and a ripping melody line played by alto and trombone. Ferber (the trombonist) and Shepik rip into their solos, having a blast rising above the "slamming" rhythm section. Before the close, Ferber the drummer gets to "strut" his "chops" and the tune ends on a satisfying note (chord, actually.)
To my ears, "Puzzles" is no mystery but a great set of songs, well-played, with lots of feeling. The core band is comfortable with each other, knowing they can take chances with the music.  The solos are longer than on the CD right above yet each player has great confidence in his ability to keep the music fresh.  You may not know Alexis Cuadrado's name now but he has begun to make his mark on the creative music scene with his smart compositions and strong musicianship.

Midwest Record Reviews BJUR Releases

ALEXIS CUADRADO/Puzzles:  Hey, it almost seems that contemporary jazz was born in Rudy Van Gelder’s parent’s living room so why should this next wave be any different?  After a year of playing together, the bass ace and his pals recorded a set in his living room and basically used it as the jumping off point to start a new label and possibly new jazz movement as well.  You know these cats got down with “Right Off” when they were in their bar band phases and they use that as a basis to create their own millennial fusion that kicks ass.  Very strong set that melds the past and the future in a seamless style.
4 (BJU)

ANNE METTE IVERSEN/Best of  the West:  A Euro bass chick that straddles the jazz and classical worlds knowing how to create jazz as art, but in a good way.  A double cd set that finds her quartet in two refined settings, there’s a lot of shades of young Carla Bley pushing the limits woven through Iversen’s work.  Bursting with creativity, it sometimes seems like it might hopelessly veer into wine and cheese jazz and never come back, but it sounds like her roots don’t grow in that soil.  A nice ear opener for fans looking for a challenging, new composer.
2 (BJU)

BERNARD EMER LACKNER FERBER/Night for Day:  These cats tried doing it the major label way before the system was broken and it didn’t work for them then.  Powered by former students of Charlie Haden, this four piece progressive crew doesn’t seem to believe in rules so it doesn’t seem like there are nay for them to break.  Very much with the jazz in the basement vibe where there might only be 20 people in the audience, anyone in touch with the outer limits will enjoy what’s on tap here.  Just when you think they’re ready to go too far, they find their way back to Billy Strayhorn and all is well with the world.
3 (BJU)

Volume 31/Number 144
March 23, 2008
MIDWEST RECORD
830 W. Route 22 #144
Lake Zurich, IL., 60047
CHRIS SPECTOR, Editor and Publisher http://www.midwestrecord.com/2008/03/23/032308-happy-easter/

©2008 Midwest Record

Download the BJUR Launch Press Release

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Press Quotes about Brooklyn Jazz Underground

"Consider this the opening shot in the latest revolution to hit New York's improv scene.” – Time Out New York

“Think of it as a mix-tape, a calling card from artists who operate in a small world but like to think big.” – JazzTimes (on the BJU Compilation, Vol. 1)

“Brooklyn jazz is happening and those who venture across the bridge will be delighted by the hard-edged ethnically-flavored jazz that they find on the other side.  Two great places to start exploring the new artist collective known as ‘The Brooklyn Jazz Underground’ are Sign of the Times and This is My House, the latest from keyboardist Benny Lackner and bassist Anne Mette Iversen respectively.” – All About Jazz New York

“The Brooklyn Jazz Underground is a coalition of artists united by aesthetics as well as geography.” – The New York Times