Dave Douglas: Orange Afternoons (Greenleaf, 8/30/11)

Dave Douglas: "Solato"

Morrow: Without room to properly bill it in our title, Orange Afternoons is the new installment of the Greenleaf Portable Series, a return to the informal jazz sessions of yore. Though all of the compositions are credited to all-star trumpeter Dave Douglas, it features a similarly famous/standout cast, including saxophonist Ravi Coltrane, pianist Vijay Iyer, bassist Linda Oh, and drummer Marcus Gilmore. It's a traditional but engaging display of jazz melody and dexterity.

Hajduch: The thing that really made my ears perk up to this project was the inclusion of Iyer. His 2009 album, Historicity, is nervy and pointed but very focused. Reined in by the calmer, more melodic compositions of Douglas (whose recent Spark of Being series with Keystone hews closer to the plaintive tonal work of later electric Miles Davis), Iyer's work nails these compositions down with percussive chording.

That's a lot of busy words to describe a fairly straightforward sound. Opener "The Gulf" steadily modulates and mutates its way through a chord progression that is hard to nail down. The horns stick together mostly, navigating together as a duet. "Valori Bollati" trades this busy progression for silence, framing a series of solos with an extremely sparse drums-and-bass arrangement. Iyer's solo in particular feels like misdirection, at one point walking into the lower register only to stop there, as if stuck.

Morrow: "Valori Bollati" works because after all the soloing, it slows for a much calmer mood, something more befitting the title of the album. Iyer's outro "solo" also is a nice touch. The title track also serves this dual nature, as Douglas, Coltrane, and Iyer take turns leading the rhythm section in a warm romp.

The album ultimately serves its purpose — a quick session, recorded in one day, that comes together with dynamite players — but for me, it falls short of being memorable. For a set of players who, in the past, have written great melodies and pushed the boundaries of traditional jazz, Orange Afternoons feels a bit aimless.

Hajduch: "Aimless" might be a bit harsh. The songs do wander quite a bit, but the recording is immaculate and the performances are spot-on. The compositions are interestingly complex and fun to follow. Released as a low-price digital-only download, I think that the Greenleaf Portable Series has found an ideal format for less formal sessions like this.

Morrow: I like the idea for the series as well, and Orange Afternoons is much, much more than simply five musicians hitting "record" and throwing down random free-jazz improv. The pieces and players work together very well, but I'm such a fan of some of the members' catalogs that maybe my standards are a little higher. I would never discourage someone from picking this up!

Tristan Perich: 1-Bit Symphony (Cantaloupe)

In 2004, contemporary composer Tristan Perich first created his unorthodox (yet old-school) means of delivering minimalist electronic creations — by programming different bleeps and buzzes onto a microcomputer, which was built into a circuit (with a headphone jack) and placed in a jewel case.

The result — 1-Bit Music — ranged, in Perich's words, from "drum and bass to minimalism to electronic noise," and it was fascinating for the direct relationship that it established between listener and music, with the music being performed anew each time that the "on" switch was flipped.

Now Perich is back with 1-Bit Symphony, using the same means of delivery but presenting a formal electronic work.  Over five movements, 1-Bit Symphony shifts through harmonized sine waves and dot-matrix sounds.

Though a diversity of sounds cannot be attained, the piece does its best to achieve different moods, reflecting Perich's abilities as a composer.  (He has commissioned pieces for Bang on a Can, Dither Quartet, and others.)

The total package is impressive, but you don't realize just how meticulously and painstakingly 1-Bit Symphony is programmed until you see the "liner notes" — the full programming code, with notes and rests dictated over a massive script.  If you're looking for something special in a jewel case, pick this up.

Tristan Perich: 1-Bit Symphony (Part 1: Overview) from Tristan Perich on Vimeo.

Dave Douglas & Keystone: Spark of Being: Expand (Greenleaf)

Composer/trumpeter Dave Douglas has led and performed with dozens of ensembles, traversing terrain both accessible and treacherous for more than 20 years, but he's never done anything quite like this.

Spark of Being is Douglas' collaboration with experimental filmmaker Bill Morrison, who has re-imagined the Frankenstein story with different pieces of stock/archival film and effects.

The film's music — a slightly rock- and electronic-touched jazz affair — is being released in three parts and as a three-piece box set.  The proper soundtrack (simply titled Spark of Being: Soundtrack) was released back in June, but Expand presents the themes as wholes, not as they were rearranged for the visuals.

Naturally, because of this, Expand works as a standalone release. With the aid of his Keystone ensemble, Douglas presents a groove-heavy collection, and much of the music is powered by the beats of Gene Lake, the Fender Rhodes of Adam Benjamin, and the turntables/laptop of DJ Olive.

Expand fits Douglas' catalog, but it goes a little further than usual, and there's even a moment or two that sounds like a twisted video-game or circus (like the end of "Observer").  And with no shortage of hard beats and head-nodding potential, Expand should especially appeal to fans of jazz fusion and acid jazz.

Dave Douglas & Keystone: "Tree Ring Circus"

Pale Sketcher: Jesu: Pale Sketches Demixed (Ghostly International)

Nowadays, Justin Broadrick is best known for his ambient-metal project Jesu.  This noisy yet emotive project was a step removed from his days in Napalm Death and Godflesh, and now his new project — Pale Sketcher — is another full step in the direction of electronics.

Broadrick's 2007 release as Jesu, titled Pale Sketches, explored unfamiliar terrain for the Jesu brand, pushing into synth-driven, beat-based territory.  Now, to flesh out those works (or, as the title suggests, to de-flesh them), he has reworked all eight tracks from Pale Sketches for Jesu: Pale Sketches Demixed.

Though it still figured in Pale Sketches' sound, Broadrick's distorted, droning guitar is absent here.  Instead, there is a greater emphasis on down-tempo electro beats, thick synth lines, and glistening atmospherics.

Broadrick is no stranger to electronica — he has collaborated in Techno Animal since 1990 — but it's a new side of his solo career.  Judging by this first impression, he should have a lot to offer.

Pale Sketcher: "Can I Go Now (Gone Version)"

James Blackshaw: All is Falling (Young God)

James Blackshaw seems like one of those guitarists who just never stops practicing.  Exceptional on the 12-string model and proficient on the piano as well, Blackshaw doesn't possess guitar-phenom, wunderkind-like abilities — but he has damn well mastered a complex instrument.

Hailing from London, Blackshaw recently leaped to Young God Records, the veritable label that Swans leader Michael Gira runs. All is Falling, Blackshaw's second Young God release, is his 8th studio album since 2004, reflecting the prolific nature of a man who seemingly never puts down his guitar.

All is Falling is his first release to feature an electric 12-string guitar, and it's accented by his own performance on glockenspiel, piano, and percussion as well as guest spots of violin, cello, flute, and more.  This combination helps Blackshaw expand his sound while staying true to what he does best.

Blackshaw has talent oozing out of him, but his classical sense of melody is what makes him a remarkable musician.  Whether or not you're already a fan, All is Falling is worth picking up.

James Blackshaw: "Part 7" (edit)

The Sword: Warp Riders (Kemado)

Over its first two albums, The Sword has delivered a shredding brand of stoner metal that has equally appealed to head-bangers and edgy sci-fi geeks.

Other than a semi-deceptive opening track, Warp Riders — the band's third full-length — doesn't stray from the path.  There are plenty of guitar duels, chug riffs, and bluesy, Southern, dropped-tuning power-chord progressions.

As with previous albums, however, Warp Riders is more than a technical display.  The band never opts to sacrifice songwriting for slick licks, and each song stands as its own easily digested piece.

Warp Riders doesn't take The Sword far beyond where it has been, but it doesn't particularly need to.

The Sword: "Tres Brujas"

Imbogodom: The Metallic Year LP (Thrill Jockey)

Recording for the first time under the name Imbogodom, cross-continental friends Alexander Tucker (of the UK) and Daniel Beban (of New Zealand) create haunted paintings of sound that are composed of loops, assorted instruments, warped vocals, and sampled sounds.

When fully assembled, the pieces are weird, dark, and trippy, like a dreamy/nightmarish journey through an industrial park or an abandoned amusement park.  The tracks are somewhere between sound collage and manipulated organics, and any given sound is likely to have indecipherable origins.

Fans of ambient, drone, and experimental music will love The Metallic Year, which is a limited release of 1,000 vinyl copies (with free MP3 downloads).

Imbogodom: "Unseen Ticket"

Honorable Mentions

!!!: Strange Weather, Isn’t It? (Warp)

Barb: s/t (Yep Roc)

S. Carey: All We Grow (Jagjaguwar)

Gabriele Coen: Awakening (Tzadik)

Coil Sea: s/t (Thrill Jockey)

Eels: Tomorrow Morning (E Works)

Fennesz/Daniell/Buck: Knoxville (Thrill Jockey)

Fitz and the Tantrums: Pickin' Up the Pieces (Dangerbird)

John Scofield & Metropole Orkest: 54 (Emarcy)

Brad Laner: Natural Selections (Hometapes)

Jon Langford & Skull Orchard: Old Devils (Bloodshot)

Malevolent Creation: Invidious Dominion (Nuclear Blast)

Marty Ehrlich & Hankus Netsky: Fables (Tzadik)

Brian Wilson: Reimagines Gershwin (Disney)

John Zorn: Filmworks XXIV: The Nobel Prizewinner (Tzadik)

Heavy Trash: Midnight Soul Serenade (Fat Possum)

As Jon Spencer and Matt Verta-Ray unleash their third disc of old-school roots rock and rockabilly as Heavy Trash, the duo collaborates with a bona fide cast of contributors to create some of its finest tunes on a disc that expands its repertoire.

Accompanying organ is spread throughout Midnight Soul Serenade, an album that also contains splashes of piano on "Gee, I Really Love You," vocal gentleness and female vocal backings on "Good Man," vocal eccentricities on "Bumble Bee," Southwestern guitar and baritone harmonies on "Pimento," and low tones and acid flair on "The Pill," a tune evocative of Twin Peaks that tells its own psychedelic tale.

Top-end players Simon Chardiet, Sam Baker, Powersolo, Mickey Finn, Daniel Collas, and Those Darlins lend their good graces. If this kind of music piques your interest, pick this up.

Themselves: CrownsDown (Anticon)

After six years of silence (spent on countless other projects, many with each other), no-nonsense rap duo Themselves — Adam "Doseone" Drucker and Jeffrey "Jel" Logan — returned with a free "mixtape" earlier this year. Now the two have released their proper third album, CrownsDown, a sample-driven album that is both experimental and traditional.

The gritty, nasally intonation and rapid-fire delivery of Jel are slathered up and down the disc, which is based on hip-hop and dance beats and patchwork samples. Subtle founder Dax Pierson and 13 & God bandmates Jordan Dalrymple and Markus Acher make cameos.

Minamo: Kuroi Kawa: Black River (Tzadik)

Avant-violinist extraordinaire Carla Kihlstedt (Sleepytime Gorilla Museum, 2 Foot Yard, The Book of Knots) and prolific classical pianist Satoko Fujii (Satoko Fujii Orchestra) spend much of their time on the outskirts of musical convention, combining their desired genres in whichever ways that they see fit.

Here the two create two worlds on two discs: one of dutifully recorded compositions and one of live, stream-of-conscious improvisations. Fans of experimental chamber music should dig this.

Honorable mentions:

Dave Douglas: A Single Sky (Greenleaf)
Jesu: Opiate Sun (Caldo Verde)
Mike Reed’s People, Places & Things: About Us (482 Music)
Jessica Pavone: Songs of Synastry & Solitude (Tzadik)
Pyramids with Nadja: s/t (Hydra Head)
Rupa & The April Fishes: Este Mundo (Cumbancha)
The Squirrel Nut Zippers: Lost at Sea
John Zorn: Femina (Tzadik)

Having come to prominence while playing with John Zorn in the 1990s, trumpeter/composer Dave Douglas has since established a respected oeuvre of his own as a bandleader.  His work spans swaths of the jazz spectrum and often falls outside of it, and he partakes in handfuls of projects at any given time.

Brass Ecstasy, one of Douglas' newer groups, now makes its debut with Spirit Moves, a fun, horn-filled homage to New Orleans as well as other inspirations, including Art Ensemble of Chicago cofounder Lester Bowie, who passed away in 1999.

Rock Plaza Central: …at the Moment of our Most Needing or If Only They Could Turn Around, They Would Know They Weren't Alone (Paper Bag)

Following a critically acclaimed album with a theme about robot horses that believe they're the real deal, Rock Plaza Central returns with a debut for Paper Bag Records.

A near-death accident has made this doubly named album extra special to the group, which again employs a semi-orchestral neofolk mixture with melodious acoustic guitars and Southwestern horns.

Masada Quintet (featuring Joe Lovano): Stolas, The Book of Angels Vol. 12 (Tzadik)

Comprised of 300 tunes — written in just three months — John Zorn's second Masada book, The Book of Angels, is a sprawling collection of musical diversity.  Each installment of the series, which began in 2005, has been performed by a different group of collaborators, and this one features Zorn's new Masada Quintet plus saxophonist Joe Lovano.

Stolas is decidedly jazzy, reuniting a number of classic Zorn contributors, including the aforementioned Dave Douglas, bassist Greg Cohen, pianist Uri Caine, and drummer Joey Baron.  The result is an accessible jazz disc that varies in theme and briefly touches upon Zorn's Jewish melodies.

One Day as a Lion, the hip-hop/rock duo of Zach de la Rocha and Jon Theodore, has posted a video for its successful single, "Wild International."

The inexhaustible Zach Hill has another new project, this one with Zac Nelson.  The duo's harmonic weirdness is called Chll Pll and will be released this year on Porter Records.

Omar Rodriguez Lopez, a musician as tireless as Zach Hill (and also a collaborator with him), has finished another new album for The Mars Volta.  The album, titled Octahedron, will be released on June 19.

Hardcore punks Trash Talk have a new EP, East of Eden, that can be heard here.  The band recently began a month-long US tour with The Bronx.

Kayo Dot will record a new album this summer with engineer Randall Dunn (Secret Chiefs 3, Grails).  The group will tour in June and July and later release the album on Hydra Head.

On Tuesday in Seattle, as part of Tom Morello's Justice Tour, three-quarters of Soundgarden — Kim Thayil, Matt Cameron, and Ben Shepherd — played three Soundgarden songs with Morello as the second guitarist and Tad Doyle (of TAD) handling the vocals.  The vocals aren't pretty and the footage isn't great…but the whole thing is pretty awesome.

Kid Koala's Slew album is finished and looking at a late summer release.  In the meantime, he's producing an album for songwriter Terence Bernardo.

Tool will tour the US this summer, though dates are unannounced at this point.  Chicago Tribune rock critic Greg Kot has reported rumors of the band headlining Lollapalooza.

Pressing forward for another album with its original lineup, Dinosaur Jr. will release Farm on June 23 via Jagjaguwar.

Yoshida Brothers, a Japanese shamisen duo, will tour the US West Coast for a spell in May before playing a pair of dates in British Columbia.

Busdriver and Tim Fite, both peculiar performers, will perform at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County on April 3.

Looking for constant updates about the Faith No More reunion?  Check out this handy blog.

Greenleaf Music is now streaming its entire front-line catalog at its online store.