The Microscopic Septet’s Friday the 13^th: The Micros Play Monk will feature twelve original arrangements of jazz legend Thelonious Monk’s songs, celebrating the musician that sparked the band’s existence.  The album includes artwork by Barry Blitt of the New Yorker, and liner notes by jazz critic Peter Keepnews.

The Two Faces of Janus, by quick-fingered saxophonist/flutist Jason Robinson, is one of three projects to be released simultaneously by three different labels in September and October.  The album features ten original pieces ranging from two-reed duets to layered sextet pieces, reflective of NYC’s distinctive jazz scene.  Joining him on the album are noted New York musicians Liberty Ellman, Drew Gress, George Schuller, Marty Ehrlich, and Rudresh Mahanthappa.

Stay tuned for news on Cuneiform's other fall releases, including albums from Richard Pinhas, Univers Zero, and Uz Jsme Doma.

Om: God is Good (Drag City)

Following the amicable departure of drummer Chris Haikus in early 2008, hypnotic bass-and-drums duo Om found a chiefly suitable replacement: Emil Amos, a key component of visceral, worldly, genre-defying quartet Grails.

Amos joins bassist/vocalist Al Cisneros, a long-heralded piece of stoner-doom band Sleep who has used Om to channel discarnate vibes.  The result is a further worldly bent, with the help of friends such as flutist Lorraine Rath and Lichens / 90 Day Men member Rob Lowe on tamboura.

Recorded with Steve Albini at Chicago's Electrical Audio, God is Good showcases Om’s penchant for creating music that is as genuinely emotive as it is heavy, best illustrated on opening number “Thebes,” which begins serenely, building into a rollicking thunder before coming down again.  And like the art, God is Good represents another step in the journey for Om — a heightened sense of focus and wellbeing.

Om: "Cremation Ghat II"
Om: \"Cremation Ghat II\"

Ben Perowsky: Moodswing Orchestra, Vol. 2 (El Destructo)

For this second installment of down-tempo jams and improvisations, drummer/producer/composer Ben Perowsky joins forces again with turntablist / electronic performer Markus Miller and keyboardist Glenn Patscha, who all began the Moodswing Orchestra in a live improv setting in 2002.

Gathering a cast of all-star guests for this installment, Perowsky instructs his musical brethren away from the jazz idiom — in his words, "less Herbie, more Eno."  The result is an eclectic disc full of elastic grooves, sultry and low-key vocals, and atmospheric improvisation.  Smooth bass sounds meld with computerized tones, flute, oboe, theramin, saxophone, and the trio's regular armaments to create a seductive sonic alloy.

Big-name collaborators Bebel Gilberto, Jennifer Charles (Elysian Fields), Steven Bernstein (Sex Mob), and Miho Hatori (Cibo Matto) join lesser-known but equally vital guests in the form of Pamelia Kurstin, Marcus Rojas, Joan Wasser (Joan as Policewoman), Doug Wieselman, and others.  For soothing jams with striking originality and exceptional musicianship, pick this up.

Ahleuchatistas: Of The Body Prone (Tzadik)

With its proper Tzadik debut, Ahleuchatistas issues one of its most well-rounded albums, mixing improvisational and math-rock madness with refined (though still measurably impenetrable) rhythms.  There's a greater emphasis on melodies and repeated patterns this time around, and new drummer Ryan Oslance proves capable of appropriate accompaniment.

Tzadik, which last year re-released the band's 2004 album (The Same and the Other), should be a suitable home for Ahleuchatistas, which appeals to fans of math rock, prog rock, and experimental rock and even draws in some jazz heads.

Jason Adasiewicz’s Rolldown: Varmint (Cuneiform)

Vibraphone virtuoso Jason Adasiewicz has some of the most dexterous chops in Chicago's thriving jazz scene, capable of creating motion blur for concertgoers.  But Adasiewicz also slows it down, and his effort as a bandleader, Rolldown, combines the two worlds in a deft interplay between composition and improvisation.

For this sophomore effort, Rolldown treats listeners to more of its wandering, melodic passages, rife with cool ambience, fiery solos, sharp snare accents, and clicking chemistry.  Cornetist Josh Berman, alto saxophonist and clarinetist Aram Shelton, bassist Jason Roebke, and drummer Frank Rosaly round out the expert quintet.

Jason Adasiewicz's Rolldown: "Hide"
Jason Adasiewicz\'s Rolldown: \"Hide\"

It’s a busy, burgeoning community, where each musician carries responsibilities for upwards of a dozen bands, supporting one another live and on record, developing their skills and a familiarity with each other’s musical styles and tendencies.

“It’s a family,” Adasiewicz says. “The reason why the bands are sounding better and better is that we’re growing together. We play an insane number of projects with one another, and the bands are cohesive and evolving.” This camaraderie can be heard in large ensembles like Rob Mazurek’s Exploding Star Orchestra, of which Adasiewicz is a crucial member, and smaller groups like Rolldown, the vibe player’s personal project.

As a young musician growing up in Crystal Lake, a suburb of Chicago, Adasiewicz found himself torn between his interest in jazz and love of rock. He discovered the vibraphone in junior high, and though it piqued his interest, his primary focus was on the drums. “My drum teacher had a vibraphone nestled away in the studio,” he explains, “and when I heard it for the first time, it was like, ‘Oh, wow.’ I didn’t know something like that existed. [It was] always on the side, though. Drums were in the forefront.”

He entered DePaul University to study jazz but was disinterested in the rigid, academic approach to music he found there. Ironically, it was only when he entered the Chicago indie-rock scene as drummer for the band Pinetop 7 that he discovered the deep, rewarding jazz music that he had been looking for. Mixing with notables like Fred Lonberg-Holm and Jeff Parker, who managed to pursue their improvisational inclinations while also moonlighting for rock bands, gave Adasiewicz the confidence and motivation to try new things.

He credits his true education in jazz to Chicago’s renowned Jazz Record Mart, where he found new sounds, new ideas, and new friends who would serve as his collaborators for many years. “The Jazz Record Mart is a really amazing record store that specializes in jazz and blues,” he says. “It’s a classic downtown environment with an insane amount of records. It’s for serious record dorks.”

It’s also where he met cornet player Josh Berman, his one-time roommate and current collaborator in Rolldown. “We lived in this house together,” Adasiewicz says, “fiddling around with compositions, writing, trying to figure it out, and we looked up to people like Rob Mazurek, Fred Anderson, and Ken Vandermark.” It wasn’t long before Adasiewicz was playing with his idols, learning from them and using his newfound knowledge to develop his songwriting and guide his own groups.

Incorporating elements of traditional Mexican and Spanish music into his expansive repertoire, tireless composer John Zorn bangs out another soundtrack, this time for a documentary about Mexican dictator Plutarco Elias. Another accessible, beautiful release, El General is scored for guitar, marimba, bass, piano, and accordion, with drums and vibraphone showing up in spurts.

Mountains: Choral (Thrill Jockey)

Making its Thrill Jockey debut, this electro-acoustic duo creates acoustic melodies that breathe with the field recordings and electronics that surround them. Tranquil, crackling bits pile on layers of atmosphere; drones circle around extended passages and repetitive themes. The result is a serene album that is as apt for detached meditation as it is for intense musical focus.

Mountains: "Choral"
Mountains: \"Choral\"

Rob Mazurek Quintet: Sound Is (Delmark)

Following a solo release and albums from Sao Paulo Underground and Exploding Star Orchestra, jazz composer/cornetist Rob Mazurek returns with a new quintet. The group features a loaded lineup of Chicago standouts, including drummer John Herndon (Tortoise), vibraphonist Jason Adasiewicz (Rolldown), acoustic bassist Josh Abrams (Black Earth Ensemble), and electric bassist Matthew Lux (Isotope 217).

With 14 new compositions, Sound Is sees Mazurek continuing to push the boundaries of modern jazz while using semi-traditional instruments.

Steven Wilson: Insurgentes (Kscope)

The founder of English rock band Porcupine Tree, guitarist/singer Steven Wilson has taken a wandering path throughout his musical career, traveling through metal, pop rock, progressive psychedelia, and atmospheric ballads.

Wilson's solo debut, Insurgentes, shows a similar penchant for diversity. Rock structures overlap with electronic ambiance, moody acoustic guitars, dark synths, and soft vocal harmonies, making a malleable foundation as Wilson channels Thom Yorke in much of his signing.

A bit of the balladry gets too close to Coldplay and other melodramatic radio artists, but most of the album is an interesting exhibition in songwriting.

Steven Wilson: "Harmony Korine"
Steven Wilson: \"Harmony Korine\"