March 2020 Recap: A Monthly Exercise in Critical Transparency

My memories of the concerts I attended during the first week of March seem like implausible fever dreams.

Top Five Performances
1. Luciana Souza, Chico Pinheiro and Scott Colley- Folly Theater
My review.
2. The Pavel Haas Quartet with Boris Giltburg- Folly Theater
My review.
3. Bill Frisell’s Harmony- Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art
My review.
4. Stephen Martin’s 5529 jam session- 5529 Troost
My Instagram clip.
5. Nick Schnebelen- Uptown Theater
The blues-rock stalwart almost upstaged headliner George Thorogood.

Top Five Albums
1. Jay Electronica- A Written Testimony
My review.
2. Childish Gambino- 3.15.20
My review.
3. J Balvin- Colores
In spite of everything, spring is here.
4. Hailu Mergia- Yene Mircha
Life itself.
5. Nicolás Jaar- Cenizas
Dark shadows.

Top Five Songs
1. Duck Sauce- “Captain Duck”
Wot.
2. Bob Dylan- “Murder Most Foul”
Jukebox hero.
3. Meredith Monk- “The Games: Downfall”
Hee-haw.
4. Aoife O’Donovan- “Bull Frog’s Croon: iii. Valentine”
I feel like going home.
5. Run the Jewels featuring Greg Nice and DJ Premier- “Ooh La La”
Gangstarrs.

I conducted the same exercise for Feburary and January.

(Original image of Stephen Martin’s jam session by There Stands the Glass.)

Album Review: Takuya Kuroda- Rising Son

My refusal to disavow smooth jazz continues to shock many friends and readers.  I happily attend a handful of smooth jazz concerts every year and regularly listen to the music without a trace of irony.  The artists I most admire in the format aren't necessarily the purveyors of the stuff that's played in elevators.  Roy Ayers, the Crusaders, George Duke, Bob James and Lonnie Liston Smith are among the artists I adore.  Takuya Kuroda shares my love of the work of those musicians.  The trumpeter's soulful new album Rising Son includes an exceptional cover of Ayers' "Everybody Loves the Sunshine."  Reclassifying the music as acid jazz hasn't done much to revive the form's popularity.  In spite of solid promotion by Blue Note Records, the new album's current sales ranking at Amazon is #13,382.  Here's the EPK for the unfairly neglected recording.


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I reviewed Sevendust's concert Thursday at the Midland theater.

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Latenight Callers made a beautiful video for "Tourniquets"

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The Strive created a video for "Keep Dreaming".

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"Bye Felicia" is a new track by MarksMyBarber & Kansas Smitty.

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Duck Sauce's Quack is RIYL: "Disco Duck," K-Tel, "Disco Inferno."  And Barry Gibb help me- I really like it.

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The Encyclopedia of Arto promises to be a handy guide to the work of Arto Lindsay.

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Neneh Cherry's new album doesn't do much for me, but "Everything" indicates that she still knows how to make a striking video.

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Hood Internet's "Digital Humpty" tickles my pleasure centers.

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Kris Bowers' "History of Jazz Piano" is pretty great.

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1987 forever!  The feedback-laden squall of Perfect Pussy's Say Yes To Love appeals to my nostalgic side.

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Kansas City Click: My official picks are published here.

(Original image by There Stands the Glass.)