Aaron Jerome - Time to Rearrange (2008)

Aaron Jerome combines his brilliant production skills with accomplished musicianship and a rising Dj career. Working at one of London's top independent record stores has not only secured him a myriad of contacts in the music industry, but also exposed him to a wide range of musical influences - as is readily apparent on his debut album "Time to Rearrange" which features plenty of young and up-and-coming guest artists such as Bajka, Simphiwe Dana (South African SAMA 6 times award winning artist), Mozez (Zero 7), Yungun and Kathrin deBoer (Belleruche).

Having DJ'ed in places from South Africa to Sweden and back to the UK and all places in between, Aaron has also been cutting his teeth for a while with remixes for established artists such as Roy Ayers, Bugz in the Attic, Zap Mama and Nitin Sawhney, but it was his remix of Nicole Willis' 'Feeling Free' that really got this young artist noticed. Fania also released his stunning re-work of Pete Rodriguez as part of the Fania DJ series on 12" late 2007.

Text from Soul Seduction

Page on BBE Music - LastFm page - On YouTube - MySpacePage -

Fertile Ground

Although they're considered new artists, Fertile Ground has seven years, countless performances, and dozens of recordings to their credit. After 2 years of extensive touring, writing and recording, the group unveiled their fourth full-length masterpiece, simply entitled Black Is... The highly-anticipated CD, is the sequel to the acclaimed 2002 release Seasons Change. This fourth full-length album, contains a range of ethereal classics such as "Yellow Daisies", a soulful jazz waltz ballad full of affirmation, the joyful noise of "Live In the Light"; and the introspectively revealing song "Naked," which gives us an example of how to truly connect with and reflect each other. Selling more than 125,000 albums , Fertile Ground has created the modern blueprint for independent music sales and become the leader of a movement. With a rebellious freedom and an undaunted genius Fertile Ground's founding leader and keyboardist, James Collins, started Blackout Studios to help get the band's music to listeners the best way possible. Where many artists believe the hype and opt to stand in the longest line waiting to be scooped up by a label, Blackout Studios recognizes that good music can be transmitted through the effective use of the underground.
Fertile Ground has shared the stage with such multi-platinum heavyweights as Cassandra Wilson, Hugh Masekela, Me'Shell N'Degeocello, India Arie, Wynton Marsalis, Jill Scott, Chaka Khan, and even Run DMC. The band is often classified as Soul-Jazz, but they spill out of any genre as a cross-cultural fusion of all things spiritual and funk-ridden. In this realm called good music, theatrics never replace integrity, nor does experience and success replace a creatively fresh approach to each project. Messages are heart-felt, conveying an unashamed spirituality, a firm political stance, or whatever the moment requires, and everything is heavily supported by raw, organic, often danceable compositions in the tradition of Fela Kuti, Stevie Wonder, Santana, and Earth Wind & Fire. With the requisite strength, depth and energy to electrify crowds, musicians, DJs, journalists, and promoters not just once or twice, but over and over again, Fertile Ground has been cementing their place as musical and social innovators.

New album out this fall 2009. Stay Tuned...

(Text from the Fertile Ground MySpace Page)

Mama!Milk - Fragnance of Notes (2008)

Gilles Peterson WORLDWIDE Album of the Year

Sound that stops the moment and makes you wonder

mama!milk is by accordion player Yuko Ikoma and ContrabassKosuke Shimizu, they're based in the old city Kyoto and has beendoing a live at art museums, theater, cafe and even at a temple.
Their music are like a flame at the fireplace, burning quietly but not silently and burn the heart of people who listen to it. It's been a while since I have been facinated by their music.

Their new album 『Fragrance of Notes was released this summer after five years, the album is made with artists Tsutomu Kurihara (drums), Takeo Tohyama (piano) and also Gak Sato (Theremin) who worked at Right Tempo for more than 10years, and a lso Yuichi Ito (flute/trombone) as guest players.
The 14tracks or should I say 14piece of poems are like a picture scroll which will bring back some old and sweet memories. It reminded me a film the romantic three piece made by movie director Seijun Suzuki, this album is a masterpiece.

The sexy and beautiful sound of accordion will cross by to the cool contrabass as if it is trying to seduce and other instruments were smiling to hear that eroticism in that sound and fit in as well.Inner ecstasy comes out from that crossing and continues to stay regardless of time.

Text by Toshio Matsuura (Openers)

Official Page - MySpace page - On YouTube - LastFm page -

Once again TwistedJazz would like to thank Gilles Peterson and JAZZZIN for this. Opened our eyes into something magical yet again..

Flora Purim - Butterfly Dreams (1973)

This is the album that launched Flora Purim's solo career with great promise following her magnificent stint with Chick Corea's first incarnation of Return to Forever. Most of the tracks on this album sound like they would have fit very nicely onto one of RTF's first two LPs, with bandmate Stanley Clarke not only lending support on electric and acoustic bass, but also contributing original compositions and arrangements to the mix. The rest of the supporting cast is not too shabby either, including sax and flute man Joe Henderson, keyboard whiz kid George Duke, guitarist David Amaro, and Purim's other half, percussion legend Airto Moreira. Clarke's funky "Dr. Jive" and lyrical "Butterfly Dreams" are standout tracks here, as is the upbeat Egberto Gismonti composition "Moon Dreams." Duke shows his light Brazilian side on "Love Reborn," featuring Henderson's tenor sax solo and Amaro's lovely acoustic guitar. Purim delivers a gorgeous take on Jobim's well-known ballad "Dindi," and reshapes the standard "Summer Night" into a wordless vocal in her unmistakable style. The disc closes with a fine reworking of Clarke's now-classic "Light as a Feather," which strays not too far from the original RTF version. Neatly capturing Flora Purim's many vocal strengths, Butterfly Dreams delivered on the great expectations generated by her work with Corea and turned out to be a high point in her recording career.

Text by Jim Newsom (AMG)

Official Page - Interview @ Jazz Review - LastFm Page - Flora on YouTube

Bohren und der Club of Gore

Founding BOHREN - members Thorsten Benning (Drums) Robin Rodenberg (Bass) Reiner Henseleit (Guitar), Morten Gass(Guitar/Piano) started playing music together in 1988 . They were friends from school and they shared a common taste for all kinds of extreme music like Grindcore, Hardcore, Death- or Doom Metal. Driven by the idea of a more unique style of music, they formed BOHREN (german word for drilling) in 1992 to play, as they called it, „ doom ridden jazz music“.
In autumn 2008 the new BOHREN-CD DOLORES appears on the belgian label PIAS. “With DOLORES Bohren’s habit of making music which often makes the listener feel like he or she is stuck in some dark room in which the oxygen is slowly and mercilessly being extracted has changed.When listening to DOLORES, listeners are sure to get feeling that – after all these years – the shutters are being raised, the windows thrown open, fresh air and sunlight are flooding into the room. Quite by chance, the most natural thing in the world, cool, crisp and brazen.”

Official Page - MySpace Page

The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble - Mutations ep (2008)

A bridge between their first album on Planet Mu and the forthcoming second one on Ad Noiseam, the "Mutations EP" is The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble's coming of age. Profound and organic but dark and impressive, it is a perfect rendition of the ensemble's live shows and the proof that there is still something fresh to be done at the meeting point of post-rock, jazz and drones. A deeply emotional and original trip. Following their remarkable (and remarked) début album released by Planet Mu in 2006, the international "super group" that is The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble present with "Mutations" both a companion to their first CD and an appetizer to their forthcoming second album.

Having incorporated new musicians, learned from their numerous live shows and incorporated new influences in their sound, The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble sound more mature than ever before in this 8-track, 39-minute EP, which features new tracks alongside re-works of older ones.

An act combining profound musical sensibilities (and, after all, revolving around two very well known actors of the Dutch music scene), deeply emotional harmonies and an acute ear for genre inter-breeding, The Kilimanjaro places itself once again and the confluent of post-rock, dusty and gritty jazz and low-end doom-laden drones, and comes up with a music which is at the same time warm and dark, brooding and misty, cinematic and dynamic.

From the build-up of "Caos Calmo" to the almost childish, pristine melodies of "Shadows" or "Avian Lung", The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble opens here again new paths for organic, human but massive compositions, and demonstrate that their impressive live shows can be perfectly rendered on record. The fruit of experimented and adventurous musicians' demanding work, for a breath-taking, mesmerizing experience.

Text from Ad Noiseam

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