On his new album, Molecular, Brooklyn saxophonist James Brandon Lewis showcases a vision that’s both microscopic and immense. In the liner notes he describes a compositional model that draws inspiration from the structural components of DNA, comparing the shape of the music to a double helix: “Within a single melodic line emerges a counter line […]
Tag: James Brandon Lewis
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The Fire Still Burns as veteran jazz saxophonist Alan Braufman builds on his comeback
One of the headiest of all avant-garde jazz heads is Alan Braufman. The veteran saxophonist, flutist, and composer has been wielding his polymathic wizardry since the early 1970s, when he helped put New York City’s loft-jazz movement on the map. But most younger listeners didn’t get their first chance to immerse themselves in his towering, […]
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D.C. progressive jazz duo Blacks’ Myths find the light in harsh noise
Long before drummer Warren G. “Trae” Crudup III and bassist Luke Stewart launched noisy free-jazz duo Blacks’ Myths in 2018, they backed celebrated saxophonist James Brandon Lewis as the rhythm section in his trio. They’ve also enmeshed themselves in D.C.’s jazz scene individually: Crudup performs with a slew of scene fixtures, including saxophonist Brian Settles […]
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Pedro the Lion at Thalia Hall, and more things to do this weekend
Pedro the Line, James Brandon Lewis, and more recommended concerts and events this weekend
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New York saxophonist James Brandon Lewis moves easily between past, present, and future jazz
In the last few years saxophonist James Brandon Lewis has emerged as a versatile force, a musician fluent in the postbop spirit of Sonny Rollins and John Coltrane who can easily adapt his sound to a funked-up setting with heavy hip-hop vibes. I first heard the New Yorker four years ago on his impressive second […]
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Beck’s half-awake Morning Phase and 15 more record reviews
Ten Reader writers review 16 records, including Angel Olsen’s otherworldly folk, and more.