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
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, […]
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 […]
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
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 […]
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.