Bruce Eisenbeil Sextet | Inner Constellation Volume One | Nemu Records

Don’t let the corrosive guitar that begins Bruce Eisenbeil’s extended “Inner Constellation” fool you into thinking you’re about to hear a psychedelic rave-up or some proto-fusion. Once bass and drums join in, followed by violin and horns, it’s apparent “Inner Constellation” (a 45-minute work recorded in one long take, meant to be listened to straight through from beginning to end, notwithstanding 27 individual track numbers and the enigmatic inner titles) is an example of what’s still sometimes called “free jazz” or “creative improvised music,” terms that ceased being meaningful as long ago as the 1970s, when composition asserted itself as a force to be reckoned with in the jazz avant-garde. There are numerous passages here that sound collectively improvised, and as many others that sound preplanned. Happily, because Eisenbeil’s writing is so open-ended and the members of his sextet give themselves over to it so completely, you’re never quite sure where composition ends and improvisation begins, or when the two overlap— a measure of Eisenbeil’s success. — Francis Davis Continue reading

Andrew Lamb | Tom Abbs | Michael Wimberly | Guillermo E. Brown | Rhapsody in Black | No Business Records

It gives me great pleasure to once again find myself in the midst of expressing my thoughts about another recording of my work. The Creator had blessed me with the opportunity to have the wonderfully creative bass, tuba, and didjeridoo performer Tom Abbs, who has been with me for slightly over a decade, together with two of the most unique, musically diverse and culturally aware percussionists today – Michael Wimberly and Guillermo E. Brown. These gentlemen are true pfrofessionals both on and off the bandstand, which is a great pleasure for me to state. The works on this recording are organic and unpretentious, laced with the type of communication that can only be obtained, and experienced by those who are truly kindred spirits. — Andrew Lamb Continue reading

Daniel Carter | Alberto Fiori | Tom Abbs | Federico Ughi | Perfect Blue | Not Two Records

Daniel Carter – alto sax, tenor sax, trumpet | Alberto Fiori – piano | Tom Abbs – bass | Federico Ughi – drums. Recorded on December 2, 2008 at Park West Studios, Brooklyn, NY by Jim Clouse. Edited by Alberto Fiori. Mixed and mastered on May 8, 2009 at ARTESOUND RECORDING STUDIO, Cavalicco, Udine, Italy, by Stefano Amerio. Produced by Alberto Fiori. Quartet photo by Alberto Fiori. Layout by Marek Wajda. All music by D. Carter / A. Fiori / T. Abbs / F. Ughi except # 1/3/5 by D. Carter / A. Fiori Continue reading