Article
Brady / Driscoll / Gregorius

Albums
3/4 Peace
36
Atrium Carceri
Marvin Ayres
Peter Baumann
Beledo
Tim Brady
Christoph Bruhn
Calder
Csillagköd
Dal Niente / Deerhoof
Rebekah Driscoll
Eighth Blackbird
frostlake
Friedrich Goldmann
John Gregorius
Hammock
Chihei Hatakeyama
Masayuki Imanishi
ICE
Ionophore
braeyden jae
KAI
Kevin Kastning
Martin Kay
Kireyev & Javors
Millimetrik
Jon Mueller
Christine Ott
Piano Interrupted
Noah Preminger
Gavin Prior
Rapoon
Lasse-Marc Riek
Roach & Logan
Bruno Sanfilippo
Cyril Secq / Orla Wren
Sgt. Fuzzy
Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith
Stick Men+ David Cross
Stratosphere
Syncopix
Tetherdown
Charlie Ulyatt
Wieman

Compilation
Facticity

EPs / Cassettes / Mini-Albums / Singles
Glacis
Dibson T. Hoffweiler
Akira Kosemura
Daniel Lippel
Christine Tavolacci

Oleg Kireyev & Keith Javors: The Meeting
Inarhyme Records

The Meeting might appear on label founder Keith Javors' Inarhyme Records, but it's no second-rate vanity project. On this second outing with co-leader Oleg Kireyev (the first 2010's Rhyme & Reason, with drummer E.J. Strickland and bassist Boris Kozlov), the pianist shows himself to be an exemplary player, as do the other participants, saxophonist Kireyev on sax, lauded trumpeter Tom Harrell, bassist Ben Williams, and, as before, Strickland on drums. All involved bring impressive backgrounds to the project: Kireyev's career spans three decades, Javors' discography lists eight albums as a leader, Williams and Strickland bring respective associations with Pat Metheny and Ravi Coltrane to the gig, and Harrell's playing can be heard on more than 260 recordings.

The association between Kireyev and Javors began, by the way, in 2007 when the saxophonist's manager approached Javors with the idea of a gig at the Union of Composers Club in Russia (where Kireyev is Artistic Director), whereupon a friendship and collaborative partnership quickly developed and performances in Poland and Russia, including one at the International House of Music in Moscow, and at famed venues such as Smalls, Blues Alley, and Iridium soon followed.

Having rehearsed the night before, the five laid down the album in a single session on October 28th, 2013, with the set-list dedicated to originals by the co-leaders (two apiece) and covers of “Caravan” and “Body and Soul”; two alternate takes also appear. A perfect scene-setter for the release, Kireyev's buoyant “April” sprints from the gate, with Javors' singing lines powered by Strickland's ever-inventive drive until the spotlight shifts to the swinging theme voiced in unison by the saxist and trumpeter. Up first, Harrell's warm solo glides gracefully over the fiery backing, after which Kireyev steps up with his own robust statement and Javors with a vivacious turn of his own. The pianist's ballad “Inwardly” offers a striking vehicle for solos by Williams and Harrell, whilst also emphasizing how well the two horns complement one another, whether it be playing in unison or dueting.

Warm and effervescent in spirit, the material on the album sometimes extends into styles beyond jazz, from Latin (“April”) and samba (a trio treatment of “Estate,” written by Bruno Martino and Bruno Brighetti) to blues (the shuffle-stoked title cut). As much of a warhorse as “Caravan” is, the quintet invigorates it by adding Tuvan throat-singing and impassioned wails (courtesy of Kireyev) to its introduction, and does something similar to “Body and Soul” in undergirding the saxophonist's smokey expression with a laid-back, R&B-flavoured backing.

May 2016