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Our Sunday evening was great. We met Jeb Bishop at Tank Noodle for some excellent Vietnamese food, then headed to the Hungry Brain for the show. There was a nice size crowd and they were very responsive. The Engines played after us, and they sounded great as usual. Ray and I joined them for a final improvisation to top off the night. I have always had great experiences as a player and listener at the Hungry Brain, and last night was no exception.
More soon.
Day one of the tour went well. We left New Orleans about 5 am, and drove to Springfield, IL. The drive was as fun as a 13 hour drive can be. We had a good gig in Springfield, sharing the show with the End Times Trio. I’d like to thank Frank, Mark, Richard, and Crissie for having us on their series, and sharing some musical camaraderie. We’d also like to thank Crissie for putting us up for the night. It was a great hang.
We drove to Chicago this morning and picked Ray up at the airport. The next stop was Johnnie’s for a great Italian beef, and now we are at our luxurious low budget suburban motel digs, looking forward to a great show at the Hungry Brain tonight.
For more tour minutiae check out www.twitter.com/jeffalbert
A few things have changed since I last posted our tour schedule, so I’ll post the finally final version now. Since it starts tomorrow, I don’t anticipate any more changes.
Upcoming Shows:
Jun 13, 2009 – Springfield, IL (US) @ The Plaza On Adams – Jeff Albert Trio featuring Dave Cappello and Tommy Sciple w/ End Times Trio
Jun 14, 2009 – Chicago, IL (US) @ The Hungry Brain – Jeff Albert Quartet w/ The Engines & ad hoc improv mixes
Jun 15, 2009 – Chicago, IL (US) @ The Skylark – Jeff Albert Quartet
Jun 16, 2009 – Cincinnati, OH (US) @ Baba Budan’s – Jeff Albert Quartet w/ Is What?!
Jun 17, 2009 – Brooklyn, NY (US) @ Douglass St Music Collective – Jeff Albert Quartet w/ Kobrinksy-Sinton Duo
Jun 18, 2009 – Philadelphia, PA (US) @ Chris’s Jazz Cafe – Jeff Albert Quartet
Jun 19, 2009 – Middletown, CT (US) @ Fishbone Cafe – Jeff Albert Quartet
Jun 20, 2009 – Richmond, VA (US) @ Bogarts – Jeff Albert Quartet w/ No BS! Brass, Verbatim & R2Dtoo!
Full details on each show available here.
We’d love to see you, so please join us if you can.
Here are some recent musical acquisitions that I have been digging.
Josh Berman’s Old Idea on Delmark
Josh, Keefe, and Jason are members of the Lucky 7s. Josh’s music occupies a great space that can be both lyrical and frenetic.
Darcy James Argue’s Secret Society Infernal Machines on New Amsterdam Records
This is a vital and captivating large ensemble recording. I’m not sure if calling it big band (or bigband) gives one the right mental starting point to hear this great music.
Dave Douglas Spirit Moves on Greenleaf Music
Brass quartet plus drums. Vincent Chancey’s horn is a nice color in that mix, and Marcus Rojas on tuba and Luis Bonilla on trombone are two of my favorites on their respective instruments.
Note: Both the New Amsterdam and Greenleaf sites rock the very cool instant download when you order the CD vibe.
Mike Reed reports on the newly elected AACM officers (he is one), and their new Nomadic Sound Experiment series.
MIKE REED drummer & composer – Thinking Out Loud:
“The first sign of our new regime is This weekend’s Nomadic Sound Experiment, a new AACM performance series which I’m heading up. This bi-monthly series will be traveling showcases and feature two performances at each event. The goal is to present concerts in a variety of settings around the Chicago land area (hence the Nomadic title), emphasize original music or concept, partner with arts organizations that will help promote the events and provide production infrastructure, reach out to new audiences (from Highland Park to Tinley Park and then some). “
The upcoming Jeff Albert Quartet show with The Engines at The Hungry Brain got some nice preview love from Centerstage Chicago. Read (and click) on…
Sunday June 14, 2009 Event of Centerstage Chicago – Chicago City Life in Chicago, Illinois:
“Bringing improvisation to the traditional sounds of his native city, New Orleans trombonist/composer Jeff Albert combines bits of swing, groove and funk with the clashing rhythms and melodies that define much of the Chicago improv-jazz sound. Albert’s quartet stays musically modest via its arrangement of saxophone, bass and drums, which leads to moments of accessibility and beauty on the group’s new album, Similar in the Opposite Way. Albert also is a member of cross-country collaboration The Lucky 7s, which features a horn-heavy frontline and fellow trombonist Jeb Bishop, a key cog of the night’s second band, The Engines. A sonically diverse mix of nimble runs and subdued tones, The Engines has a new album, Wire and Brass, out on Okkadisk this month. (Scott Morrow)”
Last night was a good night for out of town musicians making the hang at the Open Ears Series. Izaak Mills, from the band Reptet, is hanging in town, and we had a nice balcony hang at the Blue Nile. Hopefully we can get them on the series sometime. Chicago bassist Josh Abrams was also in town, playing with Bonnie Prince Billy, and he made the hang too. By the time he got there the music was over, but there was some hanging left. It was great to see Josh, and meet Izaak. The musician community can be so warm and beautiful at times.
If you have read this blog for long, you have probably realized that I am a big eMusic fan, or at least that’s what some people tell me. When I heard that eMusic was adding some major label back catalog, I thought it was interesting. Today when I realized that I would be forced to a new plan at an over 100% price increase, it was much less cool. Now I am on a plan that has been grandfathered in. I have had this plan for three years, and I understand that prices rise, but not 100% at a time. If they said they had to change my plan, and I would only get 60 downloads a month instead of 65, for the same money, I might be ok with that. If they said that I would still get 65 downloads a month, but it would be $160 a year now in stead of the roughly $145 a year it has been, that might be ok. What they told me was that my plan would be changed to $129.99 a year, and I’d get 24 downloads a month. “You’ll only have to pay 90% of what you were paying to get 37% as much music.” ¿que? Is some old Sony catalog worth that?
I have loved eMusic as a place to explore. I have heard lots of music that I likely wouldn’t have gambled $10 on, but would gladly give up 8 or 9 prepaid downloads to be able to check it out. This price change is a bit too much of a shock for me. I think I will let my subscription lapse. It’s a shame.
ChazFest Videos – New Orleans 9th Ward Music Festival – April 29, 2009
Click the link, and scroll down to the interview section. There are some insights into parts of the New Orleans music scene and some of its interesting characters.