It seems like it’s never been more difficult to be a working musician than right now, and it also seems like there’s never been as much quality new music. Here’s part one of the best new releases of 2022.
20. Tyshawn Sorey Trio, Mesmerism (self-release) Tyshawn Sorey is a fantastic drummer, with his ability shining on this set featuring pianist Aaron Diehl and bassist Matt Brewer. Yes, a piano trio, but organized by the drummer (giving it a tangible stylistic twist) as the group tackles a few jazz standards and works from the Great American Songbook (“Detour Ahead,” a tune associated with Bill Evans, “Autumn Leaves,” Duke’s “REM Blues”) plus a few less celebrated gems (Horace Silver’s “Enchantment,” Paul Motian’s “From Time to Time,” Muhal Richard Abrams’ “Two Over One”). Boppish, but very fresh.
19. Allison de Groot & Tatiana Hargreaves, Hurricane Clarice (Free Dirt) The eponymous 2019 album from banjoist de Groot and fiddler Hargreaves is a terrific debut, and this environmentally themed follow-up, which references both a noted storm from the 2018 hurricane season and the great Brazilian novelist Clarice Lispector, is even better. Combining vocal numbers with often torrid instrumentals (“Nancy Blevins” is a smoker) and original material with inspired trad choices, Hurricane Clarice is as smartly assembled as it is instrumentally sharp.
18. The Reds, Pinks & Purples, Summer at Land’s End & They Only Wanted Your Soul (Slumberland) Based in San Francisco, the Reds, Pinks & Purples, an act propelled by the songwriting prowess of one Glenn Donaldson, have had a prolific year; in addition to this pair of LPs, the first one issued in early February and the second in mid-October, there’s been four digital only EPs and a full-length digital only instrumental album that was originally a companion to the Summer at Land’s End vinyl. Amongst all this activity, the consistency shines. Diggers of Felt, The Clientele, and Creation Records, step right up.
17. Tomas Fujiwara’s Triple Double, March (Firehouse 12) Triple Double features Fujiwara on drums and vibraphone, Gerald Cleaver on drums, Thumbscrew bandmate Mary Halvorson on guitar, Brandon Seabrook on guitar, Ralph Alessi on trumpet, and Taylor Ho Bynum on cornet. The instrumental configuration brings the name of the band into focus as the sound is appealingly distinctive, the double brass in particular. There are plenty of harried moments across this set, and a whole lot of guitar scorch and wiggle. Indeed, March could easily serve as the doorway into the avant-garde for curious rock fans.
16. Thumbscrew, Multicolored Midnight (Cuneiform Records) Featuring Tomas Fujiwara on drums and vibraphone, Mary Halvorson on guitar, and Michael Formanek on bass and electronics, Thumbscrew is no stranger to TVD’s year end best new releases list. Multicolored Midnight is the trio’s seventh album, and 2022 is their ten year anniversary as a unit. Once again created while in residence at City of Asylum (Thumbscrew’s fourth album to benefit from the sequestration offered by the Pittsburgh-based artist’s refuge), the trio is as limber, precise, and unpredictable as ever. There are also some titanic grooves.
15. SSWAN, Invisibility is an Unnatural Disaster (577) The moniker of this soaring avant-jazz ensemble derives from the surname initials of bassist Luke Stewart, saxophonist Patrick Shiroishi, trumpeter Chris Williams, guitarist Jessica Ackerley, and drummer Jason Nazary. There are no weak links as the energy ratchets up right away and the communicative flurries are many, though the album is far from just a skronk fest, offering sustained passages of textured restraint and flashes of Euro free improv. Ackerley bursts out strong, landing somewhere between prime Greg Ginn and Interstellar Space. Good gravy.
14. Janel Leppin Ensemble Volcanic Ash, S/T (Cuneiform Records) Cellist and composer Janel Leppin has played on a bunch of records including two as half of Janel and Anthony with her husband, the versatile guitarist Anthony Pirog, who is part of Leppin’s group here. Joining them are Luke Stewart on bass, Kim Sator on harp, Larry Ferguson on drums, Sarah Hughes on alto sax, and Brian Settles on tenor sax. The set’s 10 tracks dish a wonderfully jazzy-proggy stew that the releasing label has specialized in for decades. Leppin brings some heavy cello, and when Pirog takes flight, look the fuck out.
13. Ches Smith, Interpret It Well (Pyroclastic) Yet another stacked lineup, this time a quartet, with Smith on drums and vibes in the leader’s position, alongside Craig Taborn on piano, Mat Maneri on viola, and Bill Frisell on guitar. Frisell’s involvement stemmed from the guitarist catching the other three playing live as a trio; intrigued, he inquired about the music with Smith, who eventually invited Frisell to join them. The guitarist’s acceptance initially took place on live stages, but in the midst of Covid, they decided to hit the studio. The results are broad in tone, with sweet Raymond Pettibon cover art.
12. Etran de L’Aïr, Agadez (Sahel Sounds) Hailing from northern Niger, Etran de L’Aïr’s name translates to “the stars of the air,” with Agadez their town, and noted as a guitar town, a reality backed up by the sound of this record, another home run for Sahel Sounds. Etran de L’Aïr are also described as a family band, which is reinforced by the togetherness of the execution, though there is a comfort level that allows for a welcome loose undercurrent rather than the proceedings getting too tight. The intensity does rise to appreciable levels, as in “Tchingolene.”
11. Daniel Bachman, Almanac Behind (Three Lobed) Guitarist Daniel Bachman started out playing under the moniker Sacred Harp, but it was his solo recordings in American Primitive mode, a pair for the Tompkins Square label in particular, that brought him a higher profile. An incredibly skilled player, Bachman, like other American Primitive specialists, hasn’t rested on his ability, instead choosing a offramp into drone and sound collage-based experimentalism. But he’s brought his guitars with him, as this environmental rumination is a captivating listen all the way through.
