Last year, Yves Rousseau put together a seven-piece ensemble to perform and record this program of “fragments” inspired by memories of progressive rock music—a heady, testosterone-charged pop subgenre that made a strong impression upon the French bassist when he was a student in the mid-1970s. Since that initial period of discovery, Rousseau has refined his taste for prog-rock indulgence, incorporating ideas inspired by bands like King Crimson, Yes, Genesis and other prominent artists of the era into his vast creative arsenal. With a wealth of experience as a genre-hopping player dating back to the late 1980s and a more recent reputation as a prolific composer and ambitious bandleader, Rousseau takes listeners on a nostalgia trip with Fragments, a collection of all original pieces…

A fun-loving, melody-driven, AOR/classic rock outfit based out of Helsingborg, Sweden, the Night Flight Orchestra has ties to a wide array of established hard rock bands, including Soilwork, Arch Enemy, Darkane, and Spiritual Beggars, among others. Emerging in the late 2000s, the band earned a Swedish Grammy (Grammis) nomination in 2017 for their third album, Amber Galactic, with similar acclaim being garnered by subsequent efforts like Sometimes The World Ain't Enough (2018) and Aeromantic (2020).

British hard-rock heroes, Thunder, release of their 13th studio album ‘All The Right Noises’ on 12th March 2020. The album is a return to the full-throttle sound of Thunder that has seen them create a hugely successful 30+ year career at the forefront of British rock, all built around the lifelong friendship of vocalist extraordinaire Danny Bowes and songwriting genius and guitarist Luke Morley. ‘All The Right Noises’ is an intense confection of illicit charms that reasserts their authority as the number one band in the land. Recorded in the months leading up to the first Covid-19 lockdown, it was originally due for release in September 2020.

Swan Hennessy is a real discovery for lovers of impressionistic piano music from France. Swan Hennessy was born in Rockford, Illinois, of Irish origin and grew up in Chicago. Swan Hennessy's music before 1900 was heavily influenced by his conservative education and his teachers' predilection for the music of Robert Schumann. Around the time of his move to Paris, he also been an admirer of Max Reger. Although his later music shows the influence of several contemporary stylistic directions, he never shook off this profound influence of the German Romantics.

Stefano di Battista (born February 14, 1969) is an Italian jazz musician who plays soprano and alto saxophone. Di Battista began playing at thirteen with friends and became interested in jazz after hearing Art Pepper. In Italy he received guidance from Massimo Urbani and by his twenties di Battista was performing in Paris. He put out his debut as a leader in 1997 and has toured with the Elvin Jones Jazz Machine.

On April 2, RCA Victor/Japan will issue the debut from Out Of This World, a new outfit featuring legendary Europe guitarist Kee Marcello and Fair Warning singer Tommy Heart. Four tracks feature Deep Purple keyboardist Don Airey. OUT OF THIS WORLD's first studio album has been mixed by Ron Nevison (Kiss, Bad Company, Ozzy Osbourne, Lynyrd Skynyrd,Vince Neil, Meat Loaf, Heart, Chicago and many more). A true genius in his field who has collaborated with Kee again after unbelievable 33 years. First time since Europe’s „Out Of This World“-album.

Compiled from pieces that were clearly composed much earlier as well as from more recent works, the Deuxième Livre pays homage to its two masters and calls for tonalities that it had not yet employed; it evokes the past and the great lutenists of that time with the Pavane and yet also contains important innovations. It is truly a transitional work: published at the very dawn of the century, it opened the doors to the important stylistic changes that French music would undergo during the Age of Enlightenment.

Scooter drop typically energetic new album ‘God Save The Rave’ APRIL 16, 2021 BY RYAN FORD. Iconic German happy hardcore group Scooter have just dropped their twentieth album ‘God Save The Rave’, almost four years after their last. The album features stand-out collaborations with some of the industries best, combining with Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike for ‘We Love Hardcore’, Timmy Trumpet for ‘Paul is Dead’ and Harris & Ford for the namesake track ‘God Save The Rave’. The energetic selection of tracks aren’t without iconic samples either, with ‘We Love Hardcore’ sampling Zombie Nation’s ‘Kernkraft 400’, as ‘Which Light Switch Is Which?’ contains samples of the 1995 song ‘Strings of Infinity’ by T-Marc featuring Vincent. For those lucky enough to own the vinyl edition, the track ‘Wand’rin’ Star’ has been replaced by another track ‘Lugosi’.

Sonny Criss - Rockin' In Rhythm (1968) {Prestige OJCCD-1022-2 rel 1999}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 257 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 95 Mb
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© 1967-68, 1999 Prestige Records / Fantasy | OJCCD-1022-2
Jazz / Bebop / Hard Bop / Saxophone

One of the best Sonny Criss albums ever – one of our favorites from his late 60s run at Prestige – and that's really saying a lot! The set's a warmly lyrical session that really has Criss opening up, changing up his groove to display the deep growth he'd experienced as a musician in the 60s. The rhythm section is wonderful – pianist Eddie Green, over the rock-solid team of Bob Cranshaw on bass and Alan Dawson on drums – who really help Sonny Criss transform the tunes on the record. Even 60s pop tunes like "Misty Roses" and "Eleanor Rigby" come off sounding fresh and wonderful – as do older jazz nuggets "The Masquerade Is Over" and "Rockin In Rhythm" – both tunes that are recorded so often you might expect hoke, but which sparkle anew in the hands of Sonny's soulful vision!

In this self-titled set, bassist and composer Steve Swallow proves his strengths in both capacities. Leading a septet that includes Steve Kuhn on piano, Carla Bley on organ, Karen Mantler on synthesizer and harmonica, Hiram Bullock on guitar, Robby Ameen on drums, and Don Alias on percussion, along with special guests Gary Burton on vibes and John Scofield on guitar, he adds yet another hue to his spectrum of colors. Swallow has always been a lively player, and here his ability to bring high-energy grooves into focus sings with vibrancy. That said, a recumbent “William And Mary” pans the camera to Bley’s organ, as do “Thirty Five” and the Scofield-centric romance of “Doin’ It Slow,” for a more touching mode of expression.

Toshio Hosokawa - Silent Flowers - String Quartets (2013) {WERGO WER 6761 2, Arditti Quartet}
EAC rip (secure mode) | FLAC (tracks)+CUE+LOG -> 295 Mb | MP3 @320 -> 182 Mb
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© 2013 WERGO / Schott Music | WER 6761 2
Classical / Contemporary Classical / Modern Classical / Chamber Music

The quartets of Japanese composer Toshio Hosokawa presented here bring to mind a fusion of Western avant-garde textures and extended instrumental techniques with traditional Japanese aesthetics. It's an immensely absorbing combination, and his music appears to have evolved over the years in a more Japanese direction while not losing any of its innovative qualities. Consider the opening work, Blossoming, which true to its name depicts the blossoming of a flower. It sounds like a hackneyed concept, but the realization here is striking: the action unfolds over nearly 14 minutes coalescing out of silence and then a panoply of minute details.