Browsing Tag

Jazz Fusion

Zach Hodges Bottled an Atomic Glitch in Jazz Fusion Form in ‘Nuclear Muskrat’

Posted on 26 April 2025

Zach Hodges let chaos reign in Nuclear Muskrat and conducted it with a conductor’s cultivated touch and a mad scientist’s curiosity. The 19-year-old Midlands-based musician, composer, producer, and multi-instrumentalist may be early in his career, but through his LP, Baby Landmark, he’s already proven that genre loyalty is a concept best left in the past.

Hodges, known for his work as a theatre musical director for String Cheese Theatre, his position behind the kit in Midlands jazz trio Head to Head, and his international touring experience, funnelled every inch of his multidisciplinary pedigree into this 7-minute experimental tour de force. Nuclear Muskrat isn’t content to sit still—within its frenetic framework, it flexes polka funk motifs, indietronica laced with avant-garde effects, funked-up disco grooves, blues-drenched riffs, erratic polyphonic keys, and incendiary synth bursts.

While it could have been easy for this to feel like a pure act of self-indulgence, it’s easy to go along with the ride with Hodges as he demonstrates the malleability of sound in a way so seamless it is as though all of the textures, tones and tempos have always been complementary pairings. It’s as though the contemporary history of music has been condensed in the explorative mind-melter that continually pulls the rug and lays down a different one before the last footstep can land.

If you’re always on the hunt for music that challenges mediocrity, Nuclear Muskrat is the ultimate contender.

Nuclear Muskrat is now available to stream on all major platforms, including Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast.

James Austin Melton Strips Jazz to Its Core and Rebuilds It with ‘Adaptive Fiction’

Posted on 14 March 2025

James Austin Melton may still be breaking ground in the jazz scene, but Adaptive Fiction proves he’s set to shake the foundations. His intricate, classically influenced guitar style intertwines seamlessly with a cinematically smoky brass section, creating a deeply rooted and refreshingly unrestrained sonic signature.

The single is catharsis in melodic motion. As the Latin-esque guitars set the groove, the energy only intensifies with the arrival of Melton’s soul-imbued vocals, soaring above the instrumentation with effortless conviction. The production strips jazz to its core and rearranges it with a vision that few would dare to share, yet every note remains as accessible as it is sanctifying.

A musician, educator, and writer, Melton approaches his craft with the kind of thoughtfulness that turns compositions into experiences. His discography is quickly shaping into a sanctuary of sound, offering respite from the noise with arrangements that challenge convention without ever alienating the listener.

With Adaptive Fiction, Melton reaffirms that jazz isn’t just alive—it’s still evolving in ways that demand attention.

Adaptive Fiction is now available to stream on all major streaming platforms, including Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

The Siren of Jazz, Ippi Roy, Hits Every Note with Effortless Elegance in ‘Dat Dere’

Posted on 10 March 2025

Ippi Roy proves she’s a soulfully sublime force to be reckoned with in the jazz scene with her latest single, Dat Dere. Laying her expressively rich vocals atop swanky piano keys, she crafts a soundscape that hypnotises with its effortless grace. The keys are ornate enough to bring a neo-classic touch to the release when they’re not injecting bluesy grooves that underscore the depth of her reverent connection to aural expression.

With an extended piano solo, there’s plenty of opportunity to lose yourself in the instrumental panache before Roy’s vocals return, carrying even more impassioned zeal. Her voice has all the power needed for international stages rather than a smoky jazz bar, and if Dat Dere is anything to go by, it won’t be long before the rest of the world catches up.

From her early days fronting Delhi-based blues outfit Big Bang Blues to making waves across India’s festival circuit, Roy has long been making her mark. With a jazz degree from the prestigious University of North Texas and accolades like the Paris Rutherford Jazz Leadership Award, she’s now navigating the US jazz world with a reputation that’s impossible to ignore. Dat Dere is just another step towards the recognition she deserves.

Dat Dere is available to stream on all major platforms, including Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Goetia Served Up a Dish of Political Fire with ‘Pumpkin Ravioli’

Posted on 3 March 2025

With a track title like Pumpkin Ravioli, you’d expect a self-indulgent, hipster-friendly groove; what Goetia actually delivered is a sharp political broadside wrapped in a deceptively smooth instrumental package. The Brighton-based six-piece makes genre-fluidity their playground, pulling from jazz fusion, hip-hop, funk, and alternative rock to create something that transcends parameters.

Their sound thrives on tension and synergy in equal measure. Every element in Pumpkin Ravioli locks into place with the ease of an impromptu jam session, the instrumentals grooving towards a singular, almost hypnotic aim. But while the sonics may be silky, the vocals cut through with urgent intensity, proving that punk isn’t just about thrashing drums and knowing four chords—it’s about using music as a conduit for action.

Goetia’s philosophy of making music that is “unexpected yet easily received” couldn’t be clearer here. The track pulls together with an energetic sublimity that isn’t just a passive listen—it’s a call to get in the crowd, absorb every note, and feel the full force of their electric live presence. Pumpkin Ravioli subversively steamrolls expectations, leaving you desperate to indulge in more installations of groove-stirred alchemy.

Pumpkin Ravioli was officially released on February 20^th and is now available on all major streaming platforms, including Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

The Wherewithal by Yellow Couch Music ft. NYALLAH – An RnB Jazz-Funk Flame That Refuses to Burn Out

Posted on 3 March 2025

Helmed by drummer, musician, and producer Layton Weedeman, the ensemble Yellow Couch Project thrives on collaboration, pulling in artists from across the globe to breathe life into his intricate, groove-laden compositions. Jazz, funk, R&B, hip-hop, rock, and world music all find a place in the mix, but it’s the seamless cohesion that makes each track distinct.

With The Wherewithal, Yellow Couch Music, alongside NYALLAH, delivers a jazz-funk feast laced with soul and caressing catharsis. The instrumentals twist into arcane textures, yet the vocal lines remain grounded, inviting you into a session of soul-affirming relaxation. Beneath the smoothness, there’s fire—a scorned R&B love song at its core, carrying an emotional weight that cuts through the silky rhythms.

The interplay between the expressive percussion, fluid basslines, and sultry vocal delivery ensures no note is wasted. Each element serves its purpose, whether to soothe or stir. Yellow Couch Music sets the tone for modern jazz fusion, proving that tradition and innovation can walk hand in hand without stepping on each other’s toes. With tracks like this, they won’t be waiting long for a place on the jazz map.

The Wherewithal is now available on all major streaming platforms via this link.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

horanVi Painted Romance in Sonic Sepia Tones with ‘Before It Lasted’

Posted on 2 March 2025

With a title that instantly wraps itself around poetically introspective thought, horanVi’s second single, Before It Lasted, is as evocative as it is luxuriantly cinematic. Packaged in a neatly consumable 3:30 runtime, it delivers indie pop hooks with a delicate dusting of jazz sophistication, cushioned by neo-soul grooves and a rich palette of harmonic textures. It’s the kind of track that seduces attention from your serotonin-firing synapses.

Some artists perform; others create sonic alchemy. horanVi firmly belongs in the latter camp, rolling out the welcome mat to listeners who crave jazzy revelations of soulful scintillation that leave an inexplicable mark

Every note in Before It Lasted feels instinctively fluid, as the gilded tones become a tonic for the soul. The interplay of jazz chords and a soaring guitar solo ensures the composition doesn’t sit still, while the time signatures shift just enough to make the heart skip in time with the notes left unplayed. But the pièce de résistance? That belongs to Violet’s vocals—honeyed yet untamed, delivering a liberated performance that turns the track into an effortless catharsis.

With their forthcoming 10-track album on the horizon, horanVi continues to resist easy categorisation, pulling from jazz, rock, blues, and neo-soul without bowing to convention. All too often jazz musicians solely serve to flex their technical chops, but when horanVi cut close to the bone, they do it in a way that affirms the mind, body and soul.

After launching on Valentine’s Day, Before It Lasted is out now on all major streaming platforms, including Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Ged Wilson Spins Everyman Blues into Gold with Regular Man

Posted on 1 March 2025

Like a TARDIS hurling you back to a time when jazz blues grooves knew how to scintillate the soul, Ged Wilson’s latest single, Regular Man, isn’t just another exercise in virtuosity—it’s the sound of an artist who has lived every note. The track carries all the gravitas of a blues lifer, but it is Wilson’s effortless ability to channel boy-next-door charisma through velvety vocal lines that allows him to scribe gold with his sonic signature.

Cheltenham-based but proudly carrying his Mancunian roots, Wilson has spent years pushing the boundaries of the British blues scene, fusing the grit of Lightnin’ Hopkins with the poetic dexterity of Gil Scott-Heron and the warmth of Santana. Regular Man, lifted from his upcoming album of the same name, distils those influences into a track that makes even monotony feel rich with possibility. Swanky in tone and seraphic in execution, it’s a vignette of life’s quieter moments, spun with a nostalgia-laced charm that makes it all too easy to follow Wilson wherever he goes next.

With his feet firmly planted in tradition but his gaze set forward, Wilson isn’t just another bluesman—he’s a “bluesifier,” as adept at breathing contemporary life into the genre as he is at honouring its past. Signed to Bad Monkey Records and supported by Help Musicians, he’s bringing his innovative style to an ever-widening audience.

Regular Man is available to stream on all major platforms, including SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Project ATKY Tune into Jazz’s Timeless Pulse with Walkman at Night

Posted on 22 February 2025

When Project ATKY lays down beats, they orchestrate a space where nostalgia and modernity dissolve into one another. Their debut single, Walkman at Night, leans heavier on jazz textures and time signatures than traditional hip-hop rhythms, resulting in an instrumental that drifts through organically unpredictable progressions. With the irreplicable magnetism of jazz’s free-flowing pulse, the track instantly disarms, welcoming listeners to imbibe in hazy, warm tones potent enough to abstract them from the weight of the present.

The duo—Andrew and Kuan—channel the soul of Los Angeles into every note, drawing from the city’s irreplicable energy and deep-rooted musical history. While their sound is steeped in the rich textures of lo-fi and West Coast hip-hop, Walkman at Night thrives on its ability to capture the in-between moments: quiet evening walks, introspective solitude, and the lingering echoes of the day.

For Project ATKY, music isn’t just about sound—it’s about connection, simplicity, and comfort. Their debut sets a promising foundation, both in its understated sophistication and its ability to transport listeners somewhere deeply personal. Walkman at Night is the epitome of sublime—it’s only a matter of time before Project ATKY become a playlist staple for fans of laid-back lo-fi jazz.

Stream Walkman at Night on Spotify now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Pam R. Johnson Davis’ Up & Down: A Lesson in Love’s Unforgiving Rhythm

Posted on 16 February 2025

While most artists rely on assimilation to reach the same affecting heights as their influences, that isn’t the case for Pam R. Johnson Davis; she shows the capacity for true originality within the organically expressive fluidity of her sound. Her latest single, Up & Down, produced by Mico Davis, is a testament to her ability to tease genre-fluid artistry into raw emotion.

With a standing ovation-worthy vocal performance, she tempers the rhythmic complexity of the instrumentation beneath her, pouring every note straight from the soul. There’s a reason her music has travelled across 120 countries and amassed over 122,000 streams—whether performing original compositions or classics spanning Aretha Franklin to Garth Brooks, her presence commands attention.

As a singer, songwriter, poet, and historian, her work has already earned two Global Music Awards, and Up & Down only cements her reputation further. The track traverses the highs and lows of a perpetually precarious relationship with unparalleled grace, carried by husky powerhouse vocals and jazz-tinged progressions.

Whether she’s behind the mic or not, Pam R. Johnson Davis carries a room-lightening energy, and through Up & Down, that presence becomes almost tangible. Your speakers won’t just pulse with the smooth syncopated grooves—they’ll radiate. For anyone who has ever suffered from romantic whiplash, this is a lesson in healing that should be mandatory.

Up & Down is now available to stream on all major platforms. Find your preferred way to listen on the artist’s official website.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Nick Marks Charts New Coordinates in Jazztronica with ‘Current Location’

Posted on 13 February 2025

From the first note of Current Location, Nick Marks and his armada of collaborators pull listeners into an aural cosmos where jazz motifs greet futurism with traditionalism.

Opening Cinematic Chromatics Vol. III, the final instalment of his 3 EP trilogy, Current Location exists in a liminal space where textures shift like constellations, guiding listeners through a field of gravity formed by soul, neo-soul, and jazztronica.

Marks has spent the past two years carving his sonic universe, bridging the underground scenes where jazz, hip-hop, and electronica collide with filmic grandeur. Since its inception in 2020, Cinematic Chromatics has been heralded for its genre-blurring ingenuity, earning Marks acclaim from tastemakers and playlist placements, including Spotify’s Best of Fresh Finds Jazz 2024.

Current Location represents the fluidity of place, time, and sound, drawing from Brazilian influences, lo-fi aesthetics, and orchestral sophistication. The track’s inception came as Marks walked through Manhattan, melodies forming in response to the rhythms of the city, later fleshed out with electric bassist CARRTOONS, vibraphonist Chien Chien Lu, and pianist Benjamin Furman.

The soulful yet spacey non-lexical vocals harbour accessibility in the mix, reassuring that, despite the technical chops underpinning the track, pretension is absent. This is pure rhythmic expression, allowing listeners to traverse the same sonic pathways as its creators. The polyphonic tones heighten the groove’s ecstatic zeal, but the crescendos, reaching the epitome of seraphic euphonia, steal the spotlight.

Current Location is now available to stream on all major platforms, including Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

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