New Artists, New Technologies, New Dave Douglas Quintet Album With All-New Lineup

While 2012 could be the year of the global apocalypse as predicted by the Mayans, trumpeter, composer and label head Dave Douglas and his label Greenleaf Music (GLM) continue to roll full-steam ahead by releasing jazz, post-jazz, and other creative music.  The label’s credo is simply about creativity in musical expression. As a result, GLM’s sound is defined by the artists Douglas chooses to sign, allowing them room to define their own world—new sounds that connect, music that has something personal to say that is unique to that individual, as well as having something universal to offer. GLM believes that what interests listeners is not just the recorded product, but the artists themselves. As such we are interested in making available sheet music, artist commentary, discussion and more.

This Spring will bring new albums from two remarkable young musicians: the Malaysia-born, Perth, Australia-raised and now New York-based powerhouse bassist and composer Linda Oh (May 22nd) and the Chicago-based chamber-jazz composer and bassist Matt Ulery (June 12).

Linda Oh

Bassist and compoaser Linda Oh, whose 2009 self-released debut album Entry, featuring the unconventional lineup of bass, trumpet & drums, shook the jazz world up and put the Aussie bassist on the map almost overnight, beginning with a rave live New York Times review by critic Ben Ratliff who wrote, “self-generated energy fuels [Oh's] go-for-broke improvisation.” The acclaimed pianist Vijay Iyer later wrote in the pages of artFORUM, “a young bass powerhouse from down-under… I love how she just blew into town and took over.”

Entry was voted the #3 debut album in that year’s 3rd Annual Village Voice Jazz Critics Poll. Since that time Oh has worked in the bands of Dave Douglas, Kenny Barron, Steve Wilson, Fabian Almazan, The Le Boeuf Brothers and many more. GLM will be releasing Oh’s 2nd album entitled Initial Here, featuring saxophonistDayna Stephens, pianist Fabian Almazan, drummerRudy Royston and guest vocalist Jen Shyu. Look for Linda on the road and for the new album May 22nd, 2012. “What can I say,” says Douglas, “Linda is among the best! What I hear on this record  is a very personal statement of auspicious beginnings, of growth and change, and an inspired use of some of this country’s finest musicians. There’s great playing from everyone involved. Her vision on this album puts her on the forefront of creative musicians working today. I am so thrilled to be able to release this music on Greenleaf.”

Matt Ulery

Bassist Matt Ulery represents an extension of GLM’s roots in Chicago and Douglas’ interest in providing a platform for independent voices who may not be well-known in the greater jazz world, but whose raw talent lends great promise to the future of the music. Ulery, who has worked as a bassist with a number of Chicago-based bandleaders including Patricia Barber, Fareed Haque, Howard Levy, Grazyna Auguscik, Goran Ivanovic’s Eastern Blok and Jeff Parker, is also an accomplished arranger and composer. His work for chamber and large ensembles use unique timbres to achieve new sounds that owe as much to “new music” and film music as they do to his jazz forebears. Along these lines, his new release By A Little Light represents a continuation of his large ensemble writing, this time including members of the Chicago-based acclaimed chamber ensemble, Eighth Blackbird.

“With Eastern Blok and many others Matt Ulery has been making great music for some time now. Greenleaf is proud to be able to release Matt’s most ambitious music to date,” enthuses Douglas. “I am most impressed by the pure emotion captured on this recording. By A Little Light is a pure outpouring of feeling. Beyond that richness there is the audacity and strength involved in organizing such a large and cohesive group. Matt pulled it all off on every level, with a crack crew of fine musicians–many of them already friends of Greenleaf–and a very special appearance from vocalist Grazyna Auguscik. I am confident listeners from the Greenleaf sphere and beyond will love this record.”

Dave Douglas Arabesque Reissues

Also in June, Greenleaf will reissue two out-of-print CDs originally issued on the Arabesque label in the mid-1990s. The CDs, Leap of Faith and Magic Triangle both feature Douglas’ working quartet from that period with Chris Potter, James Genus and Ben Perowsky. The CDs will be presented in one beautiful 8-panel digipak with original artwork and new liner notes by Douglas.

Donny McCaslin Releases New Studio Album Fall 2012

Saxophonist and GLM stalwart Donny McCaslin is creating a new recording for Greenleaf release in Fall 2012. The new album is a further extension of Donny’s move into electric, groove-based original music featuring intense dynamic interplay between the musicians. Featuring Beat Music drummer Mark Guiliana; Tim Lefebvre on electric bass and effect s;Jason Lindner on electric keyboards; andDonny McCaslin on saxophone. The new release is being produced by David Binney, resulting in another key piece in the boundary defying saxophonist’s discography. The new release makes another key step into the area between jazz, electronica, drum and bass, and sound exploration, along with McCaslin’s signature virtuosity and melodic drive.

Dave Douglas Forms Brand New Quintet & Releases First StudioAlbum Since 2009

Dave Douglas will form a new edition of his acclaimed quintet with all new players and willrelease his first studio album since 2009′s Spirit Moves by Brass Ecstacy. This album will be released September 2012.

More details on the band, the theme of the album and more touring information will be forthcoming. Please stay tuned for that.

Technology Initiatives

The year 2012 will also see the complete launch of Greenleaf Music’s full Web 2.0 Suite, including the already-existing web-based Cloud player on GreenleafMusic.com, iPhone & iPad apps and most significantly an open source WordPress artist website plug-in aimed specifically at jazz artists and their fans. The open-source plug-in will provide significant functionality for artists to stream, sell and promote their work through simple-to-use tools spanning social networking platforms including Facebook, Twitter and MySpace. The iPhone and iPad apps feature streaming; a music store (CDs, mp3s); subscripti on access; functionality for accessing, purchasing and printing sheet music; and an interactive blog all aimed at creating a community of mobile users and performers.

This has all been made possible by a generous jazz.NEXT grant Douglas received in October, 2010 from the Doris Duke Charitable Trust, administered by Mid-Atlantic Arts to incorporate cutting-edge technology for the traditionally “analogue” jazz world. These new features are a significant enhancement to Greenleaf’s popular subscription service launched in tandem withGreenleafMusic.com in 2005.

Out May 22, 2012 on Greenleaf Music

Featuring DAYNA STEPHENS (saxophone), FABIAN ALMAZAN (piano), RUDY ROYSTON (drums)
and special guest: JEN SHYU (voice)

With her debut CD, Entry, bassist/composer Linda Oh asserted herself as a unique new voice on the modern jazz scene. On her follow-up, Initial Here, Oh draws deeply upon her rich cultural heritage and broad range of inspirations to further define her musical autobiography.

“This album tells a story about identity,” Oh says. “Cultural identity and musical identity. I wanted to go in a few different directions to explore some more extreme emotions.”

Born in Malaysia to Chinese parents and raised in Western Australia, Oh arrived in New York five years ago with a love of jazz, early training in classical bassoon, and an adolescence spent playing electric bass in Aussie rock bands. All of that experience surfaces on Initial Here, from the in-the-tradition ballad playing on “Mr. M” to her buoyant electric basslines on “Deeper Than Happy” and the mournful bassoon woven throughout “Thicker Than Water.”

The quartet that Oh assembled to realize this eclectic blend of material are all equally adept at integrating diverse influences. Dayna Stephens is a graduate of both Berklee College of Music and the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz and is also a skilled bassist in his own right. Cuban-born pianist Fabian Almazanwas a classmate of Oh’s at the Manhattan School of Music, where the two quickly formed a musical bond; Oh continues to perform in Almazan’s thrilling trio. And Rudy Royston has become the drummer of choice for artists as diverse as powerhouse saxophonist JD Allen, groundbreaking guitarist Bill Frisell, and forward-thinking bassist Ben Allison.

Despite her thoroughly modern sound and individual approach, Oh expresses a deep love for more traditional jazz. That comes to the fore on “Mr. M,” a languid ballad dedicated to Charles Mingus, and on the quartet’s searching rendition of “Come Sunday,” a result of her excursions into playing in church settings.

Still, pieces like “No. 1 Hit,” which takes a sardonic look at the balance between personal expression and popular acceptance, exemplify Oh’s skill at integrating complexity and accessibility, with its sinuous melody and taut rhythmic force. Balance is also key to the paired emotional outpourings of “Deeper Than Sad” and “Deeper Than Happy.” The former is a stunningly moving dirge, while the latter employs Oh’s elastic electric bass on a joyous tune inspired by her infant niece’s ecstatic reaction to a television cartoon.

Family emerges as a major theme on Initial Here. A trip to Malaysia and China to visit long-unseen relatives made an enormous impact on the compositions for the album. It was Oh’s first trip to either country as an adult, and only her second time back in Malaysia since her family relocated to Australia when she was three years old.

“It was an eye-opening trip,” she recalls. “It was nice to go as an adult and to hear the more personal stories that people never would talk about when you were a kid. And we visited Penang, Malaysia, where my great-grandfather was an artist and sculpted a temple. That was really inspiring to see.”

“Thicker Than Water,” which features vocals in Mandarin Chinese and English by the gifted multilingual vocalistJen Shyu, is the most direct result of that journey. Essentially a duet between Shyu and Oh, emoting soulfully on both bowed bass and bassoon, the piece is a tribute to Oh’s grandmothers and other female forebears. “They had it really tough,” Oh explains. “They went through a lot and here I am playing music for a living. The immigrant mentality of picking up your whole family and moving to another place for a better life is something very deep and special, and I connect with that sense of always having to work harder because of what our family did for us.”

The hope of a better life for one’s family is also central to the jubilant “Desert Island Dream,” which reflects the optimism of the new world offered by Australia in the combination of Almazan’s shimmering Rhodes and Stephens’ wistful tenor. “Little House,” featuring Oh’s agile electric skills, is a wry look back at that move, recalling the home in Perth where the future bassist found the heat and humidity of Malaysia replaced by Australia’s early morning chill. The tune’s frenzied climax features an eruption of strings, showcasing another aspect of Oh’s compositional talents. She has been writing increasingly for a combination of jazz quartet and string quartet, and will debut a new commission for the Jazz Gallery in April.

Oh’s classical influences also make an appearance in the quartet’s impactful rendition of Leonard Bernstein’s “Something Coming,” from West Side Story. Their take was inspired by the stark version by pianist Ran Blake and vocalist Jeanne Lee. In its final moments, the quartet transitions into a small piece of Stravinsky’s piano work “Les Cinq Doigts (The Five Fingers).”

The opening track, “Ultimate Persona” deals most directly with the idea of personal identity, inspired by the landmark Ingmar Bergman film Persona. It begins the album with a driving rhythmic figure inspired by an Indian polyrhythm cycle. “Persona is such an amazing, powerful film because it goes through so many ups and downs,” Oh says. “I wanted something that intense to start the record. It’s about striving to be something beyond what we are.”

4 EVENINGS OF NEW MUSIC WITH 4 DIFFERENT BANDS; FEATURING GREENLEAF PORTABLE SERIES ARTISTS

From December 8-11 at Jazz Standard in New York City, prolific jazz trumpeter and label owner Dave Douglas will present four evenings of new music with four different bands, including artists from hisGreenleaf Portable Series (GPS). OnDecember 8, Douglas will feature a new group, Key Motion Quintet, with Donny McCaslin, Adam Benjamin, Tim Lefebvre, and Mark Guiliana, performing music from Douglas’ Keystone and McCaslin’s Perpetual Motion. On the following nights, Douglas will viagra three groups featured on the first three volumes of his GPS 2011 digital EPs, offered in the new limited edition box set, Three Views: So Percussion (December 9),Orange Afternoons with Ravi Coltrane,Vijay Iyer, Linda Oh and EJ Strickland(December 10), and Brass Ecstasy withLuis Bonilla, Vincent Chancey, Marcus Rojas and Rudy Royston (December 11).

Ever since Douglas launched his Greenleaf Music imprint in 2004, the label has been ahead of the curve in embracing new media and technology. Greenleaf was one of the first jazz labels to have a blog and a web store that catered to listeners wanting various high-quality digital formats. In doing so, Douglas recognized the importance and value of not only delivering music, but also offering artistic insight into the process of being a creative musician and consumer preference for differing audio fidelities.

Douglas acknowledges the importance of technology to him as an artist, “It feels like the relationship of the artist to the listener is changing, especially in the recorded domain. Listeners have more choice in how they interact with music, and an artist can provide more choices and more immediacy. I feel like new formats are an extraordinary opportunity for music and sound artists. In the case of Three Views, the GPS system gave me the spark to ignite these three sets of new music.”

ORIGINALLY DIGITAL-ONLY EPs COMPOSED BY DOUGLAS AND PERFORMED IN INFORMAL ‘SESSIONS’ WITH BRASS ECSTASY, RAVI COLTRANE, VIJAY IYER, LINDA OH, MARCUS GILMORE, AND NEW MUSIC ENSEMBLE SO PERCUSSION

SERIES LAUNCHED VIA NEW GREENLEAF WEBSITE, MOBILE SITE,
CLOUD & UPCOMING iPHONE/iPAD APPS

Ever since pioneering jazz trumpeter Dave Douglas launched his Greenleaf Music imprint in 2004, the label has been ahead of the curve in embracing new media and technology. Greenleaf was one of the first jazz labels to have a blog and a web store that catered to listeners wanting various high-quality digital formats. In doing so, Douglas recognized the importance and value of not only delivering music, but also offering artistic insight into the process of being a creative musician and consumer preference for differing audio fidelities.

Douglas acknowledges the importance of technology to him as an artist, “It feels like the relationship of the artist to the listener is changing, especially in the recorded domain. Listeners have more choice in how they interact with music, and an artist can provide more choices and more immediacy. I feel like new formats are an extraordinary opportunity for music and sound artists. In the case of Three Views, the GPS system gave me the spark to ignite these three sets of new music.”

Greenleaf’s activities over the last seven years represent a major paradigm shift – especially for the jazz world – in the way music is consumed, delivered and complemented with “extras.”

The latest development in delivering new music in a new way is the Greenleaf Portable Series. Launched in June 2011, the series digitally delivers volumes of new music, composed and arranged by Douglas and performed with a cross-section of the finest musicians in contemporary jazz and beyond  — including Douglas’s Brass Ecstasy, a quintet featuring Ravi Coltrane on tenor saxophone and pianist Vijay Iyer, bassist Linda Oh and drummer Marcus Gilmore, as well as the new music ensemble So Percussion.

Three Views finds the prolific trumpeter and composer at his highest artistic peak.  The records seem immediate with all the top-tier players playing with an intensity not often heard on present day jazz recordings.

For Volume 1, Rare Metals, Douglas convened his newest band, Brass Ecstasy—fresh off the acclaimed release United Front: Brass Ecstasy at Newport—for recording 5 new compositions and an arrangement of the classic Strayhorn tune “Lush Life.”

Following Volume 1, Douglas invited Ravi Coltrane, Vijay Iyer, Linda Oh, and Marcus Gilmore to play new music for this special quintet.  Upon release on iTunes, Orange Afternoons shot to #1 on the iTunes jazz chart generating a buzz rarely seen in the jazz world, especially for a digital-only release.

For the final GPS release of 2011, Bad Mango the quartet So Percussion joined Douglas in the studio for what is a truly unique album even for the ever-searching trumpeter.  Playing new compositions along side works from Douglas’ album Witnessand from his early 1990s band Tiny Bell Trio, Douglas is accompanied by marimba, musical saw, glockenspiel, and many non-traditional percussion instruments.

Douglas unveiled the GPS via a newly developed website optimized for mobile platforms, a cloud player that gives instant access to Greenleaf’s growing catalogue as well as an upcoming free app for the iPhone and iPad.

In addition to developing new distribution methods, Douglas is exploring creative avenues that might present themselves as a result of the new format. The Greenleaf Portable Series is the first result – shorter sessions, recorded in a day, presented more quickly to the market without the delays of putting out a CD.

“I liked the idea of streaming the music directly to listeners, and it seemed that CD length might not be the best representative in the new medium,” explains Douglas.

“Also the idea of shorter, more informal sessions appealed as it harkens back to the way jazz albums used to be recorded. The GPS gave me an outlet for a lot of new tunes and presented me with a way to record with some musicians I really admire but with whom I rarely get to play,” remarks the trumpeter.

Though Greenleaf recognizes the demand for digital and alternative content delivery methods, the label and its owner still also love the real deal, so Greenleaf is offering a very limited edition box set version of the first three volumes of GPS with beautiful artwork and packaging that our customers have come to appreciate from Greenleaf.

Three Views represents not only the three different vantage points presented here of Douglas as a composer, but also the three ways listeners can now listen to Greenleaf products – on a computer, on a mobile device or on their stereo.

Almazan Leads His Trio & String Quartet at

The Village Vanguard: October 11-16

with a Live Webcast via NPR Music & WBGO on October 12, 9:PM (ET)

iTunes Features “The Vicarious Life” as the iTunes Discovery Download

for week of October 11-17

Physical CD: November 22, 2011

Fabian Almazan‘s debut, Personalities (Biophilia), reveals his penchant for musical storytelling with well-crafted originals and well-chosen covers. Born in Cuba, raised in Miami and based in New York City, the 27-year-old pianist and composer has apprenticed with Terence Blanchard and is a recent fellow of the Sundance Film Composer’s Lab.

Out October 11 on Nineteen-Eight Records

The Le Boeuf twins – saxophonist Remy and keyboardist Pascal announce an ambitious step in their creative development with their new album, In Praise of Shadows. Joined by fellow twenty-somethings Mike Ruby on tenor saxophone, Nir Felder on guitar, Linda Oh on bass, and Henry Cole on drums, as well as The Myth String Quartet, the Le Boeuf brothers have created a work that spans the gulf of modern jazz with indie rock and intelligent electronic music.

“When Remy and I discussed the various possibilities for making this record, we agreed that we wanted to have our own ‘sound’,” Pascal explains. “We decided to do this by incorporating elements outside of the jazz genre in our music.” For Pascal, who studied electronic music production at Berklee in the summers between his semesters at the Manhattan School of Music, this entailed using various sound design, sampling, and remix techniques; he cites Aphex Twin and Radiohead as examples. Indeed, on “Everything You Love,” which features his own stark vocals, the majority of the track is constructed from sampled audio from elsewhere in the album. “In jazz, there are many compositional devices that can create motion and communicate emotion with the listener,” Pascal elaborates. “Similarly, there are compositional devices that can be used in electronic music. My goal in making this record is to bring these production-based compositional devices to the jazz genre and to encourage like-minded jazz musicians to do the same.” To facilitate this exchange, the CD of In Praise of Shadows includes both sheet music and audio stems of the recordings to remix, as well as a short video.

For Remy, this meant adding the Myth String Quartet to various tracks, writing some of his arrangements after the initial recording sessions to incorporate the improvisations. “What makes In Praise of Shadows different from our previous work is that we took a layered approach to composing, recording, and production,” Remy says, citing a specific example on “Circles” that weaves composition and improvisation together in an intricate fashion. “I decided to form aspects of the composition around the improvisation. When Pascal’s comping moves outside the harmony during my solo, I decided to orchestrate the strings to follow this motion and bring it to the attention of the listener. In a sense, I got to accentuate my favorite parts of the solo by bringing them into the foreground. Every solo is a composition, but I decided to take this a step further.”

Click the image to watch a short video about the Le Boeuf Brother’s creative process

The Le Boeuf Brothers are joined on this adventurous project by a close-knit group of collaborators, most of them classmates at the Manhattan School of Music and fellow participants at the Banff Centre in Alberta, Canada. “Being surrounded by a supportive and inspiring peer group is extremely important to me,” Remy says. “Artists collaborate, inspire, and help each other.” Pascal concurs: “We’ve learned a great deal from our peers,” he says. “Many of the friendships we’ve forged at institutions such as the Banff Centre, the Manhattan School of Music, the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts and living in New York have nurtured creative development and led to performance opportunities. When everyone is on the same team, musical growth and success are shared across the board.”

The Le Boeuf twins namecheck a varied range of influences in the conception and creation of In Praise of Shadows. They look to Radiohead, a band that has indirectly shaped modern jazz repertory and aesthetic over the past 15 years, iconoclastic auteurs Sufjan Stevens and Björk, and envelope-busting electronic musicians Telefon Tel Aviv and Squarepusher for sonic inspiration. They feel a sense of kinship with texturally-minded modern jazz musicians such as Kneebody, Kurt Rosenwinkel and Aaron Parks. “I think that many modern jazz and indie rock artists are trying to achieve a sense of individuality by breaking away from the traditions they are born out of,” Remy postulates. “Both modern styles tend to favor more harmonic motion with less common chord progressions, and they embrace more textural variation. Modern jazz and indie rock appeal to a younger audience; I think the reason they are linked is because they speak to people of the same generation.”

Pascal’s own theory goes further: “Due to the growing presence of music education, modern jazz seems to have taken on an atmosphere which tends towards intellectual influences. I feel this same way about electronic music, rock and music production. I want to hear music with emotional substance that is also nerdy enough to think about. My favorite albums incorporate honest emotional content, intelligence and creative production.”

The Le Boeuf Brothers graciously acknowledge the support of the Edward & Sally Van Lier Fund of the NY Community Trust, which funded a significant portion of the creation of In Praise of Shadows.”Pascal and I both feel quite fortunate and grateful to have had their support in actualizing our musical vision,” Remy says.

Featuring Bassist Linda Oh and Drummer Henry Cole

Out October 4, 2011

Fabian Almazan’s debut, Personalities (Biophilia), reveals his penchant for musical storytelling with well-crafted originals and well-chosen covers. Born in Cuba, raised in Miami and based in New York City, the 27-year-old pianist and composer has apprenticed with Terence Blanchard and is a recent fellow of the Sundance Film Composer’s Lab.

Almazan’s trio is comprised of bassist Linda Oh and drummer Henry Cole, both Manhattan School of Music classmates. “They are both very open-minded musicians with a fearless ability to turn on a dime if the music takes a different direction,” Almazan says with praise. “Needless to say, they have profound command over their respective instruments.” The trio is augmented by a string quartet featuring violinists Meg Okura and Megan Gould, violist Karen Waltuch and cellist Noah Hoffeld.

True to the album title, the music is about people that have impacted Almazan’s life so far. The inspirations for his compositions range from tributes to his grandmothers and mother (“Grandmother Song,” “Una Foto”), overheard conversations about atheism (“Sin Alma”), stage parents at adolescent piano recitals (“The Vicarious Life”) and socio-economic reflections (“H.U.Gs”). About the latter, a tune that finds Almazan unravelling lines on Fender Rhodes, he says, “H.U.Gs stands for Historically Under-represented Groups. As I understand the acronym, it is used in scientific papers that deal with the environmental conditions in lower socio-economic communities. I wanted to write something that would embody the struggle that generations of abused and manipulated people have had to overcome to achieve equality.”

Almazan’s choice of non-original repertoire is imaginative, in two cases reflective of his Cuban heritage. Carlos Varela’s “Bola de Nieve” (literally, “snowball,” but in this case, the nickname of Ignacio Villa) is one of Almazan’s earliest memories of attentively listening to music, and is offered here in homage to both Varela and Villa. The classic danzon “Tres Lindas Cubanas” “connects me back to my music and my family,” he says.

The album opens with a stunning rendition of the third movement of Shostakovich‘s String Quartet No. 10, Op. 118. The trio and string quartet are processed by Almazan through delay and distortion. He tips his hat to guitarists Ryan Ferreira, his guide through “pedal land,” and Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood. Almazan refers to this type of electronic processing as “a new door in front of me that I didn’t even know existed.” It is a strong opening statement, and like the rest of the album, executed from a place of deep honesty. “I had to be clear with myself about what type of emotions I wanted to musically convey that would best introduce my aesthetics to the listener,” Almazan explains.

The evocative narratives on Personalities reflect Almazan’s self-described “international citizen” worldview, as well as his work as a film composer. His relationship to music can be summed up thusly: “I have learned that music has an uncomplicated purpose, which is to make you feel something. There are an endless amount of options on how to achieve that simple purpose.” On his remarkable first record, Fabian Almazan presents ten such options.

Release Date: October 6, 2009

The title of Linda Oh‘s debut CD, Entry, describes not only her emergence as a leader, but her arrival amongst the ranks of bassists who step out of the sidelines into the spotlight with a strong, cohesive vision. Alongside Ambrose Akinmusire on trumpet and drummer Obed Calvaire, Oh offers a compelling three-way conversation in which she serves as both equal voice and steely anchor.

“So many musicians want to do everything with their first album,” Oh says. “Especially bass players who play upright and electric — Here’s me doing a funk tune, here’s me doing a swing tune…I wanted to steer completely clear of that and have something kind of raw as well as challenging. Basically, I knew I wanted to do something different.”

Though she achieves that goal musically throughout Entry, Oh’s backstory alone ensures her uniqueness, even on the globally-oriented New York scene. Born in Malaysia to Chinese parents and raised in Western Australia, she arrived in NYC three years ago having followed a circuitous route, culturally and musically.

Starting with classical piano lessons at age four, Oh’s musical dabblings progressed through various woodwind instruments throughout her school years before settling on the bassoon during high school. But at the same time, an uncle gave her an electric bass, which she played by day in her school jazz band at night, emulating Flea on Red Hot Chili Peppers covers by night.

Oh’s musical tastes had been forged through the influence of her older sister, who introduced her to “everything from the Red Hot Chili Peppers to Faith No More to Fela Kuti to Jaco Pastorius.” That influence persists on Entry via the trio’s hushed, tender version of the Chili Pepper’ early-90s B-side, “Soul to Squeeze”, which closes the album.

Having split her attentions between bassoon and bass throughout high school, the time came to make a choice when Oh decided to further her studies. She settled on the bass and in 2002 was accepted into the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, where she began playing the upright bass for the first time.

“Being brought up in Australia, especially in such an isolated, pretty town as Perth, there were some very amazing, incredibly underrated musicians,” Oh says. “And because Australia is so small, I find it to be brutally honest. Here, I see a lot of people getting by because they have the right publicist or the right look, but over there people are a bit more willing to say, ‘This sounds like crap.’ That was a huge influence on me because it made me really learn fast.”

When it came time to record her own debut as a leader, Oh decided to assemble a stripped-down trio for a darker, moodier sound. “The dark blue color that I chose for the album cover reflects what I felt the colors of the tunes were,” she says. “It’s kind of strange, but I was looking for something a bit more honest. I wanted it to have a darker sound, so I had to constantly tell Ambrose to aim lower than what he would usually aim for.”

Oh chose two of New York’s most innovative talents for her trio, both fellow Manhattan School grads. Akinmusire has followed his victory in the 2007 Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition by playing with legends like Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter. Calvaire lists Wynton Marsalis, Danilo Perez, Stefon Harris, and a two-year stint with Steve Turre on his résumé.

The three make for a formidable unit, maintaining a taut electricity while volleying ideas between them at the speed of inspiration. “I wanted the melodies and the harmonies to be simple and direct to create that raw sound,” Oh says. “Everything else — the rhythms, the ideas — could go wherever they wanted to. Basically, I was looking to put together my own tunes in the way that I wanted to, while giving the other guys the freedom to really characterize them.”

That combination of edge and electricity is present right out of the gate, in the tense pulse of “Morning Sunset”, met initially with smears and chirps from Akinmusire’s horn before building in momentum, with that throbbing heartbeat maintained throughout, traded among the instrumentalists.

It’s also present in the nervous energy of Oh’s opening bass lines on “Fourth Limb”, accompanied by Calvaire’s equally caffeinated chattering percussion, soothed by the entrance of a calmingly soulful trumpet melody.

Despite Oh’s focus on dark colors and raw sounds, there is no shortage of beauty on the album, whether in the form of Akinmusire’s chorus-like fanfare at the outset of “Numero Uno” or the bop-funk head of “Gunners”, which hides a punk snarl inside.

It’s not quite accurate to call this a three-sided dialogue, however — by devising clever tunes with built-in space for constant reinvention, Oh offers a suite of tunes that reward the listener who digs into the spaces that the trio carves out. In that sense, it’s a cooperative effort that works via four minds converging.

For more information, contact Matt Merewitz (matt@fullyaltered.com / 215-629-6155)

Ben Perowsky Quartet – Esopus Opus (Skirl) – August 11
w/ Perowsky (drums), Chris Speed (tenor sax, clarinet), Drew Gress (bass), Ted Reichman (accordion, keyboards)

The Waitiki 7 – Adventures in Paradise (Pass Out Records) – August 18
w/ Zaccai Curtis (piano), Tim Mayer (saxes, flutes), Randy Wong (bass), Lopaka Colón (birdcalls, percussion), Jim Benoit (vibes), Helen Liu (violin), Abe Lagrimas, Jr. (drums, vibes, percussion) + special guest Mike Dease (trombone)

Stefon Harris & Blackout – Urbanus (Concord Jazz) – August 25
w/ Harris (vibraphone, marimba), Marc Cary (keyboards, piano, effects), Ben Willams (bass), Casey Benjamin (alto sax, vocoder), Terreon Gully (drums)

Rez Abbasi – Things to Come (Sunnyside) – August 25
w/ Rudresh Mahanthappa (alto sax), Vijay Iyer (piano), Dan Weiss (drums), Johannes Weidenmuller (bass) + Kiran Ahluwalia (Hindustani vocals), Mike Block (cello)

September

James Weidman – Three Worlds (Inner Circle Music) – Sept. 15
w/ Marty Ehrlich (alto sax, clarinet), Ray Anderson (trombone), Jay Hoggard (vibraphone), Brad Jones (bass), Francisco Mela (drums)

Benny Reid - Escaping Shadows (Concord Jazz) – Sept. 15
w/ Richard Padrón (guitar), Jeff Taylor (wordless vocals), Ryan Fitch (percussion), Pablo Vergara (piano), Dan Loomis (bass), Kenny Grohowski (drums)

Digital Primitives – Hum, Crackle & Pop (Hopscotch Records) – Sept. 22
w/ Assif Tsahar (tenor sax, percussion), Cooper-Moore (percussion, diddley-bo, voice), Chad Taylor (drums, percussion)

Moodswing Orchestra – Moodswing Orchestra (El Destructo Records/The Royal Potato Family) – Sept. 29
w/ Ben Perowsky (leader, drums bells, percussion, voice), Glenn Patscha (keyboards, pianos, voice), Markus Miller (turntables, electronics); Special Guests: Oren Bloedow (bass, voice) and Jennifer Charles (voice) of Elysian Fields, Marcus Rojas (tuba, voice), Doug Wieselman (reeds), Steven Bernstein (trumpet), Pamela Kurstin (theremin), Miho Hatori (voice) of Cibo Matto, Elyas Khan (voice), Joan Wasser (voice) of Joan As Policewoman, Bebel Gilberto (voice)

Ahleuchatistas – Of The Body Prone (Tzadik) – Sept. 29
Power Trio w/ Shane Perlowin (guitar), Derek Poteat (bass), Ryan Oslance (drums)

Tyshawn Sorey – Koan (482 Music) – Sept. 29
Trio w/ Thomas Morgan (bass, guitar); Todd Neufeld (guitar)

October

Jon Irabagon – The Observer (Concord Jazz) – Oct. 6
w/ Kenny Barron (piano), Rufus Reid (bass), Victor Lewis (drums) + special guests Nicholas Payton (trumpet), Bertha Hope (piano)

Linda Oh – Entry (self-released) – Oct. 6
Trio w/ Oh (bass), Ambrose Akinmusire (trumpet), Obed Calvaire (drums)

Jason Stein’s Locksmith Isidore – Three Less Than Between (Clean Feed) – October 6
Trio w/ Jason Stein (bass clarinet), Jason Roebke (bass), Mike Pride (drums)

Jason Stein – In Exchange for A Process (Leo Records) – October 6
solo bass clarinet

Vijay Iyer Trio – Historicity (ACT Music) -  October 13
Trio w/ Marcus Gilmore (drums) and Stephan Crump (bass)

Ben Allison - Think Free (Palmetto) – October 13
Quintet w/ Jenny Scheinman, Shane Endsley, Steve Cardenas and Rudy Royston

Chad Taylor -  Circle Down (482 Music) – October 20
Trio w/ Angelica Sanchez and Chris Lightcap

Mike Reed’s People, Places & Things – About Us (482 Music) – October 27
Quintet w/ Tim Haldeman (t. sax, perc., piano), Mike Reed (drums, piano), Jason Roebke (bass, perc., piano), Greg Ward (alto sax, perc., piano) – 2nd part of a trilogy

To request any of these recordings, please contact Matt Merewitz (matt@fullyaltered.com) or Stephen Buono (stephen@fullyaltered.com) or call 215-629-6155.