(Click on cover for issue PDF)
On The Cover:
CHICO FREEMAN
(by Sheila Anderson)
When the acclaimed saxophonist and improviser Chico Freeman steps on stage, it’s not just the sound of the instrument he’s playing you hear—it’s also the echo of a movement that began 60 years ago on Chicago’s South Side and still continues to shape the future of creative music. The raw, bluesy tradition of Chicago jazz is in his DNA, an inherent part of Freeman’s authentic, powerful, musical feel…
Interview:
JEFF PARKER
(by Andrew Schinder)
The CT-born, VA-raised, genre-smashing guitarist Jeff Parker—who works with jazz, electronic, rock and improvisational groups—studied at Berklee College of Music in Boston before moving to Chicago in 1991. At age 58, he’s been at the forefront of sonic innovation for decades, yet he’s just getting started…
Artist Feature:
AROOJ AFTAB
(by Kurt Gottschalk)
Vocalist Arooj Aftab has been declared (in an oft-repeated quote from Uncut magazine) “the coolest rock star in the world right now”…Aftab is at work on the follow-up to Night Reign, due in late 2026. She’s hesitant to go into details, but from a distance it seems like it could be a deeper level of casual cool…
Encore:
ROGER GLENN
(by Marilyn Lester)
To identify polymath Roger Glenn as a vibraphonist or flautist alone would be only a fraction correct. He’s proficient on 18 instruments, plus he composes and sings. Also a licensed pilot who volunteers with the Civil Air Patrol, Glenn recently added to his CV a new leader album, My Latin Heart (Patois)…
Lest We Forget:
CHARLIE ROUSE
(by Mike Shanley)
Of all the tenor saxophonists to play with Thelonious Monk, Charlie Rouse (1924-1988) stayed with the pianist the longest—from 1959 to 1970. In some ways, Rouse (who passed away 27 years ago this month) arguably never emerged from the role of Monk’s long-term sideman…
VOXNews
(by Tessa Souter)
For contemporary artists, November is the month when GRAMMY voters are actively listening and finalizing nominations, and everyone’s inbox is overflowing with “For Your Consideration” requests…
LABEL SPOTLIGHT:
JERSIKA RECORDS
(by Ken Waxman)
A music lover, a vinyl purist and a Latvian nationalist, Mareks Ameriks combines all his passions in Riga-based Jersika Records, which since 2017 has released 37 sessions, 25 in its analog series and 12 digital, with seven available as reel-to-reel tapes…
NY@Night
Album Reviews
In Print, On Screen, Boxed Set, Drop The Needle Reviews, Globe Unity…
