With so many connection options available nowadays, a title like “To Connect” could have whatever meaning one chooses. But one thing’s for sure, this piece…
Well Connected
Author: Tom Orr
Tom Orr is a California-based writer whose talent and mental stability are of an equally questionable nature. His hobbies include ignoring trends, striking dramatic poses in front of his ever-tolerant wife and watching helplessly as his kids surpass him in all desirable traits.
Getting the Party Started
New Cool Collective, a band out of Amsterdam, makes it clear that they’re in a celebratory mood with “The Party,” a funk-filled, Latin-tinged dance track.…
Reggae Time for Bonzo
Reggae from Italy is no longer a novel thing and if what I’ve heard of it is any indication, it rings true in comparison to…
On the Spot and Spot On
Freestyling in a completely off-the-cuff, improvised manner, Caleb Hart (a Trinidadian based in Canada) displays a knack for Jamaican deejay chanting as well as wrapping…
Stepping Forward
Mexican saxophonist Gerry López gives an Afro-Cuban jazz twist to John Coltrane’s “Giant Steps,” taking a classic to new heights by keeping the melodic essence…
88 Keys Plus Natural Beats
Greece’s Yiorgos Bereris seasons his own expert touch on the piano with jazz drumming, Cuban and Brazilian-inspired percussion and melodic interplay to spare on “Cruza,”…
Warming Warning
Addressing a worldwide problem in a true roots reggae style is exactly how it ought to be done, and Minna LaFortune does so on “Global…
A Word to the Unwise
I’ve spotlighted the work of America’s Naya Rockers previously, and their “Long Way Down” gives me another reason to do so. It’s a melodic but…
Can’t Stop This
Jstop Latin Soul is a Virginia-based band that delivers on their name with a just the right amount of sizzling Afro-Cuban rhythms, full-blooded solos, layered…
Kora to the Core
American kora players aren’t exactly commonplace, so the work of Kane Mathis is not only noteworthy for his individuality, but for his expertise. He leads…