John Parry, Author at Backseat Mafia

Album Review: Fabia Mantwill Orchestra – IN.SIGHT : Expansive big band jazz packed with invention, melody and sonic lushness.

For any composer the jazz orchestra has always been about much more than expanding the soundscape, it represents a leap of faith where artists dare their own capabilities and imagine…

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Album Review: Yesterday’s Princess – ‘Tomorrow’s Yearning’: Library music influenced duo deliver a brisk, fresh debut set of soul-jazz teasers.

Bringing something new to the table where Library music sits as the prime influence is difficult but Swedish producers Fredrik Bergsten and Marcus Larsson might be onto something with their…

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Track/Video: Montreal minstrel poet Whitney K previews anticipated new album ‘Bubble’ with the warm, waltzing ‘Jolene’.

Modern day troubadour, Canadian singer-songwriter Konner Whitney aka Whitney K is on the move. After releasing three mighty slices of his raw, country rock poeticism for Bologna’s Maple Death Records,…

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Track/Video: RAKEL, an emerging new voice from Reykjavík announces her debut album with the softly powerful ‘Rescue Remedy’.

Pianist/composer Ólafur Arnalds forward thinking OPIA project, part performance festival, part label, part community builder, is making a habit of bringing illusive talents out into the wider spotlight. You might…

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Album Review: Wolfgang Pérez-‘Só Ouço’: Bringing a new avant-pop, no-wave edge to MPB lushness.

Chance happenings sometimes take music to the right place. For Spanish-German, Cologne-based singer-songwriter/arranger Wolfgang Pérez that place is his new succulent album ‘Só Ouço’ out now via Hive Mind Records.…

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Album Review: Reginald Omas Mamode IV – ‘Rivière’ Noire’: Forward-thinking lo-fi funk and hip hop with a bold, direct message.

Dalliance or daring, ‘Rivière’ Noire’ the fourth album from singer, producer and beats aficionado Reginald Omas Mamode IV is, whichever way you look at it, a bit of a leap.…

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Album Review: The Circling Sun –‘Orbits’: the spiritual jazz collective return refreshed and vital as ever.

The ever-orbiting Aotearoa/New Zealand based cosmic jazz big band The Circling Sun are clearly on a roll. After building a live reputation on the NZ scene for well over a…

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Album Review: Charbel Haber, Nicolás Jaar and Sary Moussa- ‘Crashing waves…’: A breath-taking electro-acoustic journey which reaches beyond the moment.

Disseminating experimental/alternative music from the myriad of vibrant scenes across the SWANA region to the wider world has been Ruptured Music’s generous undertaking for over fifteen years. Its creative source…

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Track/Video: Tape looping soundscaper Blank For.ms previews incoming album with the gently powerful ‘Formed By The Slide’.

It seems a long way from big band composition to becoming a tape loop/analogue wiz but that’s the trajectory Brooklyn based musician Tyler Gilmore aka Blank For.ms has journeyed. Schooled…

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Album Review: Universal Affirmation Ensemble – ‘Unconditional Propositions’: Daring experimental rock inspired by Gamelan’s rich intensity.

The second release of the venerable Katuktu Collective’s spring offering sees the Californian label open our ears to some new sonic adventures with drummer and composer Justin Devries. For his…

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