Active Campaigns:
Anna Webber
“An explosive set full of concentrated intensity.” —JazzTimes, 2024 Year In Review
”Saxophonist Anna Webber’s simpletrio2000 was pointillistic but cheerful, its precision so dialed-in you couldn’t do anything but smile.” —Stereogum, Best Jazz Albums of 2024
simpletrio2000 out Oct. 18 2024 on INTAKT Records
Anna Webber – tenor saxophone / flute / bass flute / compositions / leader
Matt Mitchell - piano
John Hollenbeck - drums
simpletrio2000 Press Release
simpletrio2000 Bandcamp
simpletrio2000 Liner Notes
Anna Webber BIO
Out Of Your Head Records
“With a heady, ever-expanding roster that includes Nick Dunston, Michaël Attias, Adam Hopkins, Dustin Carlson, and the MacroQuarktet, the Brooklyn-Based, artist-run imprint Out Of Your Head Records is quickly becoming an ‘it’ label.” —Brooklyn Rail
"A series of direct-to-digital releases meant to capture jazz 'in the wild,' Out Of Your Head's 'Untamed' series is one of the best ideas to have emerged from jazz's indie underground in a while." —Downbeat Magazine
“A browse through the catalogs of Pyroclastic, Tao Forms, and Out of Your Head — thriving imprints headed respectively by pianist Kris Davis, drummer Whit Dickey, and bassist Adam Hopkins — shows how musicians are banding together to showcase one another’s talents: the singular visions of the aforementioned Eric Revis and Craig Taborn, for example; the drumming gifts and rich compositional style of Tani Tabbal; or the challenging creations of Anna Webber and Nick Dunston. Even in the absence of in-person connection, the web of jazz continues to grow.” —Rolling Stone Magazine
Previous Projects:
Anna Webber
Shimmer Wince
“Anna Webber’s music is the hidden room behind the bookcase, the clandestine passage from the upstairs study to a secret garden, the underground vault holding all the treasures that, once revealed, cause a sea change in how the House of Jazz is viewed.” —Bandcamp Best Jazz October 2023
”Beauty comes in many shades and tunings.” —PopMatters Best Jazz Albums of 2023
”…engrossing and invigorating […] the music slowly and confidently blossoms from discreet to intense, encompassing a full range of dynamics and emotions.” —Wall Street Journal
”Flutist, saxophonist, and composer Anna Webber has made some of the most fascinating music of the last few years.” —Stereogum
”Shimmer Wince presents music whose complexities are never ends in themselves, but means to project an exhilaration that requires no analysis to be appreciated.” —Magnet Magazine
GEORGE
Letters to George
9 New Albums You Should Listen To Now —Pitchfork
“…when the band nails down its unique blend of vintage funk and futuristic electronica on tracks like “Washington Carver” and “Iceman,” GEORGE’s energy is as infectious as a perfect pop tune. “ —Pitchfork
"enigmatic, punchy and compact" "Magic happens in the margins and the middle, between analog and digital textures, genre detours and a collective will which is dogmatically subject to change." —DownBeat Magazine
“The pop veneer can be a bit deceiving, because there’s nothing glib or slight about these performances, and the production delivers a delicious tension with the no-holds-barred attack. I can only imagine how George will sound with a bunch of gigs under its belt, but for now the heat this early meeting generated is more than enough.” —The Quietus
“…futurist progressive fusion. Letters to George is a remarkable debut for its captivating, provocative compositions, arrangements, and performances by a veritable supergroup.” —AllMusic
Mali Obomsawin
Sweet Tooth
“The most auspicious debut album I heard this year […] Obamsawin connects these histories with power and ingenuity.” —NPR
“It’s a knockout, rich in context and substance, with a mission that fuels its most exploratory impulses.” —The Quietus
“Obomsawin is an exceptional and eminently tasteful composer, bassist and bandleader. While finding a balance between bassist and bandleader can be tricky, Obomsawin is the central pillar, the heartbeat, a steward of her accompanists — as exemplified on Sweet Tooth.” —GRAMMY.com
The Guardian ‘10 Best Folk Albums of 2022’ #4 // NPR - Best Roots Music of 2022 // Folk Alley - Best of 2022 // Francis Davis Jazz Poll - Best Debut of 2022 // The Wire - 2022 Releases of the Year // New York City Jazz Record - Best Debut of 2022 // Brooklyn Vegan - Best of 2022 // NPR - 2022 Staff Picks // Folk Radio UK - 2022 Folk Albums of the Year // Warm Visions - Top 50 Albums of 2022 // Motherslug - Best of 2022 // Jazzfuel - Best Jazz of 2022
Marc Ducret
Palm Sweat - Marc Ducret Plays the Music of Tim Berne
“Ducret dives into each piece fearlessly, his guitar plucked and pulled as if it is about to come apart at any second. By the final side, the dust has settled and a blues track comes creeping out of the thicket. It’s a disorienting moment that, like much of the album, still surprises me no matter how many times I’ve spun this record.” —Paste Magazine
"Palm Sweat is a carefully constructed and brilliantly mixed album." —The Wire
"Ducret, it seems to me, is in a position to understand Berne’s compositions in a way others might not. From Caos Totale (1990) to Snakeoil (yesterday), Ducret has been a powerful omnipresent friend, utterly individualistic in style. Palm Sweat is extraordinary." —Free Jazz Collective
Best New Jazz of Feb/March 2023 “…ladder-rung melodies being played with resonant precision […] the coming together of musical thinking between composer and performer is very strong indeed.” —PopMatters
Matt Mitchell
Oblong Aplomb
“The thrill of these encounters comes in hearing the pianist and his respective partners find an exhilarating freedom amid daunting rigor.” —New York Times
"...a constantly inventive pianist whose playing throws up a stream of fresh ideas that move rapidly and seamlessly from one to the next." —London Jazz News
"...a miracle of harmonic déjà vu amidst rhythmic counterpoint beyond description."
—New York City Jazz Record
**** “This music is dense and demanding but those who make the commitment to really listen to what’s going on will be rewarded. Having said that, it’s also great to close your eyes, let it go, and simply enjoy these amazing sounds.” —JazzTrail
“24 songs of challenging, kinda weird and twisted jazz. But damn, it's addictive.”
—Everything Is Noise
Nick Dunston
Spider Season
“The record maps out the shifting web of relationships between performers. Each scrape, thump, or screech has a tangible effect on the room’s energy. Even in a trio setting, Dunston’s curiosity creates a plethora of possibilities. No two songs of his ever sound alike." —Pitchfork
“Dunston is a sonic revolutionary in many ways, not the least of which is the instrumentation of his bands.” —JazzTimes
“A spider-like project that consecrates one of the most interesting trios of the moment.” —Citizen Jazz
“The trio summon a surprisingly wide range of sounds, generating propulsion without a beat, producing lush harmony that conveys a richer sound than might be expected.”
—The Wire
Up-and-Comer Musician of 2023 - New York City Jazz Record
Travis Laplante
Wild Tapestry
**** "Laplante, for whom music-making is an intimate, shared process, has once more found a way to share his reflections on the mystery of communication."
—Downbeat Magazine
"...some of his most ambitious, clear-eyed writing." "He's carved out generous space in which his most lyrical improvised solos and most abstract extended technique co-exist beautifully. Unpitched breaths and circular breathing passages are embedded in lush arrangements that give such abstractions a beguiling context." —The Wire
9/10 “It’s never dull and never pretentious. How Laplante pulled it off will be difficult to ascertain, but we can still try.” —PopMatters
“…a short masterpiece. This music stays with you.” —Free Jazz Collective
Downbeat Magazine - Best of 2022
Secret People
Secret People
“The trio's nifty trick--on the more spacious tracks heard on Secret People—is to blow through hard, dense and complex compositions and then settle into quieter, almost subterranean zones, where they simply hang out and improvise for healthy stretches."
—Relix
“In a kaleidoscopic amalgam of abstraction and drive, the group's chemistry, like their chops, is undeniable.” —All About Jazz
“…twisted melody, tricky rhythms, and lots of forward momentum played with equal parts freedom and precision.” —PopMatters
“…nonstop series of addictive tunes and jaw-droppingly impressive solos. Highly recommended for summer days and summer nights, rooftop barbeques and beach bonfires, and all points in between.” —Free Jazz Collective
”The musicianship is capricious, earnest, and precocious, but it’s never obnoxious. You can feel the individualism of each band member rise to the surface in pursuit of the same collective consciousness.” —Scream Blast Repeat
Webber/Morris Big Band
Both Are True
“…a jagged-edged band that has begun to turn musicians’ heads.” —New York Times
“Anna Webber and Angela Morris are a pair of unclassifiable multi-instrumentalists…It should come as no surprise that this ensemble does a few things differently; I expect that some heads will turn when their debut album, Both Are True, sees release”
—WBGO Take Five
”Here is a jazz band that is tightly arranged and gorgeously free, a new music ensemble that improvises and plays with precision, a complex modern idiom rendered with scuffed-up life...the Webber/Morris Big Band jumps out like a joy.” —PopMatters
"Riveting and mercurial...compelling explorations into the sonic possibilities of big bands."
—Downbeat Magazine
“The music never swings in a conventional way. Instead, it drifts along, elements emerging then fading away again, with solos appearing like an animal emerging from the mist in the middle of a forest, gazing impassively at you, then retreating.” —Stereogum
Mario Pavone
Blue Vertical
“That Mario Pavone's compositions galvanize and focus two rather different ensembles might encourage other curious musicians to give his pieces a try, keeping his music in circulation. This great bass player and big-hearted mensch made a number of memorable records. With his final statements, "Blue Vertical" and "Isabella," he left us with two more.” —NPR Fresh Air
“Both albums have the feel of a man who was at peace with both his present and his future.” —Bandcamp
”Listening to this record is like eavesdropping on a casual conversation between old friends where there is much more than just the words heard–there is a deep history and understanding there too. […] This is the kind of album that will seduce those unfamiliar with creative music to fall in love with it.” —Free Jazz Collective
All About Jazz - Best of 2021 // New York City Jazz Record - Best of 2021 // Avant Music News - Best of 2021
Nick Dunston
Atlantic Extraction
“Long story short: Dunston has made the debut of 2019, and it’s likely that its beauty will resonate for much longer than that.” —JazzTimes
****1/2 “Bassist Nick Dunston’s debut, Atlantic Extraction, was a glorious bolt from the blue, the kind of exceptionally performed album you can turn over in your mind repeatedly, reflecting on its many angles and perspectives.” —Free Jazz Collective
"An ambitious bandleader and composer who’s writing can make his quintet sound like a massive ensemble." —Downbeat Magazine
“Nick Dunston's debut as a leader features the unusual instrumental of double bass, drums, electric guitar and flute [and violin] - and his compositions put that configuration to imaginative use." —The Wire
Best Debut Albums in the 2019 NPR Music Jazz Critics Poll // Best Debut Album of 2019 in the NYC Jazz Record // Best Debut Album of 2019 by In On The Corner // Best of 2019 by Free Jazz Collective
Michaël Attias
échos la nuit
“Spare, haunting, and meditative. Attias is cerebral in the best sense, a strong improviser and interesting composer." —The Wire
“Hearing these 12 tracks is like inspecting the mysterious line drawings of a beloved artist. Sometimes you’ll almost discern the contour of a landscape or the dark shading of a limb, but ultimately the shapes all drift back into a desolate, spacious abstraction.” —New York Times
“This is music of deep inquiry and patient exposition. It has the air of a soul-baring even as Attias keeps his cards close to his vest.” —WBGO Take Five
"This feels like an album which should inspire poetry, rather than a review. Michaël Attias’ first solo album is an incredibly beautiful, patient, delicately unfurling recording, an intimate duo for alto saxophone and piano played by one person simultaneously…it deepens my respect [for Michaël] even further, one of the most beautiful and unusual new albums I’ve heard in a long time." —London Jazz News
“With a sound that gives off an after-hours feel and a command of his instrument that is both majestic and gritty…Completely improvised, Échos la Nuit is a one-man show of the highest order.” —JazzTimes