My first Jazz Night Out of 2017 was brief but enjoyable when Rick Sanford and I caught the first set of the Lucas Kadish Tundra 4tet at Rumba Cafe on Tuesday the 11th. Guitarist and Northeast Ohio native Kadish and his NYC-based quartet stopped through town as part of a winter tour and drew a solid crowd of jazz fans. The first set consisted of three standards and two Kadish originals that revealed an evolving take on modern jazz by the young group and sleek, nuanced lines from the guitarist. His tune “Greener” had an airy, ethereal atmosphere, but still maintained a hard-charging urgency. The warmth of bassist Nick Dunston’s lines shone bright, and the ensemble’s excellent solos flowed together almost seamlessly. Later, “Madison” featured an opening pulse of electricity from keyboardist Theo Walentiny and progressed to expressive passages with bursts of group improvisation. I wish we could have seen more, but were glad to see some of this well-received performance.
Shows To See This Week
Saturday, January 14th (3 – 6pm): Second Saturdays with Sonikora featuring Tony Zilincik and Sun Trash at the Vanderelli Room, Franklinton. This show represents the kickoff of a new series from promoter Gerard Cox focused on “jazz, improvised music, and special collaborations between artists of different mediums.” Improvisation-minded trio Sonikora, the regular featured group of the series, consists of Chris Haas (analog keyboards), Jason Miles (electric bass/percussion) and Robert White (drums). Their sets often become “heavy cosmic flights” mixing jazz, funk, world and epic soundscapes. This month’s bill also includes a solo set by Tony Zilincik (New Basics Brass Band), “whose work on the tuba is a sublime, bizarre sound-world of its own,” and a set by improvised music duo Sun Trash, which pairs multi-instrumentalists Caleb Miller and Nick Weckman (they also collaborated on Radarhill’s Any Given Day). The event will end with “a unique multi-medium experiment,” which sounds like an intriguing cap to an exciting show! Admission is on a sliding scale of $5 – $10.
Saturday, January 14th (8pm – midnight): “Jazz at the Hub” with the William Brady Project Band at The Hub, 1336 Main Street. A new addition to our Columbus Jazz Calendar is this twice-monthly (second and last Saturdays of each month) charity event on the Near East Side. The lively jazz and R&B sounds of the William Brady Project Band support the mission of the William Brady Charitable Organization, focused on housing for those with mental health needs. The venue is the home of The HUB Community Development Corporation, a non-profit organization providing workforce and economic development. Enjoy some grooves for a good cause! The $10 cover charge goes to support Mental Health Awareness.
Wednesday, January 18th (8pm – 11pm): Elaine Mylius at Brothers Drake. For her first show as a leader, trombonist Mylius (Rick Brunetto Big Band, Mistar Anderson) will lead a quartet with Andrew Willard on keys, John Allen on bass, and Willie Barthel on drums. She was kind enough to provide more details on this FREE Jazz Wednesday show:
I’ll be playing some standards like “I Thought About You” and “The Shadow of Your Smile” as well as some lesser known standards like “In Love In Vain” (Art Farmer/Benny Golson’s album Here and Now) and “Arietis” by Freddie Hubbard. We’ll play some music from current artists like “Common Ground” by Bob Reynolds and “Eleven” by Nicholas Payton. I love hip-hop, so we’ll definitely be bringing the funk on a few tunes including one by Q-Tip (though I haven’t decided which one yet). I’ve also played at Brothers Drake previously with hip-hop band Mistar Anderson, so our rapper Eric Rollin may make a special appearance on a tune or two because I think rappers who freestyle are highly underrated. I feel that freestyle and improvisation are one in the same and I’m excited to showcase a rapper at a jazz show!
Have a great week! Here’s a Sonikora video to get you ready: