Sunday Music Muse Day - Leni Stern, Kurt Rosenwinkle

On this Sunday Music Muse Day, Mother Nature is playing an early April Fools Day joke on us as spring flower are being cover with snow fall. Maybe listening to some CDs I picked up at the South Wedge Record Fair, today, will help me get the last laugh.  First is Leni Stern Recollection, it's a anthology of tunes from various prior releases of the fusion guitarist.   The cuts include guitarists Bill Frisell and Wayne Krantz, plus drummer Paul Motian.  Not  lightweight players.  The CDc starts with two vocal tunes, with hint of country music in a slight Bonnie Raitt vain (who I like) which I find not to be her strong suit. I enjoy her instrumentals much better. Still there is much to like in this CD set.

Next up is Kurt Rosenwinkel Heartcore.  This is my second CD I've picked up by the young guitarist, who has a been acclaimed as a raising star in the new generation of jazz players.  With my first listen I have to agree with Nate Chinen writing a review for JazzTimes (Oct. 1, 2009), "Heartcore will have its critics, and they’ll fall into one of two camps: those who revile Rosenwinkel’s electronic “corruption” of jazz and those who think his concoction is merely sonic wallpaper. What both sides will have missed is the luminous melodic allure of the album, along with its subtle intricacies of texture. The disc has its shortcomings...Somewhat uneven but almost ceaselessly fascinating, the album reveals not only Rosenwinkel’s purest motivations but also the possibilities of his alternative approach." I'll have to give it more time, but I'm not hearing the greatness some critics have professed to have hear in his playing. He's not this generation's Pat Metheny or Larry Coryell in my opinion, so far.

The snow is still falling lightly, but it will melt away before nightfall, but I can still her Mother Nature giggling at us.  Time to turn up the music.  Enjoy.

Sunday Music Muse Day - Keith Jarrett, Vijay Iyer Trio

Today's Sunday Music Muse Day finds me spending time with two piano trios.  Keith Jarrett At the Deer Head Inn, with Gary Peacock on bass, and Paul Motian on drums. Not much you can say but that it's the top notch playing you'd expect from this these well-known players. It's a live recording, made in September, 16, 1992. Jarrett relates in the liner notes that Deer Head Inn, in Allentown, PA. was where he had his "first serious trio job on piano" thirty years early, and also a reunion playing with Paul Motian, who he hadn't play with for 16 years.  It goes to show that sometimes there a lot more behind a gig then just the music.

My next selection is Vijay Iyer Trio Accelerando, with Stephen Crump on bass, and Marcus Gilmore on drums.  This 2012  release by the young pianist was named jazz album of the year in 3 jazz critics polls.  Besides the 2013 MacArthur Fellowship Iyer has won a ton award and honors. His music is adventurous, engaging, and challenging for the listener.  Iyer states,"this ablum is in the lineage of American creative music based on dance rhythms."  I was draw to last tune on this CD, The Village of the Virgins" written by Duke Ellington for his ballet "The River".  I had saved version to my youtube music collection.  I'm glad to have the full CD.

Yesterday's morning snow melted quickly, hope it's the last of the season.  Everyone hoping for day of sunshine and good music.  So do I.  Enjoy.

Belated Robot Sunday March 17, 2019

I was a day late posting this last Monday for Robot Sunday, March 17, 2019.

Hopefully, I'll get around to inking it.  Enjoy.

Sunday Music Muse Day - Dave Holland Qunitent Gary Burton.

Again, this Sunday Music Muse Day find us with ever changing weather. we woke up with light layer of snow, which melt by midday sunshine, but the temperature stat dropping.  After some weekend chores like grocery shopping it nice to kick back and enjoy these tunes.  Dave Holland Quintet Prime Directive, a stellar outing on ECM. It get a 4 of 5 star on most review posts, and it lies up to every star.

Next is a nice follow up to to a CD I featured recently.  Gary Burton Next Generation is the the follow his Gary Burton Generations CD, where he introduce guitarist Julian Lage.   Gary again exhibits his well talent for presenting raising young talent nad discoveries.  This CD also features tunes written by guitarist alums Pat Metheny and Mick Goodrick, and plus showcase tunes by the current members. Going with the theme of alum's tune, I wish Gary had included one by  Larry Coryell, the late great guitarist who was in Burton's early classic group.  Gary Burton is very much a fine example of the band leader/mentor in the jazz tradition of drummer Art Blakey and Miles Davis.  You can expect good things from the young players who pass through his group.

Spring should be just around the corner, at least that what the calendar  says.  Lets just hope for the best and welcome it with good music. Enjoy.

Dime-A-Dozen Project #10 - Path to Armageddon - Part ! - Axis & Mace

Dime-A-Dozen Projects is so named from a conversation with creative friends of mine as we lamented that when we were working full-time for someone else, we get these (in our minds) original million dollar ideas, that would, somehow, turn into "dime-a-dozen" ideas when we were out of work and on our own. I have ton's of unfinished projects in the form of character sketches, incomplete written outlines, half drawn comic pages, and full illustrations. You get the idea, a dime-a-dozen idea. I'm feeling the need to catalog for my own sanity and for a simple record to leave my kids, and as I said above, along the way rekindle my creative juice and start drawing again.

Path to Armageddon, is a epic space saga, featuring Axis and Mace, the lone survivors of a ancient race who meet for a final duel in the middle of space battle between a Terran Space Force and the alien Drillian armada.

Here is the gallery of art pieces used in the video.
This was the full color illustration planned for the cover of the comic book, with space at top for the title.

Here the first color illo and the original pencil drawing of Axis

 

This the doodle from my office desk mat.  I incorporated the building io the background of the Axis illo.

 

Here's a clean up version to see the building design better.

 Here's Mace's original pencil drawing.

 

Here a cropped version used on my website.

 This is Star Captain - Battle Cruiser Terran Co-Federation is an old pencil sketch, that need to finished at some point.

 here are miscellaneous starship rough designs

 Here's the original pencil drawing Star Trooper Command suit inspired by Robert Heinlain's Starship Troopers sci-fi classic book.  Battlesuit remain a constant element of my creative projects.

 

This final inked version was used in the color illo that follows.

 

 More miscellaneous battlesuit designs.

 Rough sketch for a planned illo titled, "Form on me:  in the LZ (Landing Zone)"

 

This is a early Scout battle suit.

 

 This is one of the first battlesuit designs created.

 This line up show the suit made into a paper cut-out puppet model for a planned animation.

 

This drawing of Starship Tail Gunner is favorite of mine,

  

I used it in a unsold Kids t-shirt design.

 I reused the Axis & Mace Illo for mockup of fake book cover for another project to be featured in an upcoming Dime-A-Dozen Project.

 There is a 8 page written outline for the story of Path to Armageddon, Part 2 will be if I ever get to draw it out.

Sunday Music Muse Day - Bill Evans, Bill Frisell

This Sunday Music Muse Day finds me, like many others, walking around like a mindless zombie on the first day of the Daylight Saving Time change.  Why it effects us this way is a mystery.  In any case, I'm using the music of Bill Evans Trio 64 to help ease me through this day.  This CD is sort of a double reissue, of the original LP's eight tunes, and 8 additional tunes which come from The Complete Bill Evans on Verve CD set.  Those include alternate takes and false starts.  With Resonance Records announcing  a new Bill Evans release I thought this would nice one to enjoy today.

To add the grim mood of the day, our weather is dark, overcast, and gloomy.  So, the music of Bill Frisell Good Dog Happy Man is a nice tonic for the day.  Again, Frisell's  eclectic blend of Jazz, Folk, and Americana brings a ray of hope to any day.

It will take a couple of days to shake the DST zombie curse, so found some good music to break the spell.  Enjoy.