The future of the genre lies in places where it’s less insular and more artistically adventurous. The 20 best jazz albums are outstanding examples of that impulse.
It’s a blessing that artists like Jon Irabagon are unafraid to defy convention, playing music both challenging and satisfying, rich in feeling but daring to have an edge.
Jazz, born of the creative brilliance of Black American culture and now wonderfully global, is passionately alive in 2022. These are the year’s best jazz albums.
PopMatters jazz critic Will Layman rounds up the best new jazz albums of recent vintage, including some thoughts about the US festival season and the undersung virtuoso Warren Wolf.
Creative, improvised music in the Black American tradition remains in a state of wonder and genre-crossing excitement in the best jazz albums of 2021.
Recently, three prominent jazz saxophonists emerged with unaccompanied solo LPs: J.D. Allen, Jon Irabagon, and Jaleel Shaw. Each of these new Covid-era recordings suggests new possibilities.
This is trumpeter/composer Dave Douglas' second quintet, playing its repertoire from memory in eight sets in four nights. Dazzling.
