Various Artists: Characters of Jazz

This compilation is described as: “18 cuts celebrating the human species with artists from London’s Babel Label stable.” When I opened it up, I skipped immediately to “Nico” by Acoustic Ladyland. I expected this cut, taken from the act’s Last Chance Disco, to be something truly out there. The group’s name conjures up images of Jimi Hendrix and the song title suggests the Velvet Underground’s femme fatale. But what I heard, instead, was relatively straight forward jazz. Granted, it does go into a screaming saxophone solo over a funky and fuzzed out bass part. But it isn’t something we haven’t already heard before. Nevertheless, this is a solid collection of modern jazz with a British accent.