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JEFF "TAIN" WATTS' FAMILY & LAURA KAHLE'S CIRCULAR

The Pittsburgh-born drummer Jeff “Tain” Watts and the Australian-American trumpeter Laura Kahle are the latest in a long line of artists to tie the knot. Their two new spectacular CD’s, Circular and Family, are released on Watts’ Dark Key Music label.

Kahle arrived in New York in 2004, performed with Bill Lee and the Natural Spiritual Orchestra, and has arranged for Watts and The Danish Radio Big Band, Wynton Marsalis and Jazz at Lincoln Center and the Branford Marsalis Septet featuring the music of Gil Evans. Circular, Kahle’s debut recording as a leader, features a diverse and dynamic array of sidemen including alto and tenor saxophonists Yosvanny Terry and J.D. Allen, bassist Orlando le Fleming and Watts on drums.

“I call the CD Circular, because [music] is kind of a circular process for me,” Kahle says; “writing, the experimentation of performance and recording. My main objective was to get my compositions out.” The CD’s eleven tracks ring with Kahle’s warm, buttery, fleet-fingered pocket trumpet stylings, which lace the spare and swinging opening number “Chance Encounter,” the Lee Morgan-like grooves of “The Well,” and the cycle-structured title track, to ‘two commission-derived pieces, “Daize” and “Audax at Fidelis (which means ‘bold but faithful’ and is the motto of the Queensland state where Kahle grew up). Special guests Chilean vocalist Claudia Acuña and vibraphonist Monte Croft add their artistry to the multilingual and haunting “Blackberry Garden,”. “20/20 Vision” is a waltzy nod to the husband and wife’s shared birthday of January 20. A hidden track, “Chance Encounter II,” is also available on iTunes. “She’s really brave, honest and cool,” Watts says of his wife. “She’s very confident in presenting her voice innocently and honestly.”

As one of the most prolific sidemen in the last thirty years, and one the most vibrant and volcanic drummers on the scene, Jeff “Tain” Watts knows what he’s talking about. His new CD, Family, which is his seventh as a leader, features saxophonist Steve Wilson, pianist Dave Kikoski, and bassist James Genus. “While I was preparing and recording the music on this CD I got married and I’m trying to start this family,” Watts says, who will serve as the Artist-In-Residence at the 2011 Detroit International Jazz Festival on Labor Day Weekend. “This CD represents this moment in time.” Unlike the politically-charged themes of his last CD, Watts, Family features nine compositions written by Watts inspired by relatives, artists and friends. The title track is an in-the-pocket ditty swung in the leader’s dancing Afro-swing style, contrasted by the Motherland-pulsed rhythms on “Of August Moon,” composed with the celebrated Pittsburgh playwright August Wilson in mind. ‘Edwardian Overture,” and “Jonesin’ (for Elvin)” are syncopated shout-outs the great New Orleans drummer Ed Blackwell and Elvin Jones, and “Little Michael” playfully quotes the drum intro to Michael Jackson’s “Rock with You.” On all of the tracks you can hear Watt’s conjure up the entire jazz drumming tradition with swing, nerve and verve. “He’s the perfect balance of natural musicianship and intellect,” Laura Kahle says.

UPCOMING PERFORMANCES:
April 20 – 21 | Zinc Bar – Jeff “Tain” Watts 4 | New York, NY
May 21 | Modern Drummer Festival – Jeff “Tain” Watts | Mountclair, NJ
*September 2 – 5 | Detroit International Jazz Festival | Detroit, MI
*Indicates special affiliation – Jeff “Tain” Watts – 2011 “Artist-In-Residence”

Jeff “Tain” Watts · Family
Laura Kahle · Circular
Dark Key Music · Release Date: April 19, 2011

For more information on Jeff “Tain” Watts, visit http://tainish.com

For more information on Laura Kahle, visit http://laurakahle.com

For more information on Dark Key Music, visit http://darkeymusic.com

..:: SOURCE: DL MEDIA ::..