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February 2022

Blue Note Records B003473002
Format: 16-bit/44.1kHz WAV download

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This year marks a milestone anniversary; I’ve been writing about music on a regular basis for 30 years. Over that time, it’s likely I’ve encountered pianist Ethan Iverson more than any other artist, with the possible exception of trumpeter Dave Douglas. I caught Iverson with The Bad Plus many times during his tenure with the trio, sat on a panel discussion with him at the Portland Jazz Festival, shared the pages of DownBeat with him in his guise as a part-time music critic, and interviewed him for insights on topics as disparate as the late Andrew Hill and the state of jazz education. I’ve even seen him sit in on drums, fuelled by numerous martinis, at a jam session.

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February 2022

I confess I knew little or nothing about Furrion before starting this review, but after doing a little research, I discovered that they’re a huge corporation based in Hong Kong that makes a wide variety of products. In entertainment, their focus seems to be outdoor equipment, and their product lines include a vast selection of marine gear and outdoor televisions. The LIT is their only Bluetooth speaker, and it’s available (in black or white) as a standalone product, but the Adventure Kit throws in some interesting mounting equipment at considerable savings. Furrion lists the LIT and Adventure Kit at $140.95 (all prices in USD). The speaker alone is $119.95. If you bought the accessories separately, it would add up to $48. It’s an interesting design that will appeal to many outdoor enthusiasts—with one big caveat.

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January 2022

Definitive Video of a Classic on Criterion 4K

The Criterion Collection 44
Formats: BD, 4K Ultra HD

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The Red Shoes has long been a staple of the Criterion Collection. Although the image quality has always been fairly decent, the company’s release of the 2009 restoration blows all previous efforts away. The new Blu-ray and 4K UHD discs, both included in the package, reveal a movie so chromatically intense, it virtually defies description.

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Note: for the full suite of measurements from the SoundStage! Audio-Electronics Lab, click this link.

January 2022

Over the first year of this “Art+Tech” column, I’ve explored some intriguing new pieces of equipment and listened to a lot of great music in the process. I’ve mentioned some of the music I’ve most enjoyed in 2021 along the way; but not all of it. And of all the terrific gear that passed through my office, the piece that really caught my eye—NAD’s C 700 BluOS streaming amplifier ($1499, all prices in USD)—has only recently landed on my desk. That’s perfect timing for revisiting my ten favorite albums of the past year and seeing how the C 700 treats them.

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January 2022

Columbia Records/Legacy 19439900841
Format: 2 LPs

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I like a band with some tension in it.

Say what you will about the music made by artists who truly like one another—even after touring together in a cramped vehicle for weeks and suffering through the endless hassles of life on the road—I’ll take the music of musicians like Ray and Dave Davies, or Sam Moore and Dave Prater, people who could barely tolerate one another offstage but could create magic together once they faced an audience. From that tension comes great art.

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January 2022

Two years ago, I reviewed the initial Tribit StormBox, predicting a bright future for the company and its products. It’s been a long wait, but now Tribit has added the StormBox Pro to its lineup, and this new speaker’s performance signals that the company’s future looks just as bright as ever. At $129.99 USD, the speaker outperforms most of the contenders in its price and size range and is on par with a number of other heavy hitters in the portable Bluetooth niche.

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December 2021

A True Masterpiece Receives the Criterion BD Treatment

The Criterion Collection 219
Format: BD

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Released in the United States in 1956 (1954 in Italy), La Strada has proven to be a true cinematic masterpiece capable of withstanding the test of time. The film garnered international acclaim, both for director Federico Fellini and his wife, featured actress Giulietta Masina. Since Fellini set the movie in an indeterminate era (albeit one with motorcycles) and tells the story in the form of a fable, it can still elicit the same number of smiles and tears as it did 67 years ago.

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Note: for the full suite of measurements for the EarMen Tradutto DAC from the SoundStage! Audio-Electronics Lab, click this link.

December 2021

For a time, about a decade ago, I had this fantasy of promoting a concert that would feature an all-star band of top-flight musicians who held PhDs. As it happens, it wasn’t as far-fetched as it seems; pianist Vijay Iyer and saxophonist Rudresh Mahanthappa have already collaborated, and the French Moutin twins, drummer Louis and bassist François, would make a great rhythm section.

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December 2021

Tangerine Records TRC-2107
Format: CD

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Let’s begin with a quiz: There are 99 individual performances on this extensive six-disc overview of singer-pianist Ray Charles’s career. How many of the songs do you think he composed?

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December 2021

Last time, I talked about recording solo artists and duets and offered some general advice about recording. This time I’m going to focus on recording a standard rock band: drums, bass guitar, guitar(s), keyboard, and vocals. Working with a band requires more experimentation, and it will challenge you to come up with more creative solutions than recording and mixing smaller acts. But in my book, that’s part of the fun. So this time, I’ll concentrate mainly on process and production tips to help make the final product (your music) better; they may also save you some time and a few headaches. I’ve already covered some basics on microphones and how they “hear” in prior articles, so if you haven’t read those articles, now’s a good time to catch up.

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