Best of Nu Jazz 2021


Nu jazz is a fuzzy category. It’s based on jazz, loosely or strongly, and usually features electronic music influence, and can also have hints of R&B, hip-hop, and other genres. I think it’s a fantastic genre, and here are my favourite albums of 2021!


Number Five: Portico Quartet – Monument


Art in the Age of Automation was one of my favourite albums from 2017, and Portico are back with yet another really strong album in Monument. This electro-jazz album is full of highlights and filled with delights, and if you missed it (what are you doing?), now’s the time … Read more

Best of Jazz Fusion 2021


Fusion, in this case, is when multiple genres blend together to form something new. Jazz fusion, then, is traditionally jazz mixed with rock, but I’m more generous than that, and I’m including any sort of genre-crossing in this list!


Number Five: Cory Wong & Dirty Loops – Turbo


This might be more cheesy than a Swiss raclette, but I’ll be damned if I didn’t have a ton of fun listening to this collaboration! As always with Dirty Loops, you can expect to throw your instrument in the trash and consider finding yourself a new hobby, but in the end it’s … Read more

Les Rugissants – D’humain et d’animal

The Music

The Words

Les Rugissants is a nu jazz ensemble from Paris, France, and they recently released their latest album: D’humain et d’animalOf Human and Animal, if you allow me the free translation. At the junction of progressive rock and big band jazz, Les Rugissants plays an emotive and intellectually compelling brand of jazz that I must make sure you not miss.

After the lyrical and rather romantic introduction of “Le visage”, we get to an interesting \(\frac{5}{4}\) motif in “Second hymne delphique à Apollon”, which gets expanded upon throughout the song, quite rewardingly so. At … Read more