Recording: Eucalyptus

Artist: Eucalyptus

Song: unknown^*

Recorded at The Tranzac's Main Hall (Tranzac Fundraiser II), June 14, 2024.

Eucalyptus - unknown

This set brought a different "look" from Eucalyptus than had been seen in their previous appearance in the Tranzac's Main Hall. Part of that was down to the presence of a couple last-minute fill-ins (Chris Banks on bass and Robin Buckley on percussion), but the biggest shift was hearing Aline Homzy on violin up front, occupying the role of foil and counterpart to Brodie West that has traditionally been filled by Nicole Rampersaud. The difference in timbre was felt in an accentuation of glide over thrust, which especially added an extra sheen of subtle shimmy to the slower numbers like this one.

^* Does anyone know the title to this one? Please leave a comment!

Recording: Kurt Newman Standards Trio

Artist: Kurt Newman Standards Trio

Song: Tangerine [composer: Victor Schertzinger/Johnny Mercer]

Recorded at The Tranzac's Southern Cross Lounge (Cosmic Country for Communists), August 10, 2023.

Kurt Newman Standards Trio - Tangerine

Breau, do you even play standards? Things can take all kinds of strange turns at Kurt Newman's Cosmic Country for Communists series, but this time saw things ease into some tenderly-mellow zones, playing some "jazz guitar" renditions of Great American Songbook tunes, with Newman backed by Chris Banks (double bass) and Evan Cartwright (drumkit).

You can check out some more from this set over on youtube:

[There might be more of the same — or something completely different! — when CCC returns to the Southern Cross on September 15th]

Recording: The Ryan Driver Quintet

Artist: The Ryan Driver Quintet

Song: That Sunday, That Summer [Nat King Cole cover]

Recorded at The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge), June 26, 2015.

The Ryan Driver Quintet - That Sunday, That Summer

There's often a bit of variation in the membership of Ryan Driver's "standards" ensemble, which was a quintet on this night with Chris Banks sitting in on bass. (The second set also saw Marilyn Lerner sit in on piano for a song.) But as always, the group worked their magic on the source material, improvising through a subtle groove as Brodie West (alto sax) and martin Arnold (electric guitar) tugged the tune back and forth.

[The next night out for this unit at the Tranzac will be on Friday, July 31st.]

Recording: The Ryan Driver Band

Artist: The Ryan Driver Band

Songs: Fruitless Endeavour + Cat's Peak

Recorded at Ratio, May 8, 2015.

The Ryan Driver Band - Fruitless Endeavour

The Ryan Driver Band - Cat's Peak

It should be noted at the outset that although the name of the Ryan Driver Band is quite similar to the Ryan Driver Quartet/Quintet/Sextet — and even has some overlapping membership — we're actually talking about two separate projects. The latter specializes in Driver's languid interpretations of (old and new) standards, while the "band" is a vehicle for his work as a songwriter, furthering his "solo" works as well as his previous efforts in The Silt. It's from the latter project that these lovely songs come, beautifully rendered by Driver's vox and nylon-stringed guitar alongside Michael Davidson (vibes), Blake Howard (percussion) and Chris Banks (bass). (You can compare how "Fruitless Endeavour" is rendered in a different context via this recording of The Silt.) The set also included some of Driver's newer compositions, and the band has been turning up a bit more regularly of late, so keep an eye out for another chance to catch one of the city's best songwriters in action.

Recording: No Angels Dancing

Artist: No Angels Dancing

Song: [excerpt from start of second set]

Recorded at The Tranzac (Southern Cross Lounge), January 4, 2015.

No Angels Dancing - [excerpt from start of second set]

Call it a surrogate band, if you will, given that NAD founder Allison Cameron and #1 sidekick D. Alex Meeks were both absent, leaving guitarist Stephen Parkinson to mind the store. But with percussionist Germaine Liu and bassist Chris Banks on hand as guests, the spirit of this early-afternoon Sunday monthly was definitely being observed. Sputtering stop/start (but not unduly astringent) vibe wrangulation was the order of the day here, with the guests adding in plucks, ticks and synthesized belltones to two sets of unsteady momentum. One year in, this remains an excellent alternative to brunch.

[The next instalment will be Sunday, February 1st, 1 to 3 p.m. in the Tranzac's Southern Cross Lounge.]

Recording: Karen Ng Trio

Artist: Karen Ng Trio

Song: Mean To Me [composer: Fred E. Ahlert]

Recorded at The Emmet Ray, December 15, 2014.

Karen Ng Trio - Mean To Me

I got no kick against straight-up jazz, even if these days I tend to head out more often to see the weirder, freer tendrils. And I certainly dig the cozy backspace at The Emmet Ray, even if they tend to cater more to the former than the latter. So it was nice to see some familiar faces joining together, making it well worth it to head out for a casual evening of standards. Karen Ng (alto sax) was joined by Chris Banks (double bass) and Even Cartwright (percussion) for a couple sets that tackled Monk, Ellington, and so forth, including this tune which is probably best remembered from Billie Holiday's rendition.