OttawaJazzScene.ca's pick of the week for February 12 to 18, 2018: Nick Maclean Quartet CD Release at the Avant-Garde Bar
“ Ottawa-raised, now Toronto-based, pianist Nick Maclean, speaks in several musical voices: the groove and electric-jazz group Snaggle, and his mainstream-jazz Nick Maclean Quartet. It's the quartet which he's bringing to Ottawa this Saturday, as part of a mini-tour that will also bring them to Montreal, Kingston, and Cobourg.”
https://ottawajazzscene.ca/jazz-pick-of-the-week/11985-ottawajazzscene-ca-s-jazz-pick-of-the-week-for-february-12-to-18-2018-nick-maclean-quartet-cd-release-at-the-avant-garde-bar
A huge thanks to Alayne McGregor and Brett Delmage for featuring the Nick Maclean Quartet as OttawaJazzScene.ca’s ‘Jazz Pick of the Week’!
We’re getting very excited for our CD Release tour this week. This is the first time that the Quartet has been to many of these cities so make sure not to miss it!
NICK MACLEAN QUARTET is:
:: Nick Maclean - piano
:: Brownman Ali - trumpet
:: Jesse Dietschi - bass
:: Tyler Goertzen - drums
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Sign up to the ADVANCE LIST for a DISCOUNT on cover! (Kingston, Ottawa, & Montreal shows -
[email protected])
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FEBRUARY CD RELEASE DATES
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THR-FEB-15: KINGSTON - Nick Maclean Quartet CD Release
with Special Guest Spencer Evans Trio!
@ The Mansion Kingston | www.mansion.rocks
506 Princess St, Kingston, ON
doors @ 8pm, show @ 9pm
$15 entry, $10 advance list (email [email protected] before February 15)
FB Event: www.facebook.com/events/1819292118368232
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FRI-FEB-16: MONTREAL - Nick Maclean Quartet CD Release
@ Resonance Café | www.ResonanceCafe.com
5175A Ave du Parc, Montreal, ON
9:00pm
$15 entry, $10 advance list (email [email protected] before February 16)
FB Event: www.facebook.com/events/1775173839452513
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SAT-FEB-17: OTTAWA - Nick Maclean Quartet CD Release
@ Avant-Garde Bar | www.AvantGardeBar.com
135 1/2 Besserer St, Ottawa, ON
8:00pm
$15 entry, $10 advance list (email [email protected] before February 17)
FB Event: www.facebook.com/events/1769313320030951
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SUN-FEB-18, COBOURG - Nick Maclean Quartet CD Release
[Presented by All-Canadian Jazz Port Hope]
@ The Loft Cinema | www.CobourgLoft.ca
201 Division St, Cobourg, ON
doors @ 3:30pm, show @ 4:00pm (Jazz Matinee)
$25 entry
Buy tickets online at www.ConcertHallAtVictoriaHall.com
Order tickets at Victoria Hall 905-372-2210 or 1-855-372-2210
FB Event: www.facebook.com/events/1811960648874842
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FRI-FEB-23: GUELPH - Nick Maclean Quartet feat. Brownman
@ manhattans music club | www.Manhattans.ca
951 Gordon St, Guelph, ON
8:00pm
$PWYC
FB Event: www.facebook.com/events/156595321657569
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NEW VIDEO: Nick Maclean Quartet performing 'Elasticity of Time and Space'
www.youtube.com/watch?v=zSAHIOMQKPs
VIDEO: Nick Maclean Quartet performing Herbie Hancock's classic "One Finger Snap" live in studio
www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtLnM3JVyZw
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RECENT REVIEWS of "Rites of Ascension"
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"...Nick Maclean may have set out to make this a homage to Mr. Hancock, he has, in fact also paid his proverbial, obligatory dues to the venerable pianist, he is ready – and has – moved on very quickly into a musical territory that has rightfully claimed as his own. “Goldberg Machine and “Elasticity of Time and Space” are two of the highest “highs” on this record. Each melody is so lyrical that often during the choruses one feels as if there is a spectral voice somewhere, “singing out the melody”. This is Mr. Maclean’s music, evocative of the poetry of feeling. It is also a great fortune to have fellow rhythmists in bassist Jesse Dietschi and drummer Tyler Goertzen along for the ride. And what a thrill it appears to be to have Brownman Ali to be the other lead voice on this recording. The trumpeter’s burnished notes – even those articulated using a wah-wah pedal effect – make for gleaming phrases and his solo on his original, “Madness of Nero” is utterly memorable...this music does more than just swing delightfully, but also seeks to reflect on more profound aspects of human existence. This together with the fact that you will be hard-pressed to find another production this good makes Rites of Ascension quite as unforgettable."
- Raul Da Gama, Toronto Music Report (Toronto, Canada)
"From Canada comes this updated soul jazz in the vein of the Blue Note acid jazz compilations. Fresh and youthfully joyful reworkings of three Herbie Hancock standards lead the disc off before we settle into several of pianist Maclean's own compositions. Key to the sound is the gloriously expressive trumpeter Brownman Ali, who contributes one of his own tunes here, the funky "Madness of Nero", as well as producing."
- Hobart Taylor, KUCI 88.9FM (California, USA)
"Rites Of Ascension is one of the best [recordings] I have heard this year (and I receive about 60 + per month). Well above average, and that Brownman Ali is just fantastic and sure rings a bell for me! Nick Maclean's compositions and renditions of Herbie's stuff is of the highest standard. Bring them to Montreal please!"
- Richard Therien, CIBL 101.5FM, Radio-Montréal (Montreal, Canada)
"A young lion piano man you can't argue with, it doesn't take any thought to do a tribute to Herbie Hancock set but it does take being an old soul to it like he was there when things older than him were created. A well deserved award winner in many jazz and music circles, Maclean leads his crew into the untamed wilds of really doing right rather than just showing up. A smoking set that sounds and feels like the real thing, this forward into the past set -- where most of the songs are originals -- is a first class doozy. Killer stuff throughout."
- Chris Spector, The Midwest Record (Illinois, USA)
"Nick’s mighty mellow keyboards lead this dynamic quartet, through a series of high-energy originals and re-imagined Hancock tunes in an album that just demands to be in your long-term collection… if you’re like me, though, you’ll be pushing this out to your player & listening to it every time you take a cruise… folks, if you ain’t snappin’ all five of those digits along with the heavy rhythm on this one, you are NOT the “jazz fan” you claim to be... Ali’s trumpet just SHINES [and] it was an easy pick for personal favorite of the eleven songs offered up -- Brownman’s original, “Madness Of Nero“, the longest cut on the album, gives each player a chance to show their significant chops… it’s certainly the best trumpet-led piece I’ve heard in 2017. I give Nick & the rest of the quartet a MOST HIGHLY RECOMMENDED, with an “EQ” (energy quotient) rating of 4.98 for this thrilling jazz adventure."
- Dick Metcalf, Improvijazzation Nation (Washington, USA)
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BUY RITES OF ASCENSION: www.NickMacleanQuartet.Bandcamp.com
(you can listen to the entire recording here!)
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www.Browntasauras.com
www.NicholasMaclean.com
