Steven James – Jazz in Europe

Stevenjames Author

CD Review: Donny McCaslin, Lullaby for the Lost

Donny McCaslin’s “Lullaby for the Lost,” released on September 26, 2025, via Edition Records, is a striking continuation of his adventurous trajectory in contemporary jazz...

CD Reviews • News • Reviews|

CD Review: Jakob Dreyer. Roots and Things

Jakob Dreyer’s “Roots and Things” stands as a measured advance in his progression as a bassist and bandleader, presenting a coherent and immersive set of original...

CD Reviews • News • Reviews|

CD Review: Nikola Bankov, Everwanted

Nikola Bankov’s 3rd album as a leader, “Everwanted,” presents a compelling fusion of jazz, Nordic synth-pop, and contemporary sonic textures that resist simple...

CD Reviews • News • Reviews|

CD Review: Menachem Zibziner, Pulse

The album “PULSE” is a profoundly personal and spiritual homecoming for guitarist and composer Menachem Zibziner. Marking a return to music after a turbulent period,...

CD Reviews • News • Reviews|

Zurich Jazz Orchestra, Still Expanding Boundaries after 30 years

2025 is a milestone for Zurich Jazz Orchestra (ZJO), their 30th anniversary. Having followed the band over many years, this milestone presents the perfect opportunity to take an...

Autumn 2025 • Featured Interviews • Interviews|

Jazz and Politics: How Jazz Became a Political Battleground

Few episodes in jazz history are as loaded with irony and as emblematic of Cold War cultural conflict as the Jazz Ambassadors tours. In the late 1950s and 1960s, at the dawn of...

Articles • Autumn 2025 • News|

CD Review: Franz von Chossy Group, Mirror 9

Franz von Chossy’s latest release, Mirror 9, set for release this coming Friday delivers an ambitious and thoughtful nine-part suite, offering the listener a multi-layered...

CD Reviews • News • Reviews|

CD Review: Edgar van Asselt & Ack van Rooyen, Song for Lost Friends

Song for Lost Friends is a poignant and understated tribute to one of the Netherlands’ most cherished jazz voices, Ack van Rooyen. Recorded live at the intimate Huis Kernhem,...

CD Reviews • News • Reviews|

Zurich Jazz Orchestra celebrates 30th anniversary

Zurich Jazz Orchestra (ZJO), a fixture of the European jazz scene for 30 years, will mark its anniversary with a concert at the Moods Jazz Club on October 2, 2025. Founded in 1995...

Concerts • News|

Blue Note Takes on London as UK Venues Battle Headwinds

In early 2026, London will welcome the first UK branch of the iconic Blue Note Jazz Club—a move generating both excitement and speculation about what this means for the city’s...

Clubs • News|

Spinifex: Navigating The “Gray Zone”

For almost twenty years, Tobias Klein has built a clear path in modern jazz and improvised music. As the leader of Spinifex, an Amsterdam-based group known for mixing composition...

Featured Interviews • Interviews • News • Summer 2025|