Hi-Res Downloads

Rotem Sivan
Dream Louder (96Khz/24-Bit, Wav)
Www.Rotemsivan.Com; Rotem Sivan N/A Cat. No.

There's nothing too complex about this album from Israeli-born, New York-based jazz guitarist Sivan - at heart it's a musical love-letter to his wife of two years, Lore, and her family. Accompanied by bassist Hamish Smith and drummer Miguel Russell, the guitarist weaves a series of gentle, tender tunes described as sharing 'an uplifting message of family, love and

humanity', all framed in a fine-etched, intimate and close-focused recording. Most of the tracks here are originals, but covers of The Beatles' 'Blackbird', Appalachian folk song 'West Virginia Mine Disaster' and 'Mack The Knife', add some variety to the menu. So does Sivan's ability to segue from relaxed playing to a harder-driving 'Mavis', written for his brother-in-law, and 'Dragon'. This band can swing when required, breaking up what could have been a slightly syrupy project, turning it into something that's at once captivating and fine-sounding. AE

Sound Quality: 85%

Lab Report

This is a genuine 96kHz/24-bit download, although by normalising all tracks to -0.4dBFs and limiting the peak-to-RMS dynamic range to between 10-12dB, better use of the 'digital space' might have been realised. PM

Matthieu Bordenave
The Blue Land (88.2Khz/24-Bit, Wav)
Www.Ecmrecords.Com; Ecm 2783

French saxophonist Bordenave embarks on his second headlining release for ECM playing both tenor and soprano saxes, and with a top-notch roster of musicians around him. Pianist Florian Weber provides subtle counterpoints to the lead instruments, while the 'engine room' is in the hands of bassist Patrice Moret and drummer James Maddren. Except for a thoughtful take on John Coltrane's 'Compassion', the album is all Bordenave originals, giving the set a fresh, improvisational feel, while label boss Manfred Eicher's production gives all the performers plenty of space, even if the sound lacks a little of the usual ECM crystalline clarity. Very definitely the sax is front and centre here, especially in tracks such as 'Refraction' and the ensemble meshes so well it's sometimes possible to underestimate the deftly skilful contributions of Moret and Maddren. AE

Sound Quality: 85%

Lab Report

Recorded in '22, this 88.2kHz file has all the 'ECM hallmarks' - an above-average dynamic range and natural rather than normalised peaks of -0.5dB to -3.4dB. But the 19kHz/38kHz (flyback?) spuriae [black trace] is slightly disappointing. PM

The Lovecraft Sextet
The Horror Cosmic (44.1Khz/24-Bit, Wav)
Www.Denovali.Com; Denovali Den380

The latest outing from Jason Köhnen - formerly of Mansur, The Kilimanjaro Darkjazz Ensemble and The Mount Fuji Doomjazz Corporation - lives up to the title of both the ensemble and the album. This soundtrack to a yet-to-be-created movie is said to be 'a Lovecraftian cosmic horror short story which dives into the existential dread of the infinite nothingness.' Yup, sounds like something of which old H.P. would be proud, but this set suffers somewhat from the lack of visuals, apparently addressed via a short story book to accompany the LP release. So the album is rather portentous and doom-laden, its gothic atmosphere served up in big wodges of dense sound, albeit recorded with clarity, and with droning chords underpinning the whole enterprise. Would this oddity be better with the film for which it's been designed? We may never know… AE

Sound Quality: 80%

Lab Report

The ~22kHz bandwidth is necessarily determined by the CD/44.1kHz sample rate while the '24-bit' quantisation is rather squandered by the -0.2dBFs peak normalisation. The Sextet's innovation is worthy of 96kHz sampling... PM

Edy Forey
Culture Today (44.1Khz/24-Bit, Wav)
Www.Edyforey.Com; So Soul Records N/A Cat No.

Edinburgh-based Edy Forey - vocalist Edy Szewy and keyboardist Guilhem Forey - are certainly big on ambition. The opening instrumental 'Intro' takes in slave song 'Nobody Knows The Trouble I've Seen' and snatches of Rachmaninov and Beethoven piano works, and is described as 'High culture in the rear view as we're heading towards the post-truth era'. Erm right - if you say so, but then every track seems to have a message, even the 'reharmonised' and rewritten take on 'Nature Boy', until we reach the closing 'Peace Of Mind', which is apparently about 'Finding meaning of life in submission to the Creator'. Fortunately, this is one slinky debut album, with a rich yet clean sound and solid work from Femi Koleoso on drums and Snarky Puppy bassist Michael League, and a really attractive vibe - check out the glorious samba of 'Agape' to see what I mean. AE

Sound Quality: 80%

Lab Report

This debut album is generally sensibly limited to peaks of -1.0dBFs even if trks 2 and 10 get perilously close to hitting the digital end stops at 0.0dBFs. Bandwidth is a function of the 44.1kHz sampling but dynamic range is sl. below average. PM

Devin Gray
Most Definitely (48Khz/24-Bit, Wav)
Www.Rataplanrecordsnyc.Bandcamp.Com; Rataplan Records 40

Life, they say, begins at 40, and percussionist Devin Gray marked his significant birthday with this highly personal album, comprising no more than solo percussion and electronics. Gray's liner notes ask, 'What do you think our world needs more of?', and answers with his view that 'The world needs more listening'. Fair enough, but it all goes a bit pear-shaped from there on in. How? For while this set is a fine way to test your system's reproduction of drums and percussion, heavens is it dull for any of us who've never thought 'I really wish this drum solo would go on a bit longer'. Of the 23 tracks here, many are extremely short, with one just 52 seconds long, but the meat of the album is formed by two big pieces, 'Soldier On, Milford' and 'Tough Love', clocking in at 20:19 and 18:48 respectively. And honestly, you'll feel every second of each of them. AE

Sound Quality: 75%

Lab Report

This 48Khz percussion-fest will test tweeters and woofers alike, and cleanly too as the cautious (by today's standards) -1Dbfs normalisation should limit intersample clipping with vulnerable dacs. Dynamic range is 'average'. PM