Matthew Halsall
Fletcher Moss Park

Recorded live at Masuda City in October 1978 and originally issued as a tiny private pressing, ‘Introducing…’ showcased the Hideyasu Terakawa Quartet at their finest. Fronted by the great Japanese jazz saxophonist and featuring bassist Tetsuo Miura, drummer Akihiro Nakaya plus multi-disciplinary artist Hiroshi Fuji, it features incredible reinterpretations of jazz standards by Western artists such as Wayne Shorter.

On the first instalment in the Wamono A to Z compilation series, released in September 2020, dusty-fingered diggers DJ Yoshizawa Dynamite.jp and Chintam focused on Japanese jazz-funk and rare groove gems recorded and released between 1968 and '80. For this speedy sequel, they've narrowed their focus further in order to showcase little-known Japanese funk slammers pressed to wax between 1970 and '77. As you'd expect, there's tons of absolute bangers amongst the 10 tracks on show, with highlights including the Blaxploitation movie soundtrack vibes of Mieko Hirota's 'Theme of Doberman Cop', the fuzzy, Hammond-sporting psych-funk of Fujio Tokita's quirky 'Watashi No Beatles', and the energetic, proto disco-funk of Hatsumi Shibata's 'Singer Lady'.

Diy contemporary jazz from New Zealand meets electronic productionAs pockets of new jazz scenes emerge around the world, it’s apparent that New Zealand’s bubbling microcosm in Wellington interprets the genre through a unique lens.Clear Path Ensemble bottles the energy of that burgeoning movement and distils it into moody morsels of differing styles. From electric jazz to ambient, experimental, house and funk – it’s a DIY, jam-session attitude towards composition, as the band members freely cherry-pick from a vast orchard of influences.Citing inspiration from 70s ECM catalogue, the ensemble channels the “expansive and astral” elements of electric jazz, with an introspective dynamic. At times it’s fused with catchy synth hooks, smooth basslines and shuffling beats, while other tracks morph into moody electronic soundscapes, and even Sun Ra-esque free jazz.Led by percussionist Cory Champion, the band released their debut self-titled album with HHV in 2020, followed by a headline performance at the 2021 Wellington Jazz Festival. Champion has played drums alongside some of New Zealand’s most revered contemporary musicians (Lord Echo, Lucien Johnson and Mara TK to name a few), and also produces leftfield deep house and techno under the name Borrowed cs, which partly informs the ensemble’s electronic production.

Recorded in early 1970 as part of CBC’s Transcription series, just 250 copies of ‘Beverly Copeland’ were pressed for distribution to CBC’s radio affiliates. Original pressings of the album remain highly sought-after but recent re-pressings and digital releases have finally made these incredible performances available to a wider audience.