Vocalist Patti Littlefield has been a popular mainstay on the Albuquerque–Santa Fe scene for many years, but she’s been out of sight for several years thanks to a variety of personal circumstances that sapped her energy. On November 2, at the Outpost, newly energized, she’ll be fronting a band of local all-stars for the first time in almost five years, and you will want to hear what she’s been cooking up.
Can the world dance itself into a more compassionate social conscience? I would like to think so, but the jury is still out on that. One thing is certain: if it is possible, then Baracutanga will be the band that dances us there. Their new album, Volver atrás, is, quite simply, the band’s masterwork, and they will be celebrating its release this Friday, August 27.
The forecast is for sunny and warm vocals with high levels of musicianship on vocalist Carla Van Blake’s new release, Land of Enchantment, and on Sunday, August 19, she will throw a launch party at The Mine Shaft in Madrid at 6:00 p.m. to celebrate its release. Continue reading
Saxophonist Glenn Kostur has had nothing but trouble with the name of the sextet he is
accidentally headlining. When Tom Guralnick, executive director of the Outpost Performance Space, offered him a Thursday night in the fall season, Kostur immediately thought of the nameless sextet that had coalesced last spring for a faculty recital by trombonist Chris Buckholz and a subsequent recording project.
“We enjoyed playing together, and we liked the sextet format,” says Kostur. So the group, which also included Paul Gonzales on trumpet, Stu MacAskie on piano, Colin Deuble on bass, and
Arnaldo Acosta on drums, decided to stay together and develop a repertoire.
With a slot to fill on the Outpost calendar, the band needed a name, and Kostur suggested Deep Six to the band members. What no one expected is that Deep Six, a perfectly benign play on words, somehow got tangled up—and I’m guessing here—with the title of a famous
pornographic movie in some minds. In fact, when Kostur ran the name out for inspection at a party, he induced a bit of blushing among the ladies.
The group settled on Six of One, but deep swing is still on their menu. Continue reading