Kassi Valazza Knows Nothing – Kassi Valazza

In times of deep uncertainty and change, a profound sense of comfort can often be found in things that feel familiar and true. Kassi Valazza Knows Nothing, with all its folksy sincerity, is a case in point. The album is slow and unhurried, meandering through 10 songs about everything and nothing all at once. Valazza’s dreamy lyricism over a classic folk ensemble of acoustic guitar, soft drums and pedal steel evokes surreal visions of pastures and meadows. ‘Rapture’, the album’s second track, is a heartfelt ode to life’s absurd beauty: How I couldn’t fathom this loose hanging phantom / your fingers wore / So yellow in hue / It was nothing I knew.

Laying Down a Path in Walking – Jiem

Sydney-based jazz quintet, Jiem, have chosen perhaps the perfect title for their debut release with Earshift Music. Laying Down a Path in Walking does exactly what its name suggests, achieving the magical balance between spontaneity and coherence that so many jazz improvisers aspire for. Jiem’s musical brilliance is the undeniable product of individual talents coming together with a shared vision and synergy. ‘Exit’, the fourth track, is a prime example of this, driven by remarkably virtuosic solos that somehow never detract from the piece’s uniformity and direction.