Avant Music News

From NYTimes.com:

JOE MORRIS’S WILDLIFE (Monday) “Wildlife” (Aum Fidelity), an engagingly prickly new album by the guitarist-turned-bassist Joe Morris, features a working free-jazz trio with the expressive saxophonist Petr Cancura and the responsive drummer Luther Gray. The group plays the early set here, at 7:30 p.m.; a later set, at 9, will feature Four for Time, a similarly experimental confab consisting of two guitarists, Brad Farberman and Marco Cappelli, and two saxophonists, Ras Moshe and Darius Jones. Local 269, 269 East Houston Street, at Suffolk Street, Lower East Side , (212) 228-9874, rucma.org; $10 per set; $7 for students. (Chinen)20090806

MATANA ROBERTS (Sunday) Ms. Roberts, a saxophonist and composer with a keen sense of dramatic impact, leads a promising trio with two equally resourceful improvisers: the guitarist Mary Halvorson and the drummer Ches Smith. At 10 p.m., the Stone, Avenue C and Second Street, East Village , thestonenyc.com; $10. (Chinen)20090806

TYSHAWN SOREY’S ‘OBLIQUE’ (Sunday) The restlessly creative drummer and composer Tyshawn Sorey was responsible for this month’s bookings at the Stone, and he took a few opportunities to feature his own work. In an 8 p.m. set here, he leads Oblique, a chamberlike ensemble that includes Pete Robbins on saxophone, John Escreet on piano, Todd Neufeld on guitar and Thomas Morgan on bass. At 10 he presents Mushin, a group with two bassists (Mr. Morgan and Chris Tordini) and two drummers (himself and John McLellan). The Stone, Avenue C and Second Street, East Village , thestonenyc.com; $10 per set. (Chinen)20090806

? TRIO 3 WITH GERI ALLEN (Friday and Saturday) Never mind the redundancy in the title, or the fact that this avant-garde collective actually works here as a quartet. The alto saxophonist Oliver Lake, the bassist Reggie Workman and the drummer Andrew Cyrille are battle-ready teammates; they stand only to gain from the addition of the pianist Geri Allen, as they recently proved on an album called “At This Time” (Intakt). At 8:30 and 11 p.m., Birdland, 315 West 44th Street, Clinton , (212) 581-3080, birdlandjazz.com; $30 for general admission; $40 for premium seating; and a $10 minimum.20090806

VANDERMARK 5 (Sunday) The Chicago-based multireedist Ken Vandermark applies a go-anywhere ethos to his signature ensemble, along with a dash of punk-rock cohesion. His co-conspirators are the saxophonist Dave Rempis, the cellist Fred Lonberg-Holm, the bassist Kent Kessler and the drummer Tim Daisy; their set list here should include some material from “Annular Gift” (Not Two), an album due out next month. At 8 and 10 p.m., Union Hall, 702 Union Street, at Fifth Avenue, Park Slope, Brooklyn , (718) 638-4400, unionhallny.com; $10. (Chinen)20090806

DAN WEISS TRIO/CRAIG TABORN (Thursday) In the 10 p.m. slot here, Dan Weiss, a drummer well versed in Indian classical music, along with rock and modern jazz, leads his working trio with the pianist Jacob Sacks and the bassist Thomas Morgan. An earlier set, at 8, will feature Mr. Taborn, an acutely texture-aware pianist, in solo performance. The Stone, Avenue C and Second Street, East Village , thestonenyc.com; $10 per set. (Chinen)