Notorious for shunning concert performances, Steely Dan's improbable live reunion in the mid-'90s eventually turned into a full-fledged reunion album. Since Steely Dan fans went two decades without even the hope of a new record, the very prospect was a delight, but it was also a little worrying, since a botched comeback would tarnish the band's legacy. Fortunately, Two Against Nature is as seductive and alluring as the best of Steely Dan's later work, with a similar emphasis on classy atmosphere and groove.

The fire and fury of ‘60s free jazz and the tumult of electronic rock-tinged experimental music is on full display on this new powerhouse offering from four cutting edge Oslo-based musicians collectively known as Reflection in Cosmo. With Kjetil Moster on saxes, Hans Magnus Ryan on guitar, Stale Storlokken on keyboards and Thomas Stronen on drums, these four kindred spirits strike a tumultuous accord on their self-titled debut on RareNoiseRecords, which represents Moster’s followup on RareNoise to his edgy avant-jazz collaboration in 2014 with the Hungarian power trio Ju. At times recalling the ferocious intensity of the late ‘80s free jazz quartet Last Exit (Peter Brotzman, Sonny Sharrock, Bill Lawell, Ronald Shannon Jackson), this potent Norwegian outfit pushes the envelope with Moster’s blowtorch intensity on baritone and tenor saxes, Ryan’s wailing electric guitar work, Storlokken’s crunchy, distortion-laced keyboards and Stronen’s thunderous drumming…

The young organist Charles Earland converted the Beatles’ “Eleanor Rigby” into an anthem called “Black Talk” and came up with one of the huge soul-jazz hits of the early Seventies. In this album, Earland worked the same magic with two other pop songs, “Aquarius” and “More Today than Yesterday,” giving them the urgency and forward movement of R&B but managing to inject them with jazz values. He was greatly aided by a pair of soloists—trumpeter Virgil Jones and tenor saxophonist Houston Person—who added fuel to Earland’s fiery concept. Guitarist Melvin Sparks and the quintessential soul jazz drummer Idris Muhammad helped keep the blaze going.

FELICIANO: A Name That is Synonymous with music. It is synonymous with an international presence that has influenced popular music for more than two generations. It is synonymous with a presence that has bridged musical styles in a way that has never been equaled. Jose Feliciano is recognized as the first Latin Artist to cross over into the English music market, opening the doors for other artists who now play an important role in the American music industry. As importantly, Feliciano has been acclaimed by critics around the world as "The greatest living guitarist"…