Mainieri may not have the instant name recognition of peers like Gary Burton, or even younger players like Joe Locke, Stefon Harris or Steve Nelson, but you can be sure that if you asked any of them who was registering on their radar as they were coming up, Mainieri's name would be high on the list. Rather than being pigeonholed into any particular style, Mainieri-- whose unorthodox four-mallet grip allows him a flexibility few others can match--has done it all. Fusion, funk, straight-ahead, world music, free improv ... these are all but a part of Mainieri's seemingly encyclopedic purview. And while others stay away from innovations going on elsewhere in the world, Mainieri regularly collaborates with artists from Spain, Italy, Holland and Norway.
AAJ Managing Editor John Kelman spoke at length with Mainieri, and you can read all about the vibraphonist's remarkable upbringing, days with Buddy Rich and recent activities including the reformed L'Image, Dutch guitarist Marnix Busstra and more in his informative interview, Mike Mainieri: Man Behind Bars, published today at AAJ.
But that's not all. To celebrate the release of L'Image's long overdue debut, 2.0, AAJ is providing a wealth of additional content:
- Read John Kelman's insightful review of L'Image's 2.0;
- Listen to The Brat," an entire track from 2.0, today's AAJ Daily Download;
- Watch L'Image perform Love Play," the closing track from 2.0 and today's AAJ Daily Video
AAJ is committed to bringing you the most extensive coverage of new releases on the web, so check out the buzz surrounding Mike Mainieri and L'Image's 2.0 at AAJ today!
For more information contact All About Jazz.