Aronas: Culture Tunnels (Southbound)

This is an interesting one: originally released under the same title but in a different cover two years ago from the band lead by gifted young New Zealand pianist Aron Ottignon, it has now undergone a considerable reworking.

If you were one of the few who picked up on the early -- and lesser -- version you could actually get into this one as if it were a new album: there are two muscular new tracks added, and the running order has been changed to create a more dramatic quality and sense of a journey.

Now based in the UK, Ottignon and this album are making real waves. Culture Tunnels got four stars in the Guardian with the comment :"They make big gestures, fat sounds and monster grooves, with a youthful energy that's yoked to genuine musical ability".

The line-up of piano, bass, drums and percussion makes for heavy, rhythmic sensibility and my guess is that people who don't much care for jazz could embrace this one as if it were an alt.rock album. It has that sense of excitement about it.