News! August 2024: Dana Pearson has written a two part particle on Initials JR and the making of our Incandescent Roads album. The first part is in the Aug. 29 issue of Tourist and Town on page 12.
https://www.touristandtown.com/images/issues2024/tourist_082924_issue.pdf
Sept 12, 2024: Here is the second part of Dana Pearson’s article on page 12. Dylan Kumnick, Max Cantlin and Jason Phelps contribute their insights into the recording and creative process for Incandescent Roads. Max Clayton from the Leavitt Theatre talks about Initials JR.
https://www.touristandtown.com/images/issues2024/tourist_091224_issue.pdf
In a previous article, Dean Johnson wrote about Initials JR and our residency at the Leavitt Theater in Ogunquit, ME in the AUGUST 1, 2019 issue of Tourist and Town.
“So you’ve decided to add a little live musical entertainment to your schedule this week, and you have the good fortune to learn that
someone will be performing in the area who has a head-spinning list of musical credentials: performing with David Bowie, touring
with Cyndi Lauper, recording with Madonna, gigging with Chuck Berry.
Kennebunk resident John Kumnick is the bassist extraordinaire who has racked up all that heavy duty musical experience,
and he performs each week in the jazz trio Initials JR that also features his drummer son Dylan and Dylan’s longtime friend Nick Wilby on guitar.
The band has an instrumental repertoire of that ranges from the Meters” “Cissy Strut” and Herbie Hancock’s “Chameleon” to Wayne Shorter’s “Footprints” and Freddie Hubbard’s “Little Sunflower.”
Take in a typical set, and you’ll hear Metheny-esque guitar
lines and the kind of inspired, softly throbbing sounds that suggest
classic ECM-style jazz from the likes of Eberhard Weber or Oregon.
In other words, it’s music that quietly intrigues and demands
attention without overwhelming the listener with sheer volume.”