Our award-winning debut album––featuring jazz-prog renditions of 1980s pop hits.

"Power-polychord instrumental rock at its finest" - Downbeat (2020)

Recorded Jul 18+19, 2018 at Transient Sound, Chicago IL
Released April 8, 2019

Neil Carson - Alto Sax/Compositions/Arrangements
Connor Bernhard - Trumpet/Flugelhorn
Anthony Bruno - Tenor Sax
Matt Kowalski - Trombone
Andy Schlinder - Bari Sax
Brandon Hunt - Guitar
Andrew Lawrence - Acoustic Piano
Tim Seisser - Electric Bass
Zack Marks - Drums

Tyler Rice - Recording Engineer
Neil Carson - Mixing Engineer
Brian Schwab - Mastering
Dawn Holler Wisher - Artwork

Fast Car

It's My Life

Everybody Wants To Rule The World

Furthering our mission to bring jazz, pop, and rock together in a banging fashion, this song takes its influences from "power pop," that style of pop-rock with a distinctly joyful, catchy, melodic sensibility––specifically Tommy Tutone's "8675309/Jenny" (1981) and Third Eye Blind's "Narcolepsy" (1997).

Paying tribute to those tunes that rock hard, but make you feel happy at the same time. Ideal for those perfect road trips, running, dancing, or just about anything activity that involves movement from one place to another.

Neil Carson - Alto Sax, Composer/Arranger
Connor Bernhard - Trumpet
Anthony Bruno - Tenor Sax (Solo)
Matt Kowalski - Trombone
Andy Schlinder - Bari Sax
Brandon Hunt - Guitar (Solo)
Andrew Lawrence - Piano
Tim Seisser - Electric Bass
Zack Marks - Drums

Recorded remotely March 2020
Released Sep 3, 2020

Produced, mixed and mastered by Neil Carson
Bass and drums recorded by Evan Levine
Artwork by Brooke Kravitz

New Nostalgia

"We think in language...The quality of our thoughts and ideas can only be as good as the quality of our language." - George Carlin

Language enables us to communicate thoughts, opinions, feelings––all with infinite nuance and care. Yet for all its expressive potential, the English language poses an equal threat of miscommunication, misunderstanding, and hurting of others––a truth that recent events in America have clearly exposed.

Inspired by the nuances of the English language, "Turn of Phrase" is a song of gestures: melodies present themselves not as sequences of notes, but as drum grooves, improvised solos, horn clusters, rhythmic patterns. Musical moments in the song reward multiple listenings, much as we may wish we had a second or third chance to articulate a thought. Motives repeat themselves and morph slightly, as though one were searching for the best way to communicate something. Energy builds and nearly boils over before pulling back, as someone might hesitate to say something plainly, for fear of offending or being misunderstood.

"Turn of Phrase" is a musical ode not to what we say, but to how we say it.

Neil Carson - Alto Sax, Composer/Arranger
Connor Bernhard - Trumpet
Anthony Bruno - Tenor Sax
Matt Kowalski - Trombone
Andy Schlinder - Bari Sax
Brandon Hunt - Guitar
Andrew Lawrence - Piano (Solo)
Tim Seisser - Electric Bass (Solo)
Zack Marks - Drums (Solo)

Recorded remotely March 2020
Released Sep 4, 2020

Produced, mixed and mastered by Neil Carson
Bass and drums recorded by Evan Levine
Artwork by Brooke Kravitz

Turn of Phrase

Written by Tears for Fears - this arrangement originally recorded on our 2019 self-titled debut album.

Composed by Roland Orzabal, Ian Stanley, Chris Hughes
Recorded live @ Martyrs' in Chicago, April 2019
Released May 7, 2021

Neil Carson - Alto Sax, Arranger
Connor Bernhard - Trumpet
Anthony Bruno - Tenor Sax
Matt Kowalski - Trombone
Andy Schlinder - Bari Sax
Brandon Hunt - Guitar
Andrew Lawrence - Piano
Tim Seisser - Bass (solo)
Zack Marks - Drums

Mixed/Mastered by Neil Carson
Cover Art by Sara Kay

Everybody Wants To Rule The World (Live)

Deep in the throes of the covid-19 pandemic, unable to see people, do things, or leave our homes, we released "Tryin" as an musical marker of our emotional state––as in, "Tryin to be a person".

Recorded remotely February-March 2021

Released May 7, 2021

Neil Carson - Alto Sax, Composer/Arranger
Connor Bernhard - Trumpet
Anthony Bruno - Tenor Sax
Matt Kowalski - Trombone
Andy Schlinder - Bari Sax
Brandon Hunt - Guitar
Andrew Lawrence - Piano
Tim Seisser - Bass
Zack Marks - Drums

Mixed/Mastered by Neil Carson
Cover Art by Sara Kay

Tryin'

Originally recorded by The Police, reimagined by our bassist Tim Seisser. Here's our smash-prog-insanity take on this golden classic.

Recorded remotely September 2020
Released March 5, 2021

Tim Seisser - Bass, Arrangement
Neil Carson - Alto Sax (Solo), Orchestration
Connor Bernhard - Trumpet
Anthony Bruno - Tenor Sax
Matt Kowalski - Trombone
Andy Schlinder - Bari Sax
Brandon Hunt - Guitar (Solo)
Andrew Lawrence - Piano
Zack Marks - Drums (Solo)

Artwork by Sara Kay
Mixed and Produced by Neil Carson

Message in a Bottle

Originally recorded by New Order. We slow this classics 80s synth-pop tune down to a romp.

Recorded remotely September 2020
Released March 5, 2021

Neil Carson - Alto Sax, Arrangement
Connor Bernhard - Trumpet
Anthony Bruno - Tenor Sax
Matt Kowalski - Bass Trumpet (Solo)
Andy Schlinder - Bari Sax (Solo)
Brandon Hunt - Guitar
Andrew Lawrence - Piano
Tim Seisser - Bass
Zack Marks - Drums

Artwork by Sara Kay
Mixed and Produced by Neil Carson

Bizarre Love Triangle

Released September 3, 2021

Neil Carson - Alto Sax, Composer/Arranger
Connor Bernhard - Trumpet
Anthony Bruno - Tenor Sax
Matt Kowalski - Trombone
Andy Schlinder - Bari Sax
Brandon Hunt - Guitar
Andrew Lawrence - Piano
Tim Seisser - Bass
Zack Marks - Drums

Mixed/Mastered by Neil Carson
Artwork by Sara Kay

Punching Up

Solve It

Turn Of Phrase

Released September 3, 2021

Neil Carson - Alto Sax, Composer/Arranger
Connor Bernhard - Trumpet
Anthony Bruno - Tenor Sax
Matt Kowalski - Trombone
Andy Schlinder - Bari Sax
Brandon Hunt - Guitar
Andrew Lawrence - Piano
Tim Seisser - Bass
Zack Marks - Drums

Recorded March 2020 - May 2021
Mixed/Mastered by Neil Carson
Artwork by Sara Kay

Originally written/recorded by Cut Copy on their 2017 album "Haiku from Zero"

Recorded Nov 19, 2022 @ Rax Trax Recording, Chicago IL
Released December 9, 2022

Connor Bernhard - Trumpet
Neil Carson - Alto Sax, Arranger
Anthony Bruno - Tenor Sax
Matt Kowalski - Trombone
Andy Schlinder - Bari Sax
Brandon Hunt - Guitar
Andrew Lawrence - Acoustic Piano
Tim Seisser - Bass
Zack Marks - Drums

Recorded, mixed and mastered by Andy Shoemaker

Stars Last Me a Lifetime

New Nostalgia is a Chicago-based fusion horn band that blends jazz, pop and rock flavors together in hard-hitting instrumental ensemble arrangements. Led by saxophonist and composer/ arranger Neil Carson, New Nostalgia straddles genre lines with intricate arranging and improvisation, singable melodies, and unstoppable rock energy.

New Nostalgia

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