Kristian Borring: Out of Nowhere

After coming of age in his home country, Danish-born guitarist Kristian Borring relocated to the U.K. where he became a stalwart fixture on the jazz scene and released four albums as leader of his own groups. Out of Nowhere is the fifth, recorded in 2019, shortly before the coronavirus pandemic struck, and featuring as before a rhythm section comprising three British comrades: pianist Rick Simpson, bassist Mick Coady and drummer Jon Scott.

Borring wrote six of the album's eight tunes, the best of which—to these ears—are the melodically engaging "Hipster" (which first appeared on Borring's album Urban Novel in 2014) and the rhythmically charming "Palace Fever." The others are quite suitable but no more than that. Completing the program are Johnny Green & Edward Heyman's title song, arranged for trio without Simpson, and Charlie Parker's bop era staple, "Bloomdido," on which Simpson fashions one of his more engaging solos. That is, in fact, a splendid finale, far better than the comparatively arid opener, "Five to Six." Borring and his mates do the best they can on that one, as they do on "Epsilon Eridani," "Three Rivers" and "What You See Is All You Get," none of which stays in the memory for more than a few moments, even though the musicianship is respectable on every number. Repeated listening may yield more rewards; as it is, there is not much to separate Borring's quartet from the herd. The music is even-tempered and efficient, as are Borring and his teammates, but Out of Nowhere lands for the most part a few paces short of enticing.

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