Jazz Articles
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Johannes Berauer: Vienna Chamber Diaries plus Strings
by Fiona Ord-Shrimpton
Johannes Berauer's album, Vienna Chamber Diaries plus Strings on Basho Records, is a jewel of emotional weathering to illuminate hearts after an unexpected and extended era of sadness. Berauer is a modern thinking, cross-over, chamber jazz Jedi. Perfecting the placement of elegant, exciting, heart easing, and harmonising in nine arrangements of exacting and uplifting joy, The Vienna Chamber Diaries plus Strings are a rollercoaster of gentle impulses and elation. The assembly of soloists is prescient, assured and propulsive. ...
read moreYuri Goloubev: Two Chevrons Apart
by Ian Patterson
In recent years double bassist Yuri Goloubev has lent his rich sound to multiple projects, including the co-led Duonomics (Caligola, 2018) with Michele Di Toro. It was 2011's Titanic for a Bike (Caligola), however, that marked Goloubev's last recording as outright leader. This welcome return—his headlining debut on Basho Records—sees him align with frequent musical partners Asaf Sirkis and Tim Garland, and new collaborator John Turville, on a finely crafted set of originals written and arranged by the Russian.
read moreTrish Clowes: Ninety Degrees Gravity
by Ian Patterson
Trish Clowes' stock has risen steadily since her debut, Tangent (Basho Records, 2010), which featured jazz quartet and, on several tracks, orchestra. That record announced a promising and ambitious voice, one equally at home with jazz and classical colors. Since then the saxophonist has continued to explore the meeting of jazz, voice and strings, attracting a growing chorus of admirers along the way. With the critically acclaimed My Iris (Basho Records, 2017), Clowes opted for a more stripped down, jazz ...
read moreTrish Clowes: My Iris
by Phil Barnes
There's an energy and a focus about this, Clowes fourth album for UK indie Basho records, that suggests a creative breakthrough. My Iris has kept that restlessness and love of music irrespective of genre apparent in Clowes earlier work, but feels a better constructed programme where the stylistic shifts are organic developments that blend naturally into the set-up of the compositions. Jazz is the core, but the breadth that comes from listening widely lifts this above the herd.On ...
read moreTrish Clowes: My Iris
by Fiona Ord-Shrimpton
Firstly, each individual in the Trish Clowes Quartet, Trish Clowes on various saxophones, Ross Stanley on piano and Hammond, Chris Montague on guitar and James Maddren on drums, fits their corner perfectly, providing the extra dimension that makes their cohesive playing effortless. There are no shirkers or hang back components in this line up. My Iris is mistressful and masterful musical wizardry and it sounds fascinating. “One Hour" starts with an uncommon horn-like guitar sustain, acting both other-earthly ...
read moreLiam Noble: A Room Somewhere
by Bruce Lindsay
A Room Somewhere is Liam Noble's second solo album: a mix of standards and improvised pieces that showcases this fine pianist's talents to excellent effect. Occasionally, critics refer to second albums as “difficult." The assumption is that the first album draws inspiration from 20 years of the artist's life, the second draws on one or two years at best. Noble avoids that difficulty by leaving a 20-year gap between his debut solo recording, Close Your Eyes (FMR REcords, ...
read moreTrish Clowes: Pocket Compass
by Bruce Lindsay
On her debut album, Tangent (Basho Records, 2010), saxophonist Trish Clowes gathered together a large group of musicians and included a full orchestra on two tracks. For her impressive second album, And In The Night-time She Is There (Basho Records, 2012), she streamlined the line-up, adding just half a dozen guests to the core quintet but ensuring that the string players had the talent and opportunity to improvise. Pocket Compass is built once again around Clowes and her core group, ...
read moreChristoph Stiefel Inner Language Trio: Big Ship
by Bruce Lindsay
Big Ship is the latest album to grace the extensive discography of Swiss pianist Christoph Stiefel and the fourth release from his Inner Language Trio. Stiefel is an underrated pianist. He lacks, so far, the public profile of other European players such as Joachim Kuhn or Michael Wollny but that's no reflection on his talent--as Big Ship clearly shows. For some time Steifel has been working with the concept of isorhythms--a musical strategy that dates back to mediaeval ...
read moreKit Downes: Light From Old Stars
by Phil Barnes
Arch collaborator Kit Downes has been near ubiquitous in UK jazz terms over the last few years. His trio collection Golden was nominated for the Mercury Music Prize (the nearest thing to a UK Grammys) in 2010 and considerably raised his public profile. Yet in interview Downes has commented upon the double edged sword that this exposure brought--happy with the increased bookings and CD sales, but less fond of the exposure to criticism from a less empathetic mainstream audience. Such ...
read moreThe Impossible Gentlemen: Internationally Recognisable Aliens
by John Kelman
When you come out of the gate as strongly as The Impossible Gentlemen (Basho, 2011), you create a pretty high set of expectations for the follow-up. Of course, when it's a quartet of musicians this accomplished--a transatlantic, trans-generational group consisting of a living legend (bassist Steve Swallow), a less-known but equally active American cohort (drummer Adam Nussbaum), a rising British star (pianist Gwilym Simcock and fellow Brit deserving far greater recognition (guitarist Mike Walker--there's an intrinsic recipe for a sophomore ...
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