Jazz Articles
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Henry Spencer: The Defector
by Neil Duggan
In 2011, trumpeter Henry Spencer won the Best Newcomer Award at the jazz festival in the Wiltshire town of Marlborough; he went on to win the Emerging Excellence Award from Help Musicians UK in 2014. Sometimes these awards add extra pressure or, as is the case here, propel the musician to new heights. He climbs very close to the summit here with The Defector. The nine compositions on the album were inspired by those who defect -soldiers, politicians or partners ...
read moreAlessandro Sgobbio: Piano 2
by Dan McClenaghan
Italian pianist Alessandro Sgobbio strikes a pensive pose on the cover of his solo album Piano 2, presenting an introductory visual of his art. The pianist's photo portrait on his previous 2022 AMP Music & Recording release Piano (review here) did the same--a serious expression conveying an inward mood, indicating a measured and reflective approach to the instrument. On both recordings, that is what we get. The difference: Piano Music is piano only; Piano 2 features the addition of live ...
read moreAlessandro Sgobbio: Piano Music
by Dan McClenaghan
We ask our artists to give us something of themselves. The solo piano format is a superior way to do this--the musican alone at the piano, no collaboration; and Italian composer/pianist Alessandro Sgobbio presents the essence of his being with his first solo recording, Piano Music. The music is a diary of Sgobbio's experiences and influences--his parents and his mentor, Atma Mater, among other things. The artistry presented gives us a look into the artist's soul, his playing ...
read moreHilmar Jensson: Transparence
by Mike Jurkovic
Given that not one of the eight tracks definingTransparence, the darkly compelling debut from Norway's Hitra, runs longer than six minutes, the quartet covers a lot of ground. Like a ticket out of isolation, Transparence transports your homebound head to the grey expanse of Northern Atlantic skies. Billowing by design, their clouds of music make you feel like you're floating above rain shadows and fjords. Bonding together at Oslo's Norwegian Academy of Music, Hitra pairs Italian pianist Alessandro ...
read moreMarco Rottoli: New Year's Eve
by Mike Jurkovic
Nothing earth shattering, surely, but a very fine listen nonetheless. New Year's Eve, young Italian bassist and composer Marco Rottoli's debut, serves two truly noteworthy goals: First, as a promising warmup to more adventurous things from the trio itself in the future and, secondly, as a good opening ensemble readying you for the evening's anticipated headliner. New Year's Eve is a cool trio outing in the best sense of the time honored concept. It rolls, pops, flairs, ...
read moreMark Wade: Songs From Isolation
by Dan Bilawsky
Despite the obvious alignment in terms of timing, circumstances and creation, this project didn't simply manifest itself in the moment. Mark Wade has always had a solo bass outing in his sights. He just didn't take firm aim and follow through until now. That belief in patience, ultimately, helped to yield rewards. Rather than work with a more-is-more mindset that less mature players might adopt, Wade uses his experience to guide the way on this visual album crafted during COVID-19 ...
read moreSilent Fires: Forests
by John Eyles
Silent Fires is a quartet which brings together Italian pianist and composer Alessandro Sgobbio with three renowned Norwegians, violinist Håkon Aase, vocalist Karoline Wallace and trumpeter Hilde Marie Holsen--whose one-woman album Lazuli (Hubro, 2018) was very well received. As the YouTube clip below shows, in concert the four are often joined onstage by contemporary dancer and real-time choreographer Synne Garvik. While the four musicians are all experienced improvisers, their debut album Forests is not freely improvised but consists of eleven ...
read moreGagliardi/Albrigtsen/Thornton/Thorén: The Trip
by Don Phipps
Those who like a cup of coffee or tea on a chilly morning will appreciate the warmth provided by the album, The Trip. There is a great deal of happiness in this music, and it bubbles and percolates like a champagne toast on the Tyrrhenian Sea. The performing quartet, comprised of saxophonist Gianni Gagliardi, guitarist Odd Albrigtsen, bassist Tim Thornton, and drummer Anders Thoren, initially met in Oslo, but, according to the liner notes, the music concerns a ...
read moreThe Calle Stenman Quintet: Mr Sands Is In The Dressing Room
by Chris May
Welcome to the debut album from the self-proclaimed “roughest jazz group in Sweden," led by trumpeter, flugelhornist and composer Calle Stenman. By rough, Stenman's original Swedish text probably meant something akin to “raucous," for there is nothing untutored or blemished about the album, which has been carefully crafted. Four of the tunes—the hard boppish “Jazzkaban," post-boppish “Oh Me," bluesy “Dannes Blues" and boppish “Oslo's Nuts"—are raucous in the best sense of the word. That is, they are loud, passionate and ...
read moreRastko Obradovic Quartet: The Northern Experience
by Chris May
Heads up. New kid on the block. Rastko Obradovic is a 24-year old Serbian saxophonist with bags of talent. He has his own voice, is a characterful composer and resourceful arranger, and sounds like he has what it takes to go the distance. Born and raised in Belgrade, Obradovic studied Jazz Performance at the Norwegian Academy of Music (NAM) in Oslo, graduating in 2017. The Northern Experience is his second release, following Wabi Sabi (AMP, 2018), an EP ...
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