Record Reviews

FRANCESCA PALAMIDESSI ~ IN OTHER WORDS I AM THREE RAGTIME 003 ~ ITALY ~ Jazz Recorded: 2014 Released: 2015 This is a vocal tribute album to the music of Charles MingusFind albums by this artist by Italian (resident in Belgium) singer / arranger Francesca PalamidessiFind albums by this artist, who is accompanied by an excellent quintet consisting of pianist Hendrik LasureFind albums by this artist, clarinetist Matteo PastorinoFind albums by this artist, guitarist Simone SchirruFind albums by this artist, bassist Francesco GalatroFind albums by this artist and drummer Armando LuongoFind albums by this artist. It presents six classic pieces by Mingus, arranged by Palamidessi. This is her debut album. Palamidessi treats the Mingus material with a lot of flair and individual elucidation, which allows her and the quintet members to spread their wings and play their hearts out, rather than present yet another mainstream interpretation of this music, which has been done so many times before. As a result this album is full of surprises and unexpected quirks, which every great Jazz album should be full off. She has a strong, clear voice and a lot of bold ideas, which she´s not afraid to try out. She sings both lyrics and vocalese, which is her true forte. The long improvised vocalese passages are a true inspiration. She gets a superb and sympathetic support form her band mates, who all contribute to the overall effect of this album. Lasure is with her literally hand in hand, Pastorino plays some naughty bass clarinet inserts that send sparks down your spine, Schirru is all about ambient mysticism, which creates a beautifully weird background, and of course the rhythm section carries all that craziness bravely forward, with Galatro in charge of the pulsation and Luongo keeping everybody in the right timeframe. This music might not be very easy for the less experienced listeners. Mingus was a space alien as far as his twisted melody lines are concerned, so even before the musicians here start to go all over the place this is already far from trivial and when the ensemble moves away from the basic melody lines, things get a bit twisted, in a wonderful way of course. So if you don´t "get it" in the fist attempt, listen again as this music is definitely too good to be left aside. Respecting the Masters and stretching their music to new vicinity is the perfect recipe for making good music. I´m glad it was used here and happy it worked as well as it did. In view of so many mediocre vocal albums released in the Jazz idiom, this album is a breath of fresh air, not to be missed. If this is her debut recording, she is surely going to surprise us again, soon I hope.

CD 1 Slipcase Recommend To A Friend

VINCENT THEKAL ~ CLIMAX RAGTIME 002 ~ FRANCE ~ Jazz Recorded: 2014 Released: 2014 This is the debut album by French saxophonist / composer Vincent ThekalFind albums by this artist, recorded in a trio format with bassist Daniele CappucciFind albums by this artist and drummer Armando LuongoFind albums by this artist. Pianist Matthieu RoffeFind albums by this artist guests on one track and baritone saxophonist Bo Van der WerfFind albums by this artist guests on three tracks. The album presents eight original compositions, seven of which were composed by Thekal and one by Cappucci. Jazz saxophone trio is a very difficult undertaking and constitutes the ultimate challenge for any saxophonist, especially so for musicians in the early stages of their career. Therefore it´s a pleasure to see Thekal and his cohorts stand up to the challenge and emerge victorious. They play a very engaged and ambitious set of modern Jazz compositions, mostly within the mainstream idiom, but often venturing into almost Free territory in the heat of the improvised passages. The compositions have all strong melody lines, which are characterized by lyrical melancholy dominating the slower / ballad pieces and a joy of life on the up tempo numbers. The overall level of the compositions is surprisingly outstanding. The trio is a naked, intimate musical eco-system, which requires an absolutely symbiotic relationship, and this trio is definitely up for the challenge. Thekal plays with a lot of dynamics and his clear, beautiful timbre works like a charm. The rhythm section steps out well beyond the accompaniment role and becomes an integral piece of the ensemble, which grows to be stronger than the sum of its individual parts. Cappucci lays down a superb bottom to the music, playing inspired and technically brilliant bass phrases, which anchor the entire proceedings and expand the music´s scope and sound. Luongo adds another dimension with his unusual approach to the rhythm, playing mostly around it rather than measuring time. His parts are a superb example of modern Jazz drumming, which places the drum set on the same level as the leading instruments. The two guest musicians also contribute greatly to the success of the album. Van der Werf plays some magic baritone lines and his duets with Thekal are an aesthetic delight. Roffe plays a funk Fender Rhodes piano on the tune composed by Cappucci, and Thekal plays soprano on the same tune, which is an absolute gem, although stylistically somewhat different stylistically from the rest of the album´s pieces. Overall this is an amazing debut album, which hopefully is a foreteller of things to come. I can´t wait to hear the next album, which hopefully will arrive soon enough. Well done Gentlemen!

CD 1 Slipcase Recommend To A Friend