Record Reviews

CHRISTOPH BECK ~ TARTAROS DML 038 (Barcode: 4011550200389) ~ GERMANY ~ Jazz Recorded: 2019 Released: 2019 This is the third album as a leader by young German saxophonist / composer Christoph BeckFind albums by this artist, recorded in a trio setting with pianist Patrick BebelaarFind albums by this artist and Polish (resident in Berlin) drummer Bodek JankeFind albums by this artist. The album presents twelve original compositions, all by Beck. The music is mostly melody based and offers a wide and diverse range of moods and tempi, presenting a highly skilled compositional ability, rather than sketchy themes, which often serve as basis for Jazz improvisations. It offers a lot of space and freedom, venturing into pretty Free Form passages, but remains well-structured and harmonically sound at all times. The bass-less trio handles the music brilliantly, with Beck alternating between tenor saxophone and bass clarinet, Bebelaar playing superbly and handling the job of providing not only harmony but adding excellent soloing and a bass layer, and finally Janke, who cements the music together and pushes it forward with his robust and highly imaginative percussive work. The album holds a lot wonderful surprises, like the tabla parts played by Janke or the superb bass clarinet parts, which are deeply emotional and atmospheric. All this offers a truly delightful musical journey, which happens rather rarely, and is definitely worth embracing. I admit of not being aware of Beck’s work earlier (my loss of course) and this album comes as a revelation of his abilities and talents. I’ll have to dig out his earlier work as it definitely seems worthwhile, now that I have discovered him. Overall this is a beautiful piece of music, from start to finish, which shows how inventive, artistic and sophisticated European Jazz can be at its best. Beck is definitely a musician worth following and the album highly recommended to all Jazz lovers around the world!

Updated: 28/03/2021Posted: 28/03/2021

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BODEK JANKE ~ SONG 2 NOT ON LABEL 4260014871218 (Barcode: 4260014871218) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz-Pop Fusion Recorded: 2019 Released: 2020 This is an album by Polish (resident in Berlin) Jazz drummer / composer Bodek JankeFind albums by this artist recorded in an international quartet setting with Namibian vocalist / guitarist Shishani VranckxFind albums by this artist, Estonian pianist Kristjan RandaluFind albums by this artist and British bassist Phil DonkinFind albums by this artist. The excellent Polish Atom String QuartetFind albums by this artist provide the string parts and world class guests: American saxophonist Bill EvansFind albums by this artist, Israeli guitarist Gilad HekselmanFind albums by this artist and German trumpeter Sebastian StudnitzkyFind albums by this artist appear on selected tracks. The album presents ten tracks, five of which are originals (two by Janke and three by Vranckx) and the rest are arrangements of Pop songs. As the title suggests, this album is a continuation of its predecessor called "SongFind albums with this title" released a couple of years earlier. Although basically a Jazz album, the concept it presents is a mixture of inventive and ambitious arrangements of well known Pop songs and original compositions, with the emphasis on transforming the music into way more complex setting than its origins. Not surprisingly, since the leader is a drummer, the most striking feature of the music is a completely idiosyncratic rhythmic / polyrhythmic approach, which takes the music into an entire new dimension. The instrumental performances by all the participants on this album are simply phenomenal. Bodek is the rhythmic machine, which drives the entire ensemble, but the superb piano parts and excellent support by the bassist create a most impressive ambience of pulsating / vibrating musical unity, which sparks with originality. Vranckx adds her warm and somewhat mystical vocals, which bring the depth of African music into the proceedings. The guest stars add the proverbial cherry on top, carefully trying not to steal the show and respectfully naturally expand the ambience. The string arrangements deserve a special mention, not only because they are brilliantly executed, which is hardly surprising, but mostly due to their perfect fit to the core of the music, and not just an artificial ornamentation. Overall this is a most unusual and highly fascinating album, which requires repeated attentive listening sessions in order to truly expose its hidden treasures. It offers strikingly unusual arrangements and brilliant performances, full of aesthetic sophistication and reflecting the best European Jazz has to offer. This music should find a wide range of listeners, who are sure to enjoy its beauty, both within the circles of Jazz connoisseurs and beyond. Wholeheartedly and highly recommended!

Updated: 08/04/2020Posted: 08/04/2020

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DOROTA MISKIEWICZ & TONINHO HORTA ~ BONS AMIGOS WARNER MUSIC POLAND 5054197756405 (Barcode: 5054197756405) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz-World Fusion Recorded: 2019 - 2020 Released: 2023 This is an album by Polish Jazz vocalist Dorota MiskiewiczFind albums by this artist and Brazilian guitarist / vocalist / composer Toninho HortaFind albums by this artist. The album was recorded mostly in Brazil with bassist Michael PipoquinhaFind albums by this artist and percussionist Armando MarcalFind albums by this artist. Later on overdubs by Polish (resident in Germany) drummer Bodek JankeFind albums by this artist and vocal overdubs by Miskiewicz were added in Poland. The album presents eleven tracks, eight of which were composed by Horta, and three were co-composed by Miskiewicz and Marek NapiorkowskiFind albums by this artist, two appearing originally on the album “CaminhoFind albums with this title” from 2008 and one appearing originally on the album “AleFind albums with this title” from 2012. The music is everything Brazilian music lovers might expect: brilliant songs, excellent guitar parts, superb vocals by Miskiewicz, who sings in Portuguese and Polish, and heartfelt accompaniment by the rhythm section. Horta plays some amazing guitar licks and Miskiewicz sings as if she was born in Bahia, and it is obvious that a lot of fun was had by everybody on board. The music sounds completely authentic, which is not easy to achieve with musicians not originally from Brazil, but Miskiewicz obviously feels deeply the specific zest of Brazilian music, sounding natural even when she sings in Polish. Her lovely vocals are pure magic, as always. The album is full of delicate nuances, both instrumental and vocal, which should keep all fans of Brazilian music happy, and continues the vocalist’s passion with that specific genre, now in its natural habitat. Overall, this is a truly delightful piece of music, which Miskiewicz can be really proud of and her many fans and admirers can enjoy wholeheartedly, as can all Brazilian Jazz fans the world over. Thank you my Dear for this gift of music!

Updated: 03/03/2024Posted: 03/03/2024

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