Record Reviews

CORE ~ GOLONKA LOVE MOSEROBIE 063 (Barcode: 7320470104194) ~ NORWAY ~ Jazz Recorded: 2007 - 2008 Released: 2008 This is the 5th album by the Norwegian Jazz quartet The CoreFind albums by this artist, which consists of saxophonist Kjetil MosterFind albums by this artist, pianist Erlend SlettevollFind albums by this artist, bassist Steinar RaknesFind albums by this artist and drummer Espen AalbergFind albums by this artist, who is the band’s leader and primary composer. This album also introduces the band’s new saxophonist Jorgen MathisenFind albums by this artist, who replaces Moster on several tracks. Polish DJ LenarFind albums by this artist participates on several tracks as well. The music included on the album was captured live during three separate concerts in Jazz clubs in Poland, where the band often plays and enjoys faithful following. The drummer and the bassist composed most of the music, with a couple of improvised pieces credited collectively to the band and one being a traditional African tune. These recordings testify to the intensity and incredible power the band is celebrated for, but also their versatility and openness, which is quite unusual in most contemporary Jazz ensembles. Each of the three gigs captured herein presents a different facet of the group: the electric side dominated by the distorted electric piano and wailing soprano saxophone, which brings fond memories of the early Weather ReportFind albums by this artist days; the acoustic side, which brings us back to the explosive days of the John ColtraneFind albums by this artist quartet, where Freedom rules, supported rock-steady by the piano pulsating a la McCoy TynerFind albums by this artist; and finally the contemporary side, incorporating ambient / electronic sounds as an organic ingredient of the music. The rhythm section supports the music at all times with elegance and grace, contributing the powerful engine behind the soloists and bonds everything together. It is truly remarkable to see such young musicians displaying not only talent and dedication, but also maturity well beyond the call of duty. They are certainly doing their own thing without much regard to commercial acceptance, which is even rarer. Overall this is a remarkable document of European Jazz at its best, which gives hope as to the genre´s future, which sometimes looks bleak. These Norwegians carry on the splendid tradition of the Scandinavian Jazz, which contributed so much pleasure to our lives over the years. Any true Jazz lover should not miss this album as a part of his / her music for the soul. Brilliant stuff!

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CORE ~ PARTY MOSEROBIE 073 (Barcode: 7320470128183) ~ NORWAY ~ Jazz Recorded: 2010 Released: 2010 This is the 7th album by the Norwegian Jazz quartet The CoreFind albums by this artist, which consists of saxophonist Kjetil MosterFind albums by this artist, pianist Erlend SlettevollFind albums by this artist, bassist Steinar RaknesFind albums by this artist and drummer Espen AalbergFind albums by this artist, who is the band’s leader and primary composer. This album also features the band’s new saxophonist Jorgen MathisenFind albums by this artist, expanding the ensemble into a quintet. The drummer composed three of the five compositions present here and the bassist composed the other two. The band is known for their intense and powerful playing, which is well documented on their earlier recordings and of course present here as well. This album is for them in many ways a return to the source, as it sounds remarkably similar stylistically and sonically to the John ColtraneFind albums by this artist late ImpulseFind albums on this label recordings, which were the zenith of the Free Jazz movement and are the band´s primary influence. But the Core’s intensity and fierce improvisations retain a melodic outline at all times, without turning into a pure “wall of sound” state, which Coltrane often utilized. The music follows a more or less fixed pattern, starting as a piano trio, which states the melody and then the piano improvises first, later joined by the horns. The pianist’s powerful left hand keeps emphasizing the chords through the entire duration of the tunes, very much in the same manner as McCoy TynerFind albums by this artist did in Coltrane’s quartet. The saxophonists are both superb improvisers, free from the “bad manners” which Free Jazz / Improvised Music often suffers from, like lack of direction and unnecessary prolonging of the solos without saying anything innovative. All those contribute to the feeling of satisfaction and aural pleasure experienced by the listener exposed to this wonderful music. These young Norwegians make European Jazz proud, especially in view of their openness to other types of music and instrumentation, as evident on their earlier recordings. They are definitely a phenomenon, which Jazz connoisseurs should follow closely as they are, as far as I can feel, destined to reach higher planes. Wholeheartedly recommended!

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OLE MARIUS SANDBERG ~ ENSEMBLE SKARET 03 (Barcode: 7041882498489) ~ NORWAY ~ Jazz Recorded: 2017 Released: 2018 This is the third album by Norwegian bassist / composer Ole Marius SandbergFind albums by this artist recorded in a quartet setting with saxophonist / clarinetist Eirik HegdalFind albums by this artist, pianist Erlend SlettevollFind albums by this artist and drummer Stein Inge BraekhusFind albums by this artist. Guitarist Thomas T DahlFind albums by this artist guests on four tracks and drummer Steinar KrokstadFind albums by this artist on one track. The album presents seven original compositions, all by Sandberg. The music is modern Jazz with strong Scandinavian ties, full of melancholy and introverted, slowly developing themes. Although melody based the album offers a lot of freedom and open improvisation, contributed mostly by the saxophone and clarinet, which is especially impressive. All the compositions are well structured and offer elegant harmonic structures, which are ideal vehicles for the improvised parts. The level of the compositions is consistently excellent and they are intelligent and emotional at the same time. The level of execution is also very high, with Hegdal being mostly up front weaving his unusual improvisational magic. Slettevoll balances the music with strictly melodic chords structures and graceful solos. Sandberg steers the music forward and keeps the flow with his strong bass structures and Braekhus adds the rhythmic layer subtly and with great sensitivity. The four tracks featuring Dahl definitely benefit from his contribution. Overall this is an excellent European Jazz / Scandinavian Jazz album, which should make all modern Jazz fans happy, regardless of their location. It shows the versatility and ingeniousness of contemporary European Jazz scene, which refuses to stand still and keeps constantly reinventing the idiom. Highly recommended!

Updated: 20/02/2018Posted: 20/02/2018

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