Record Reviews

JERRY BERGONZI / JACEK KOCHAN / PIOTR LEMANCZYK ~ THREE POINT SHOT INTUITION 71302 (Barcode: 608917130225) ~ USA ~ Jazz Recorded: 2009 Released: 2010 This is an album by a trio comprising of American saxophonist / composer Jerry BergonziFind albums by this artist and a Polish rhythm section with bassist Piotr LemanczykFind albums by this artist and drummer Jacek KochanFind albums by this artist. The album presents eight tracks, three composed by Bergonzi, two each by Lemanczyk and Kochan and one by Finnish saxophonist Joonatan RautioFind albums by this artist. The music is modern Jazz, quite remote from the American tradition, despite the fact that Bergonzi played with many top American Jazz musicians for many years. The two Poles have a strong influence on the proceedings, both as composers and performers, and are both up to the challenge playing with Bergonzi without any inferiority feelings involved. The intimate trio format allows all three musicians to show their skills and talents, which of course are very impressive. Lemanczyk is definitely one of the top Polish Jazz bassists and a very able composer, and Kochan is utterly unique and original drummer, who follows his own rules and desires. Combined with Bergonzi’s refined skills and great experience, the trio is able to weave some very inspiring moments, which border on Free but never quite leave the melodic and rhythmic threads. Overall, this is a very impressive saxophone trio recording, which is not an easy listening experience but offers musical depth and incredible instrumental abilities by these excellent musicians. Jazz listeners, who love their music served with some challenge, should find this album most rewarding.

Updated: 17/02/2025Posted: 17/02/2025

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DOMINIK BUKOWSKI ~ VICE VERSA SOLITON 125 (Barcode: 5907577112530) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz Recorded: 2009 Released: 2009 This is the third album as a leader by Polish Jazz vibraphonist / composer Dominik BukowskiFind albums by this artist recorded in a quartet format with two Finnish musicians: saxophonist Joonatan RautioFind albums by this artist and drummer Ville PynssiFind albums by this artist and his faithful companion since many years bass virtuoso Piotr LemanczykFind albums by this artist. The album presents seven original compositions, three each by Bukowski and Rautio and one by Lemanczyk. Although well within the Jazz mainstream, this album simply fulfills all the basic requirements expected from a superb Jazz production: beautiful melodies, excellent improvisations, superb teamwork and a crystal clear sound quality. Bukowski, as evident from his numerous other recordings, is the top vibraphone player on the Polish scene and his eloquence is simply astounding, as are his composing skills. Lemanczyk, one of my favorite Polish Jazz bassists, is also perfect all the way through. His sense of melody and understanding of the role of bass in a Jazz ensemble is second to none. The two Finns, although still relatively young, display here first class musicianship and in the case of Rautio also great compositional talent. Overall this is a first-class mainstream album, which makes no compromises whatsoever, keeping the music swinging and melodic and yet full of elegance and flair. This music has, perhaps unintentionally, a certain "retro" flavor, taking an experienced listener back to the 1950s and the Cool era, when the music was all about good taste and beautiful ladies. Of course any Jazz connoisseur should simply love this stuff to bits, as this music is so likeable that it makes you press the "repeat" button of your player instantly. Thank you guys for this little gem! This album is now four years old and one can only hope that we won´t have to wait much longer for another Bukowski recording, what do you say Dominik?

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KAIRA ~ URBAN SAGAS OF NORTHERN CITIES SVART 067 (Barcode: 6430050668792) ~ FINLAND ~ Smooth Jazz Recorded: 2017 Released: 2017 This is the debut album by Finnish Jazz sextet KairaFind albums by this artist, which consists of keyboardist Markus NiittynenFind albums by this artist, drummer Jussi LehtonenFind albums by this artist, bassist Sampo TiittanenFind albums by this artist, saxophonist Joonatan RautioFind albums by this artist and vocalists Nina MyaFind albums by this artist and Sam HuberFind albums by this artist. The album presents nine original songs written mostly by composer Lauri KairaFind albums by this artist, who put the band together, and Niittynen with lyrics (in English) by Emma LarssonFind albums by this artist and Lasse KurkiFind albums by this artist. The music is a nice and easy version of Smooth Jazz, with great melodies and perfect execution, copying the American model note by note and trick by trick. Mya has a soulful voice and Huber sings / raps no less soulfully and the rest of the band members are all excellent professionals. Although not really my cup of tea, one has to admit that this album ticks like Swiss clockwork and pulls all the right strings on the emotional scale, and if one has to listen to this kind of music, this is something I can wholehearted recommend. At least it has melody, harmony and musical sense in comparison to what passes as music these days. In short if you like Soul / Pop / Jazz music with lush melodies, this is something you should not miss!

Updated: 21/08/2020Posted: 21/08/2020

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JUSSI LEHTONEN ~ MOVE ON SVART 125 (Barcode: 6430065582786) ~ FINLAND ~ Jazz Recorded: 2016 Released: 2017 This is the third album by Finnish drummer / composer Jussi LehtonenFind albums by this artist, recorded in a quintet setting with saxophonist Joonatan RautioFind albums by this artist, guitarist Teemu ViinikainenFind albums by this artist, pianist Aki RissanenFind albums by this artist and bassist Jori HuhtalaFind albums by this artist. The album presents nine original compositions, all by Lehtonen. The music is all straightforward modern mainstream Jazz, completely within the Jazz convention. The compositions are all well weaved and offer nice melody lines, but tender little intellectual challenge as such and create a déjà vu impression. All the players are excellent performers, who can carry a tune and improvise elegantly, without a hitch. But altogether there is nothing here that any Jazz listener anywhere in the world has not heard before and the entire album lacks the ability to cross beyond the ordinary. Personally for me only the guitar work by Viinikainen offers somewhat more glimmer than the rest of the stuff presented here. Having said all that, this is a perfectly composed and performed Jazz album, which should make many Jazz enthusiasts completely happy. It is simply a bit too much American and too little Finnish for my liking.

Updated: 14/08/2020Posted: 14/08/2020

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ROYHKA / PYYSALO / MAARIT ~ TURMION SUURHERTTUA SVART 084 (Barcode: 6430050669867) ~ FINLAND ~ Jazz & Poetry Recorded: 2016 Released: 2017 This is a wonderful album by Finnish Rock vocalist / songwriter / author Kauko RoyhkaFind albums by this artist, recorded with Jazz vibraphonist / composer Severi PyysaloFind albums by this artist and a great band that comprises of drummer Jussi LehtonenFind albums by this artist, bassist Juho KivivuoriFind albums by this artist, guitarist Varre VartiainenFind albums by this artist, trumpeter Jukka EskolaFind albums by this artist, saxophonist Joonatan RautioFind albums by this artist and trombonist Heikki TuhkanenFind albums by this artist. The superb singer MaaritFind albums by this artist (a.k.a. Maarit HurmerintaFind albums by this artist) appears on selected tracks. The album presents ten original songs, all composed and arranged by Pyysalo with lyrics by Royhka. Royhka enjoys a highly successful career in Rock since early 1980s, with a long list of albums under his arm, and in parallel a career as author with several books over time. He is especially revered for his strong, often provocative lyrics, which can easily be categorized as sung poetry. The decision to record this album, which crosses boldly into the Jazz idiom, turns out to be extremely creative, and these ten songs are all masterpieces of composition and arrangement, and combined with Royhka´s idiosyncratic voice and theatric delivery, are absolutely brilliant. The music is spiced with some Jazz soloing, just enough to define the musical environment, but not dominating the proceedings. This album brings fond memories of many similar projects that dominated the Finnish Jazz scene in the late 1960s and 1970s, and were abandoned later on, as the Jazz scene (and music scene in general) changed into less adventurous turf. Overall this is a superb album, which offers brilliant music, masterly arranged and performed, which works perfectly even for people like myself, who do not speak Finnish. The delivery and the music are strong enough even without the textual layer. An absolute must for Jazz & Poetry lovers!

Updated: 22/08/2020Posted: 22/08/2020

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