May 2020

A brand-new podcast about Brighton’svibrant jazz scene

Listen now on any podcast app or visitbrightonjazzsafari.com

7 Jazz Essentials

12 Interview:

Ela Southgate

4 Lockdown Diaries:

Sara Oschlag

8 Interview:

Sarathy Korwar

15 Lockdown Diaries:

Jennifer Left

18 Big Band Scene

22 Live Stream Reviews

20 Words... Agnes Keplinger

50 Pete

Recommends...

26 Album Q&A

+ Review

38 Album Reviews

48 Live

Stream

Listings

Cover: Jennifer Left & Jack Tavaréat The Hand in Hand by LisaWormsleyAbove: Sara Oschlag by LisaWormsley

Click on the blue SJM logo atthe bottom of the page toreturn to the contents page.

4 SJM May 2020

Lockdown Diaries

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I’m sat here in the sunshine, theodd cloud passing by overhead,wondering what to say about myexperience of the quarantine. I don’twant to dwell on the financialstresses but rather focus on thepositive. Mostly. Let’s have a gothen....

We self-quarantined a few daysbefore it was made mandatory by theSpanish government. We cancelledtwo gigs, having to explain why. Thena warning was released, givingeveryone in our village a few days tosocialise, and drink the bars dry, atemptation which we resisted.

Before COVID-19 became aEuropean problem, I was preparing togo back to Brighton and hit thegigging season hard. A prospect Iwas looking forward to but there wasalso a simmer of stress bubblingaway. The pressure we put onourselves to be busy, organiseourselves and run our businesseswell, can be too much at times.

So with that in mind, I’m quiteenjoying my time under quarantine. Igenerally fill my days with a fewroutines, which include cuddling ourcat Peanut, making the bed andopening the windows, yoga or otherexercise and a lot of stretching,working on my recording project (I’llexplain more about that shortly),eating really nice meals thanks toDan, keeping up with friends andfamily on video calls, doing variousDIY projects around the house, co-

caring for two black kittens I rescued3 months ago, while they wait to beallowed to travel to the UK to theirforever home, doing Wim Hoff (TheIceman) breathing technique, tryingto make Peanut be friends with astreet cat we’ve named Twiglet andhaving the odd clandestine winemeeting outside our door with acouple of friends - at a safe distance,of course.

So pretty busy, really. I’ve hardlyeven got time for procrastinating, butI make damn sure to fit it in.

So! The recording project isentirely based on our separation fromfriends and colleagues. I find it sointeresting how similar our situationis across the globe and it made mewant to defy our geographicalrestrictions by connecting with

musicians from all over, so I decidedto create an EP. The EP quickly grewin to a full album, with so manywonderful musicians and friendsaround the world that I wanted toinclude. It’s going to be a digitalrelease only (cheap!) and anythingearned from the record will go tocharity. I’ve mentioned NHS CharityTrust Fund on Facebook but I’m alsoaware of a big increase in domesticviolence during the quarantine.

I definitely don’t feel right aboutasking for money for my own gain atthe moment. It’s my belief that ourgovernments should look after us,not our friends or anyone else, aswe’re all in the same financial boat.Some even have holes in the hull.

The only moment I’ve had wherebeing stuck really hit me was theother day, when my mum fell overand broke her arm. She washospitalised and had an operationthat involved having a metal plateand eight screws put into her arm,just above the elbow. My mum isnearly 80 years old. I wanted sobadly to be there for her and I wasso worried about the operation that Iburst into tears of relief when Ispoke to her post op - fortunatelyshe was doing well, all thingsconsidered.

My mum normally lives in

Copenhagen but since the virusoutbreak, she’s been staying with mydad in the countryside, which is theone thing that has kept me calm. Shewasn’t allowed visitors, of course,but after 4 days in hospital, my dadcould pick her up in his car, be therefor her and take care of her 24/7. Infact, we had a video call yesterdayand my dad kept putting filters on,dressing my mum in wigs & glasses,with her dictating which ones sheliked or telling him off for the onesshe disliked. All back to normal then.

I have deliberately put myself ina happy bubble. I’ve not followeddeath tolls or stories of peoples’demise following the COVID-19outbreak but instead focussed onstaying in touch with as many friendsas possible, making sure they knowI’m here for them. I strive to keepfinding new ways to be inspired, byreading, listening to music andpodcasts, doing various wellnessclasses and courses and being

Sara Oschlag

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outside, either on the terrace orwalking to the supermarket - a 3 anda bit mile round trip up and down amountain. I try to be kind to myself,which isn’t a strictly quarantine-basedoccupation, but I have the time todelve into the issue and really facethe consequences of my thinking -the impact it has on me and thepeople in my life. If I’m unkind tomyself, I can easily shift theunkindness on to other people: the

person in front of me in the queue, aperson posting something onFacebook, my own family and so on.I feel I’m making progress and I’m

experiencing being in charge of mymood and thoughts, by attempting toaccept whatever thought or moodhits me, counter-act with a kindthought or by paying gratitude tosomething or someone in my life.Sometimes just by laughing at myselfand telling me to shut the fuck up.

I’m gonna finish off, sounding likea right cliché and say that I hope weall learn something from thisexperience. I hope we manage tokeep caring about the people aroundus, the way we have in these times,under COVID-19 restrictions. That welook at the climate improvements thathave happened in our absence - fromour travel restrictions and loweredconsumerism - and hold ourselvesaccountable for how we treat theplanet on a daily basis. That we takeresponsibility and cut down on ourluxurious behaviours. I hope that wetruly realise how privileged we are inwestern society and I hope we put allthose learnt experiences into actions.For example next time we vote...

Ok, I think I’ve taken enough ofyour time now.

Take care of yourselves and eachother.

Vocalist Sara Oschlag performsaround the world and lives in Brightonand Spain.All photos by Sara Oschlag.

Jazz EssentialsMiles Davis

In A Silent Way(Columbia)

Well, Miles had to feature in thiscolumn soon enough, but while thismonth’s essential Miles might not bean immediately obvious choice, it iscrucial to so much of modern music.

Miles Davis changed the sound ofjazz three times in his career, alwaysat the end of a decade. In 1948–50he and others gave Birth to the Cool,in 1959 he recorded Kind Of Blue andpopularised modal jazz, and in 1969saw In A Silent Way, which ushered injazz rock. Three revolutions and, oddly,each one initially quiet, as if Miles wassomewhat unsure about each newstyle and was gently trying it out.

The 1969 revolution that was In ASilent Way began the previous year.Miles In the Sky introduced rock beats,while the entire second side of Fillesde Kilimanjaro used electricinstruments. So Miles was alreadywired when he recorded this newalbum on 18 February 1969. From hisexisting band, Wayne Shorter stuck tosoprano sax, Chick Corea and HerbieHancock doubled up on electricpianos, Dave Holland remained onelectric bass, Tony Williams playeddrums. Austrian keyboardist JoeZawinul sat in on organ, while,crucially, British guitarist JohnMcLaughlin debuted on electric guitar.

The album features just twoextended tracks: Shhh/Peaceful and InA Silent Way/It’s About Time. Theyoriginally lasted around two hours intotal and were then cut down andsubstantially rearranged in the editingroom by Teo Macero, Miles’ long-timeproducer. The music is one long modalgroove, hypnotic, mesmeric in its

brooding intensity. Tony Williams’insistent pulse provides the base onwhich the whole shimmering edificestands, McLaughlin the etherealquesting, melodic lines, while WayneShorter’s spine-chilling appearance onShhh/Peaceful at 9:13 minutes is oneof the most enigmatic entrances in allof jazz. Nothing like it had ever beenheard before.

In A Silent Way has an interestingafterlife. It led Miles directly to theparanoia of Bitches Brew and thestreet funk of On The Corner,McLaughlin to the sonic overload ofthe Mahavishnu Orchestra andHancock to the sheer fun of HeadHunters. Jazz rock was silent nolonger. But in late May 1974 Mileslearned of the death of his idol, DukeEllington, and recorded an elegy – HeLoves Him Madly – that could havecome straight off that 1969 session.Among those hugely impressed wasBrian Eno, informing what he latertermed ambient music, an all-important genre that now incorporatesthe Fourth World music of trumpeterJon Hassell as well as the come-downmusic of Aphex Twin andSquarepusher. In A Silent Way lives on.

Simon Adams

Sarathy Korwar

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Drummer, tabla player andcomposer Sarathy Korwar was set tobe part of the jazz contingent at thenow cancelled Great Escape Festivalin May. Sarathy spoke to me over thephone from his home in Kilburn,North West London, where he’sspending his time in lockdown.

How are you feeling with everythingat the moment?“Good days and bad, like mostpeople I think. Fortunately, my familyare doing fine. I try to stick to aschedule of sorts. In a way, it’s agreat time for me to sit down andpractice and write music but equallyit’s not the most creative of periods,you know. So I’m battling thosethings. There are times when I’mreally lucky and happy to be notdoing much and have time to create,but also sometimes the anxiety takesover.”

Sarathy was born in the US butgrew up in Ahmedabad and Chennaiin India in the 1990s. After movingto Pune as a teenager he studied thetabla with Rajeev Devasthali.

When you were learning andgrowing as a musician, were thereany key moments that reallyopened your eyes?“There are a couple of moments.They’re both when I was introducedto mentors, the people who pointedme in the direction of the music thatI eventually started playing. The firstone was when I was about 13. Ateacher in school realised that I mightbe interested in the kind of musicthat he was interested in. He startedshowing me music like Ahmad Jamal,Oscar Peterson and Coltrane. I hadno idea who these people were atthe time and he started giving mecassette tapes. I was just in awe that

somebody had taken me out of thecrowd and decided that I wassomeone that they could giveattention to. So I reallyenthusiastically started listening to allthis music, partly because I wasinterested in seeing what it was, butalso because this guy had given mea lot of attention, so I felt veryvalidated. That’s how my love for alot of this jazz came about, listeningto those early tapes and thendiscovering more people for myself.People like Charlie Parker, DizzyGillespie, Alice Coltrane and furtherthrough the canon of work. That wasone thing that shifted things for me.”“The second one was meeting mytabla teacher when I moved to Punewhen I was about 18. At that point inmy career I’d already been playingtabla for 10 years. I could alreadyplay but meeting him really openedmy mind up to thinking about rhythmin a completely different sort of wayand opened up this kind ofperspective on time and rhythm thathas, to this day, really helped meapproach music in a way that I findvery accessible and inspiring.”

Was there a moment when you feltit was easier to express your ownidentity?“I don’t know if there was ever amoment but over a period of time,until the age of about 24 or 25, Iwasn’t really interested in expressingmyself, in the sense of I wasn’tlooking very actively to find my ownvoice as much as I was just learningthese styles of music that I wasdeeply interested in learning: jazzand Indian classical music. So Iwanted to get really good at boththose styles of music. Then, verynaturally, I started developing myown ability and creativity, and tryingto find my own voice. Over theP

hoto:FabriceBourgelle

Interviewed by Charlie Anderson

10 SJM May 2020 SJM May 2020 11

a real meeting of genres. That’s whatthe whole UPAJ Collective is allabout. It’s about balancing thosescales.”

Tell us about your new EP,Otherland“It was supposed to be out onRecord Store Day but it will be out inJune now, because Record Store Dayhas been postponed. It’s basically anextension of the album that I put outlast year, More Arriving, with songswhich I’d finished around the sameperiod and had intended to put outon that record. There are two originalsongs and two remixes by AuntieFlow and Nick Woodmansey (akaEmanative), another Sussex native.I’m really excited about it. It’ssupposed to lead up to our gig at theVillage Underground in May, butobviously that’s not happening. So

plans are all over the place but I’mstill excited about the music that’sgoing to come out in June.”

Do you have any future plans, forwhen things improve?“I have. We’re going to see how itplays out, but I think a lot of the gigswe were supposed to do on our tourin May, hopefully will happen later inthe year. September or October iswhen we’re now hoping to do thosegigs, but we’ll see. I’m just spendingthis time working on a new album.I’m trying to take it positively andspend two months in the studio andjust write, write, write. That’s prettymuch it.”

https://www.sarathykorwar.com

course of being 24 to about 26, Iwas doing my masters at the Schoolof Oriental and African Studies(SOAS) in London and I was giventhe time and space andencouragement to really do my ownthing. So that really pushed metowards developing my own voice.That’s where it began for me in somesense, and then onwards really.”

Sarathy released his debutalbum, Day to Day, in 2016 whichwas recorded with support from theSteve Reid Foundation. The successof this album was followed by therecording of a live album at Churchof Sound, entitled My East Is YourWest with UPAJ Collective, a group ofjazz and Indian classical musicians.

You were quite involved with TotalRefreshment Centre in Dalston. Doyou still have a connection to it?“In a sense, the golden age is over. Itwas really in its peak in 2017-19when there was somethinghappening every night, and theweekends especially. In the daytimethere were all these people there inthe main room. It was such anamazing place to just be there. Iwould just go because there’d alwaysbe people there, just hanging out,making music together and chatting.It really was a community-led space,but also pivotal for the London jazzmovement because so many of theirgigs were being programmed at TRC.There would always be something onand you trust their curation to knowthat something will be really good. Itbecame a real hub. Unfortunately, thespace is closed down as aperformance venue now, so it’s lost alot of its edge, I feel. It’s still awonderful place and there’s lovelypeople there. I miss it from what itwas, two years ago.”

Tell us your feelings about howIndian musicians have beenrepresented in ‘spiritual jazz’ in thepast.“I think it’s a very sensitive topicbecause a lot of jazzers get veryangry at me for saying this stuff. Butthe thing is, one must remember thatI love this music as well. I love AliceColtrane, Don Cherry and PharaohSanders and all these people, thespiritual jazz guys. But I always didfind the music problematic andunsettling as well, primarily becauseof their use of Indian instrumentsand Indian sounds in their ownmusic. Whether it’s a product of theirtime or not, the fact is that you hearsome badly played tabla or an out-of-tune sitar on some of theserecordings and that was the onlyaccess to Indian music that a lot ofpeople had back in the day. So if youthen think that Indian music is justbadly played sitar on a JoeHenderson record, for example, thenthat would be what you think Indianmusic is. That’s always been myissue with it. If you’re going torepresent something, then representit well. With the whole kind of revivalof spiritual jazz in maybe the lastdecade, it was something that noone was talking about. None of mypeers, none of the people in theindustry. I brought this up and thenthought, well, if no one else is feelingit and I’m feeling it then I shouldreally at least talk about it, out in theopen. That’s really all it was. Our ideato play those songs, in my mind, wasto say ‘look, this is what the fusion ofstyles is going to sound like in 2020or whenever’. This is what it shouldsound like and also equal parts offive Indian classical musicians andfive jazz musicians, so that it’s notseen as tokenistic in any way, and it’s

Photo:DanMedhurst

12 SJM May 2020

Ela Southgate

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Vocalist Ela Southgate spoke to Jim Burlong ahead of her concert ‘Ela

With Strings’ at the [now postponed] Brighton Fringe Festival.

How did you get into music tostart with?My family was very musical, mymum was a teacher but could havepursued dancing as a career. Shedabbled in playing double basswhen I was young and my Dad wasa professional jazz pianist, so Igrew up listening to him play athome and out on local gigs inNorth London. I first came toBrighton to study a degree coursein both fine art and music. Afterthat I worked doing graphic designfor a few years and it just sohappened that the guitarist JohnHarris was my boss there. He did aweekly trio gig with Jeff Howlettand Keith Baxter in MrsFitzherberts pub. They were mostencouraging and I often sat in, later

becoming a regular fixture withthem. I then became more focusedon jazz and enrolled to study pianoat the Chichester jazz course in2003 when it was run by AdrianKendon. It was a fantastic start onthe road to becoming a morerounded musician. It’s one of ‘thebeauties of jazz’ that there'salways more to learn. I gave up theday job and have been a full-timemusician for around ten years now.

Which other vocalists have youmost been influenced by?There are so many that I love andhave taken influence from, but atthe top I would say are Chet Baker,Ella Fitzgerald and João Gilberto. Iparticularly love the tone along withthe relaxed delivery of João. I like

to listen to how these and othergreats phrase the original melody,then change and play with it, andof course how they scat. I haveonly started scatting relativelyrecently myself and actuallycompose a lot of my own. Its along road learning how to do it andI have found writing them out is aroute in for me. I love transcribingChet and Ella's scats; I am alwaysimpressed by how in the pockettheir rhythms are, along with theaccuracy of pitch and the beauty oftheir melodic lines. I am just asmuch influenced byinstrumentalists. I transcribe morepiano and trumpet parts than I dovocalists. Some favourites of mineare Kenny Drew, Junior Mance,Bobby Hackett, Antonio CarlosJobim and Louis Armstrong.

What do you think about the jazzscene in Brighton generally?I think we have got a high standardof musicianship in Brighton. Maybethat's why we have a thriving scenehere. There's high quality music onsomewhere virtually every night ofthe week from The Hand In Hand,The Paris House and TheBrunswick, to name a few. We alsohave The Verdict, a dedicated jazzclub, in a relatively small city, whichis pretty special. Brighton hadsome residents from the earliergeneration of jazz, listening tothem felt like hearing the real thingand amazing luck to have heard inthe flesh, so beautiful and so in thepocket. In particular I am thinkingof trumpeter Jo Hunter and thesinger Joe Lee Wilson.

I know that you sing many songs

from the bossa nova era. Howimportant do you think that stylehas been to jazz over the years?Very important I would say.Growing up listening to my dadplay at home and at gigs, Iassumed bossa nova was justanother part of the jazz sound, likethe difference between a ballad anda swing number, another colour andvariation on a theme. It was notuntil later that I realised it was awhole genre from another countryand I started to listen to and lovethe original recordings of the greatBrazilian composers. The bossanova composers like Jobim were sobrilliant at writing songs with jazzharmony and jazz melody that tome they make the perfect balancein a performance of jazz, swingand ballads. The jazz greats usedthem liberally on recordings and atconcerts, understanding how goodthe songs are for jazz sensibilityand how interesting the chordsequences can be to improvise on.Over the years I have seenaudience reactions to bossa novaand it seems the rhythm is soinfectious and somehow familiarthat it is really easy to connectwith, even for people who considerthemselves to be non- jazzers. It isan easy way in to listening to jazzharmony.

Tell us about the ‘Ela With Strings’project, how you decided upon itand who your supportingmusicians will be.The title just popped into my headone morning when I woke up! Mypartner, guitarist Matt Wall, haswritten various arrangements that Ihave really loved over the years.

Photo:LisaWormsley

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Quite a few have been for theThree Little Birds vocal harmonygroup I am part of with SaraOschlag and Rachel Simpson.Others are just for fun or for largerjazz ensembles with horns, so Ithought he might enjoy or bepersuaded to write some for ourtrio with trombonist Tim Wade plusa string quartet. I imagined wemight do one ortwo and makevideos for them aswe have withother of hisarrangements (aChristmas onewith the late JoHunter being oneof my favourites).Matt and I werechatting about itwith Tim, andthings snowballed.We thought itneeded bass anddrums, and as Timwas alreadyputting on a showat the fringe calledSpeakeasy Revival,he said why don't we do a wholeconcert too. We decided to go forit! I thought the title works on alllevels, maybe the jazzers would getthe reference to Charlie Parker withstrings, although our arrangementsare very modest in comparison,writing for a quartet rather than anorchestra. Non-jazzers and peoplewho do not know me might knowthe name Ella as a jazz name andfind the thought of something jazzywith strings appealing too. Our fullline-up has now been confirmed asmyself on vocals with Tim Wade

(trombone), Matt Wall (guitar),Terry Pack (bass) and Sam Glasson(drums), along with a string sectioncomprising Charlotte Glasson andSheraine Lynsdale-Knock (violins),Bimbi Urquart (viola) and Jo Giddey(cello).

Let us know some of the songspeople will hear on the night.

I think pretty muchall the songs arethose we pickedfor theirinterestingharmony, withsome lesserknown ones suchas The Night WeCalled it A Day byMattDennis, Garden InThe Rain by CarrollGibbons, plusmore familiar onessuch as SomeoneTo Watch OverMe by theGershwins. I ampleased that Mattis also going to

debut some of his originalcompositions and we also havesome interesting bossas in theconcert, such as Adeus by EduLobo and O Grande Amor by Jobim.

Ela With Strings

Ela With Strings will take take placeat The Friends Meeting House,Ship Street, Brighton as part of there-scheduled Brighton FringeFestival in September or October.

www.elasouthgate.co.uk

When I first heard about C19, Ithink I was fairly typical and crap inmy response to it all. Ashamedlydismissive, like ‘oh, that'shappening over there’, skimmed itover and continued about my day.It wasn't until members of ourteam, who have family over in Italy,started stressing their concerns,that I really started to sit up andlisten. I watched the newseveryday, limited the number ofcustomers allowed on the premises(which is hard in a pub as tiny asThe Hand in Hand) and took cardpayments only, along with lashingsof homemade antibac gel, as itwas completely sold out acrosstown. I had staff members in tears

upstairs, scared about the virus,their family and friends, how bigplans were being cancelled leftright and centre, what life wasgoing to be like, how long is thisgoing to last? All I could say wasthat it was going to be alright, andwe would get through it. Tensionsrose when the government advisedthe public to not go to pubs andrestaurants, yet we had to stayopen. I really felt like I was puttingmy staff and regulars at risk, but Ifelt forced to remain open in somecapacity in order to keep someincome coming in to pay them all.Like the Titanic sinking and wewere the orchestra playing. Thatweek was horrendous. When

Photo:LisaWormsley

Photo:LisaWormsley

Lockdown DiariesJennifer Left

SJM May 2020 1716 SJM May 2020

Friday 21st March came and Ilistened to the daily C19government update, Johnsonannounced the closure of pubs. Ididn't wait until the end of service.It was 5.20pm, I got up, walkedupstairs to the pub kitchen andcried. I cried with relief, as I had feltI was putting people I love at risk,cried because I’ve never known thepub to shut dating back to 1850,and cried because I was tired, likea super deep ancient tirednessfrom holding things up constantlyover the past 5 years. I dried myeyes, took a deep breath, walkedback downstairs, gave everyone adrink on the house and at 5.30pmshut the doors. Letting them outone by one as they finished theirlast sup. I drank with very closefriends and my husband until thesun came up. Then I slept for aweek.

Straight off the bat, I wasoffered financial support fromfriends' savings in order to pay thebills and keep staff afloat. I hadn'tasked for any financial help, thiswas honest acts of kindness frompeople who know us and knowhow important the pub is to thecommunity. The Hand in Hand is somuch more than ‘just a pub’. Thatreally, really blew me away. The factthat people from all over thecountry were looking past theirown circumstances, and one of thefirst things that sprung to mind wasThe Hand in Hand down inBrighton. That's how special thisplace is, folk carry The Hand inHand in their hearts. I turned downthe kind offers as I knewgovernment help would be on itsway. We cleaned everything and

slowly worked through a to do list.Regulars would stop by and sayhello through the window. I thinkwe all thought, 3 weeks and we'llall be playing out again. I don'tknow why. Why did we think ‘itwould just go away’. Like a blip ora phase?

Three weeks came and wentthrough a fog of booze, Zoomhangouts, and Tiger King. I madelittle cheer-up parcels for staff, sentplaylists and bits to try and keepconnected and our spirits high,they are family to us. Even thoughthe pub is closed, I open thecurtains everyday and open thedoor in case regulars pass by andwe chat from a safe distance. I satfor a bit and waited. Pacing aroundin my head, slowly realising thatCovid isn't going to disappear,there isn't an end. The doors aren'tgoing to suddenly open andeveryone will come flooding backin. Covid is here now and life isgoing to be a different version for awhile, until we can collectivelymake our environment safe for eachother once again. That is going totake time, and I can't sit herewaiting, I need to adapt to this newworld we have found ourselves in.

I think as humans, we likeroutine. So everyday I walk acrossfrom the cottage, make coffee,open the curtains and sit down andstart planning. We are opening abeer hatch and I am starting up acourier service for our beer to bedelivered to your door by a familiarface. It's important to keep in touchwith our regulars, from a safedistance, so being the one todeliver the beer to their doorstep

and not a third party, is importantfor both sides. I know that thiswon't be the case forever, and weall will meet again, so I am beingpatient and getting used to theidea of things being different for awhile.

I often daydream about the pubbeing busy. I look around andimagine everyone laughing andsinging. I feel bad about the timesI've been grumpy and complainedabout being tired. I miss them allso much. I feel confident about thefuture as we are checking in witheach other more and really mean itwhen we ask each other ‘are youok? Can I help you in any way?’ Ireally want to hug people so badly.I want to drink wine and godancing with my friends. It is goingto be so beautiful when that

happens again. Someone said tome the other day that they realiseda pub wasn't just somewhere to goand get drunk. Pubs and thehospitality industry are importantfor social interaction and a senseof community. What's the point inworking your ass off day in andday out, if you don't have thereward of music, art, beautiful foodand drink to share with friends andfamily. We're out of balance, butwe'll find it again and I'm confidentthat we will slowly and safely findourselves back to one another.Hopefully with a betterunderstanding and considerationfor the world and the environmentwe live in.

Jennifer Left owns and runs TheHand In Hand pub in Kemptown,Brighton.

Photo:LisaWormsley

18 SJM May 2020

Big Band Scene

Patrick Billingham

In case you hadn’t heard, theBrighton Festival 2020, due to takeplace this month, has been cancelled.Which is irrevelant to the big bandscene. At the moment, the Fringe,which is revelant, has beenpostponed until the Autumn,including, hopefully, the big bandevents therein.

There is some talk about a partiallifting of lockdown in the next fewweeks, to prevent total economiccollapse. I suspect that pubs,restaurants and places ofentertainment are near the bottom ofthe list for a gradual resumption ofactivity. I hope I am wrong.

We are losing a local big bandstalwart. Worthing based drummerDerek Roberts, is moving to Scotlandto join his daughter and her family.

He has been active in the localbig band scene since moving to

Sussex in 2006. He spent 13 yearswith the Milestone Big Band, formerlythe Charlwood Big Band, based justacross the county border in Surrey,but which ventured into Sussex forthe occasional gig. While deppingwith the Sussex Jazz Orchestra in thelate 2000s, he met bandleader LesPaul. Les was about to lose hisdrummer from his eponymous bigband and invited Derek to join him.Where he stayed for a decade or so,until his recent resignation.

Other local big bands, in thecounty and across the border,privileged to have Derek in the drumchair include The Kingswood MondayBand, the Conchord Big Band, theSomethin’ Else Big Band fromGuildford, Mike Bosley’s big bandfrom Bognor, the Sidewinder BigBand and the Ron Green Big Band,both from Cranleigh, the Studio 9Orchestra, Sounds of Swing, Happy

SJM May 2020 19

Days Big Band, the Fred Woods BigBand, the Legionnaires, andSwingshift.

All being well, this is not apermanent loss. Derek is leaving a kitdown here, and hopes to drop infrom time to time.

Some very sad news. Talentedmulti-instrumentalist Jerry Deardenhas died. I first met him when hejoined the trombone section of theSussex Jazz Orchestra. Later heenjoyed a brief return as a memberof the rhythm section where hisspectacular bass playing was greatlyappreciated. He had a longassociation with the Paul Busby BigBand, later The One World Orchestra,in which he ended up on guitar.Local big band enthusiasts with longmemories will recall his trumpeterfather Max, who ran the MaxDearden Big Band for many years

until his retirement in the late 1980s.If anyone has particular fondmemories of Jerry, please let meknow and I will attempt to includethem in next month’s column.

Next month: Possibly some newsand probably some views. If youwould like your band featured, and Ihave not already contacted you,please get in touch. Or if there is anyother information, perhaps aboutwhat various bands are planningduring lockdown, or feedback on thiscolumn, that you would like me toinclude in June’s Big Band Scene,please send it to me by Tuesday12th May. My email address isg8aac@yahoo.co.uk.

Photo:PatrickBillingham

Words... Agnes Keplinger I was born in Linz in Austria. When Iwas 8 years old we moved to a smallvillage by a lake, it is a beautiful place withcrystal clear water, surrounded bymountains, fields and farms.

Up until the age of 6 (when we startprimary school in Austria) I was at homewith my mum, I didn’t go to kindergarten.Once a week I went to a Carl Orffplaygroup, which was a kind of earlymusical education. Then I started cellolessons.

My mum is a professional musician.She studied concert organ, at the sameconservatoire I went to later. She was keento practise with us on a daily basis. Mydad, who was an architect, has alwaysbeen a classical music lover.

My mum used to make clothes for usand herself when we were little. We lookedquite different to other kids, but I lovelooking back on it now.

The one event that influenced the wayI grew up the most must have been ourmove to the countryside. For me it meantfreedom, and I spent lots of time outdoors.

From about 12 years onwards I wasproperly obsessed with horses. Me and mybest friend went to a small farm almost ona daily basis, where we were looking after‘our’ horses (we didn’t own them, but thefarmer literally let us do whatever wewanted with them), and also generallyhelped at the farm.

My last school was probably the mostinfluential. There is only one‘Musikgymnasium’ in each region ofAustria, so students from around thecountry come together. We finished schoolevery day between 12 and 1pm, to give ustime for practising our instruments.

In 2005 I came to Brighton to study,and basically never left. My housemate whoplayed the violin (I still live in this amazinghouse, which has seen so many jamsessions and music parties over theyears!!) convinced me to join Brighton JazzSchool. I met so many amazing people anddeveloped long lasting friendships.

I started to really enjoy practising, asnow it seemed my practice had becomemore varied, and there was more to it thanjust learning how to play somethingperfectly.

I have been a support worker for many

years. One of my jobs is in a day centrewith people with physical disabilities,learning disabilities and challengingbehaviours. I have also worked as a jobcoach, supporting people with learningdifficulties into paid work, and mostrecently started working as a teachingassistant at a special needs school. At theday centre we do a lot of art and music,and we have a theatre group whichperformed as part of the Fringe Festivaltwice.

Brighton has an amazing musicalcommunity. We are so lucky, it has providedme and my boyfriend with lots ofopportunities to further our music careers. Inow make a good part of my living frommusic.

Being at the conservatoire there wasso many people that were better than me.Back then, part of me thought if I couldn’tbe the best, what would be the point ofpursuing a career in it. Now I know that thisis nonsense. We all have our own uniquepaths in life, and as soon as we let go ofthis kind of thinking we make way for goodthings to happen.

I am always excited about the future. Ihave always been a dreamer and lovemaking plans. I just need to be careful Idon’t spend more time planning thanexecuting what I am working on. I find ithard to get things started sometimes. I canget intimidated by things that are new, andI need to learn to move on, so I don’t stickwith the same things for too long.

It is the technical challenges that Ihave had to overcome, and I still have along way to go. But now I appreciate andenjoy the aspect that you never stoplearning, instead of beating myself up overthings I am not good at.

I am proud that I have managed to findthe things I care and feel passionate about,and am excited to have some musicalprojects and collaborations planned. I wantto carry on developing my playing(classical and jazz) and my teaching.

Words: Agnes KeplingerPhoto: Lisa Wormsley

Hear Agnes perform with Pilar Onares onMagical Moments here.

22 SJM May 2020

British Embassy Live Sessions:Daniel Casimir & Tess Hirst + Theon

CrossIn association with Jazz Re:freshedWednesday 18th March, 2020

For many of us the return ofspring is an exciting time, wheneveryone, musician and audiencealike come fully out of hibernation topack out the rooms of multiplevenues hosting gigs and late nightjam sessions. However, the realitythat has come to light from thisoutbreak crisis is a different one towhat most expected, with theatmosphere in a tense knot ofunpredictability and isolation. Thishas had a huge knock-on effect forthe live music industry withperforming artists left with emptycalendars and heavy hearts.Thankfully with the help of a fewforward thinking and tech savvyindividuals at hand, artists have stillbeen able to bring their shows andmessages to the homes of theiraudiences via live internet streaming.This was seen in full swing at thismonth’s British Embassy Sessionsfeaturing strong performances frompowerhouse duo bassist DanielCasimir and vocalist Tess Hirst andan intense energetic set from tubatitan, Theon Cross. Hirst and Casimir

were first to the stage, bringing withthem their own brand of UK neo-souljazz, and a killer band to bring it tolife. Performing a set of tunes fromtheir latest release These Days, whichwas released in the winter of lastyear, each song a statement on thecurrent times and the changesappearing on the streets of London.Through tunes like What Did I Do?where Hirst gently utters the phrase“Nothing real happens in Dalstonanymore”, a lament at how things sofamiliar and close to you can sosuddenly change in this big city.Backing the aforementionedbandleaders we found the familiarfaces of Binker Golding and ChelseaCarmichael, both on tenor sax andboth creating some fantastic interplayalong with a solid rhythm sectionconsisting of Toby Carpenter onguitar and Olly Sarkar on drums.

Next up was a fiery set fromTheon Cross. The London tuba playerand composer quickly shot tostardom with the release of his debutalbum Fyah, as well as his playingwith renowned jazz outfit Sons ofKemet. Known for his intense playingand rich full-on sound, Cross’scompositions are rife with heavypulsating riffs and infectious grooves.The highlight track of the set had tobe Radiation, built around a chest-thumping bassline dragging hard ona straight up and persistent drumbeat, almost as if Rage Against TheMachine had abandoned their guitarsfor brass. Drums were as intense andrelentless as the bass grooves, whilethe gritty guitar work added moresparks to the fyah! Nathaniel Crossstepped up to deliver a solo of pureconviction in the last section as thetune drew to a close. After a few

Live Stream Reviews

SJM May 2020 23

gentle words of gratitude and wellwishing on our current crisis, thebandleader turns to strike up thetune that brings this blazing set to aclose. With the soul-packedperformance of Hirst and Casimirnext to the hypnotic and intensesounds of Theon Cross, the BritishEmbassy Session was a success!Even in this unfortunate time, artistsare still able to put out their messageand continue as a source of hope formany.

George Richardson

Live Supreme: Fergus McCreadie +Rob Luft & Elena Duni + Georgia

CécilePresented by Love Supreme Festival

via IG LiveWednesday April 1st, 2020

Love Supreme are refusing to becrushed by the cruel April Fool’s trickthat has confined us all to voluntary

house arrest, and have moved theirSupreme Standards programme intothe freedom of the digital realm viaIG Live. This delivers us into a cornerof Fergus McCreadie’s living room:the performance conventions oflivestream gig etiquette are stillevolving but Fergus manages to giveus an unaffectedly warm welcome tocamera and launches into Ardbegfrom his debut album. The exigenciesof the moment have deprived Fergusof his band and relegated him to anelectronic keyboard but heovercomes both these restrictions:the celtic tonality of the melodybuilds naturally into a series ofrippling arpeggios delivered with avery precise time and articulation,rising and falling like a Scottishlandscape. Fergus has a nice line inrelaxed candid chat, reacting to thelive comments drifting up the screenbefore treating us to his as yetunreleased composition AcrossFlatlands which uses a similarly staticharmonic base to create animpressionistic colour piece,affording ample opportunity for animpressive display of two handedindependence, speed and precision.Mull is a romantic rubato ballad wellsuited for the occasion and thecommitment and emotional intensitysurvives the journey across the 4Gnetwork to sound genuinely affecting.

Rob Luft is quarantined with hispedalboard and his partner ElenaDuni, and together they break into anoriginal arrangement of a traditionalAlbanian song. Elena’s voice soars inplaintive melody over Rob’s precise,rhythmically intricate accompaniment:he uses his loop pedal to add chordsand counterpoint, and his clean toneand precise articulation mean thatevery part is clear and distinct. Nextthere’s an original co-composition, a

24 SJM May 2020

folk-tinged ballad with Elena’s voiceclear and emotionally resonant: Robdelivers a superb solo, using hiseffects to conjure up a giant reverband magically appearing volumeswell chords. There’s anotherAlbanian tune, perfectly suited toRob’s ingenious multi-part voicings:his use of eastern-soundingornamentation echoes Elena’s vocalinflections without sounding trite orsuperficial, and his tapping techniquecreates a verdant forest of notesaround Elena’s direct, emotional butunsentimental delivery. SergeGainsbourg’s Couleur Café gets abouncy Caribbean flavoured readingthat makes a perfect session sign off.There’s a real match with McCreadie,both in the exploration of folktraditions and in the mix of emotionaldirectness and precise delivery.

Let’s hope that Georgia Cécilehas music-loving, appreciativeneighbours, as the power of herunamplified voice must be rattling thewindows as it rises to a climacticheld note on her original Heartbeaks.Sensitively accompanied by her

pianist partner, who also contributessome nicely judged solos, she turnsin a bravura performance ofstandards and originals, undauntedby the artificiality of the situation.Come Summertime swings like theclappers, her stream-of-consciousness original is genuinelymoving, and her finale on BillyTaylor’s I Wish I Knew How It WouldFeel To Be Free is as heartfelt as it isapposite. It’s a fitting end to the mini-gig series.

Love Supreme chose theInstagram Live feature to broadcastthis evening’s performances. Whilethe platform allows each video tostay up for 24 hours, its time-restricted format and interactivefacility does convey the immediacyof the performance quite well.However, it’s only available on mobiledevices, which means that we’restuck on vertical mode (much to theannoyance of one gentleman in theaudience who sends out a series ofincreasingly tetchy demands forlandscape format, before quitting),and perhaps accounts for whatseems like a low audience take-up,given the popularity of Love Supremeand the superb quality of theperformances delivered tonight. Thelivestream is an evolving form andlessons are being learned.

Eddie Myer

Live at The Lescar: Sam LeakPresented by The Lescar, Sheffield,

via Facebook LiveFriday April 3rd, 2020

As we enter the third week oflockdown, the imperative ‘adapt tosurvive’ has never seemed as urgent.

SJM May 2020 25

While musicians and audiences areexploring the affordances of variouslivestream platforms to satisfy theircollective yen for live performance,what will become of the precariouscommunity of venues who provide anetwork of jazz-friendly oases acrossthe UK? Without the enthusiasm anddedication of local promoters andthe indulgence of sympatheticlandlords there won’t be much of alive circuit to return to onceconditions return to some version ofwhat we used to call normality: howcan they migrate to the digital worldas a survival strategy?

Sheffield’s Jazz At The Lescar isjust such an enterprise, and tonightthey’re presenting us with a possiblesolution. They’ve joined forces withhighly-rated young pianist Sam Leakto bring us a solo recital from Sam’spersonal isolation in his living room,but streamed via a Facebooklivestream event set up by the Lescar,promoted to its regular patrons (butavailable to everyone) and accessedafter paying an ‘entry fee’ to theLescar itself. There’s a pre-recordedwelcome from promoter JezMatthews, and even a post-gig raffleto replicate the irl experience asclosely as possible.

Sam appears on the event pagepunctually at 8pm, seated at thepiano in front of a set of fairy lightsartfully deployed to provide a senseof occasion. The wide-ranging set

demonstrates his adventurous genre-crossing musical sensibility, with asurprise at every turn and no sourceof inspiration off-limits: a chimingright hand figure, hovering above aset of plangent descending chords,resolves into a reading of TheVerve’s Bittersweet Symphony, whichthen mutates via a thunderoustremolo into a ballad rendition of TheKinks’ Waterloo Sunset. Leak’s starkharmonies eschew any hint ofmuzak-y sentimentality, and thesong’s mournful cadences make forperfect isolation listening. There’s apensive Ingrid Laubrock inspireddeconstruction of the jam sessionfavourite Beatrice, which leadsnaturally into a direct tribute to JohnTaylor via one of the master’scompositions, with the harmonyslowly shifting and blurring intochords like massed clouds driftingoverhead. By contrast the venerablestandard How About You gets asprightly swinging outing, with fluidsingle note lines bouncing off alattice of finely meshed left handfigures, and Berkshire Blues swingsjust as hard in a joyous interpretationfull of melody. There’s a reworking ofBritten via Jeff Buckley that seguesnaturally into a Meldhau tune, and anoriginal by Sam - an un-namedTayloresque musing that developsover a lilting ostinato then breaksdown into an impressionistic fog ofharmonic shading. If I Should LoseYou is a perfect finale, balancedbetween a hopeful swing and abittersweet melancholy. Theexperiment is an artistic success -let’s hope it points the way to acommercial one as well.

Eddie Myer

26 SJM May 2020

Your latest album, Live in Arklow,how did it come about?Darren Beckett and I played manytimes in New York in the late 1990s.We sort of lost touch as Darrenstarted doing more touring gigs withvarious rock groups. I reconnectedwith him in late 2018; Darren wastraveling and he happened to be inPortland, Oregon, where I currentlylive. Darren reached out and wediscussed trying to play again in thefuture. He was able to organize a triotour of Ireland and the U.K. in 2019.I, Darren, and bassist Dave Redmondhad an instant chemistry. Every nightwas fantastic, but the night at thechurch in Arklow was especiallyamazing in terms of everything beingright: the audience, the piano, thesound of the room, the interaction.We are lucky that it was captured,and hopefully we will reschedule ouralbum release tour.

Tell us about the musicians on thealbum.As I said, Darren Beckett and I hadsome great gigs and recordings inthe late 90s. We were both on theNew York scene when it wasextremely vibrant. We always had agreat rhythmic connection; in fact wehad a trio with bassist Doug Weissfor a brief time. We recorded as a trioa few times for Steeplechase,including a trio record called Agent

Album Q&A: George Colligan99. It was uncanny that after notplaying much for almost 20 years,Darren and I sort of musically pickedup right where we left off.I had never met Dave Redmondbefore the tour, but he has surelybecome one of my favorite bassists.He's a great guy and extremely easyto work with. He plays the bass on ahigh level, but firstly a team player,which is crucial for a jazz trio. It's agreat combination of musicians andI'm looking forward to moreperformances soon.

How have you been coping with thelockdown?It's a very surreal situation. I'm moreworried about the lack of federalleadership in my country than theactual pandemic. The state ofOregon seems as though it has notbeen hit as hard as some other partsof the U.S. I'm hoping it stays thatway and we can flatten the curve. Iteach at Portland State University andall of our classes are being taughtonline for the rest of the school year.Not only was our album release tourcancelled, but essentially all of myperformances from mid-Marchthrough April and possibly May areall cancelled. It's very troublesome interms of, when hopefully thingsreturn to normal, whether there willbe a jazz scene in the foreseeablefuture. We already have few true jazzvenues in Portland and I am hopingthat those venues will be able tocome roaring back. At the very least,my hope is that with this forcedisolation, the aftermath will makepeople realize how special live musiccan be and to not take anything forgranted.

SJM May 2020 27

George Colligan TrioLive In Arklow

(Ubuntu UBU0055CD)

Colligan has gained a formidablereputation as a toughly virtuosic all-rounder who’s equally at homeplaying funk, free or at the cuttingtwisty-composition edge of thecontemporary mainstream. What setshim apart in particular is his ability toswing, and swing hard - a facility thatplaces him in the lineage not only ofpost-Herbie Hancock and Jarrettimpressionists but also of laterinterpreters of the legacy of WyntonKelly and Sonny Clark, like MulgrewMiller, Benny Green and John Hicks.It’s this latter side that is triumphantlybrought to the fore in this super-vibey set of live recordings from therecent Bray Jazz Festival. The livesound from the Arklow MethodistChurch is detailed and punchy butfree of studio sheen and enlivenedwith a very natural sounding reverbthat conjures up some of the raw,unvarnished directness of classicsides from the 1950s, and the trio’senergy and empathy simply burstsout of the speakers. Opener UpJumped Spring crackles with hot,

swinging ideas from the inexhaustibleColligan, while the rhythm team drivehim ever onwards. Darren Beckett’sdrums sound enormous, all the betterto capture the energy of hisexplosive trades on Spring, while hissnare backbeat drives the funk-rockLost On Fourth Avenue to stadiumlevels of intensity. Again With Attitudedials in some crashing McCoy Tynerleft hand for added drama, and DaveRedmond impresses with the fluencyand accuracy of his solo statement,while Beckett gets an opportunity toset off further fireworks of his own.What Is This Thing Called Love isrefreshed by an unexpected balladinterpretation; The Influence Of Jazzis a high-intensity latin romp; andcloser Usain captures the headlongrushing speed and focus of itseponymous athletic hero withRedmond solid as a rock and Beckettdropping bombs aplenty. There’s anabundance of inspired playing on thisalbum but at the same time it feelslike there’s never a wasted note, soin tune are the trio with each other,and so undeniable is their collectiveenergy. A ton of fun.

Eddie Myer

Album Review

28 SJM May 2020

Album Q&A: Tom GreenYou’ve composed and arranged for lotsof different line ups, what do you likemost about the septet?I grew up playing in big bands andchamber groups as many trombonists willhave done, so I think I've always beendrawn to the sound of harmonies playedby a horn section. The septet containsthe core elements of a big band (oneinstrument from each section) and is stillmanageable to organise and to tour -although obviously touring isunfortunately on hold for the moment. Asa composer writing for four horns means Ican play with counterpoint, exploredifferent harmonic ideas within the hornsection or even have them playing ontheir own with no rhythm section. Ithopefully makes a varied record, asindividual soloists can be featured ondifferent tracks and I can create a hugevariety of different moods and soundsthan would be possible with a quartet forexample.

Does it help to write for people thatyou know and perform with regularly?Absolutely - in fact, although I put theband together during the time I wasstudying at the Royal Academy for amasters degree, some of the connectionsgo back much further than that. JamesDavison (trumpet) and I grew up playingjazz together in Cambridge and oftensnuck into local pubs while we wereteenagers to go to jam sessions. I metMisha Mullov-Abbado(bass) at universitywhere we played in big bands togetherbefore I even started doing anycomposing, and Tommy Andrews (alto)and Sam James (piano) I met throughother connections on the London scene,even though they weren't studying at theAcademy. I love writing for people I know- for example the track Jack O'Lantern Ialways knew would be a tenor feature forSam Miles as he has such a beautifulsound and melodic way of playing, andthat track's folky style suits him perfectly.I enjoy writing in odd time signatures andI know Scott Chapman (drums) is always

up for the challenge - the trackChampagne Sky has a particularly trickydrum solo section that he makes soundincredibly musical. I'm also lucky thatJames Davison can play more of a leadtrumpet role when required - check outthe end of Seatoller!

Do you have a favourite track on thealbum that means a lot to you?The composition I'm most proud of isprobably Between Now and Never, whichis the only ballad on the album and afeature for Sam James at the piano. I wasgoing through some challenges in mypersonal life at the time I wrote it - Idistinctly remember being away fromhome, I had a few hours in a crampedroom with a terrible sounding digitalpiano and the piece just flowed veryorganically from how I was feeling. Theprocess of composing really brought mesome peace at that time, and listening toit now makes me appreciate theimportance of having hope and takingpositive action when addressingindividual and global challenges, themesthat run through the whole album. Thesheet music also fits on only one piece ofA4 whereas some of my tunes require 10pages or more - simplicity is often best!

The only cover on the album is by JoniMitchell. What do you like most abouther compositions?I love folk music and Joni's writing andplaying often bridges the gap betweenfolk and jazz. Everything about herrecordings is unique - her singing isunassuming and carefree and her lyricsare really inventive. The harmonicprogression in the bridge of My Old Manis so unusual I had to do an arrangementof it for the septet. Joni has always hadstrong connections to jazz - her lastalbum Travelogue features Wayne Shorter,Herbie Hancock, Kenny Wheeler andBrian Blade alongside amazingarrangements by Vince Mendoza forexample - you can't get a much betterlineup than that!

SJM May 2020 29

Album Review

Tom Green SeptetTipping Point(Spark!)

Trombonist Tom Green has beenexerting a wholesome influence for thegood on the UK jazz scene for someyears now: as well as creatingemployment opportunities for his fellowyoung jazz artists by pursuing a busyschedule as bandleader and arranger,he’s joint boss of the Spark! label whosemission statement is “to supportemerging jazz and creative music artists”;this is the second release for his ownseptet, with a line-up populated by animpressive array of bandleaders,composers and performers and fellowRoyal Academy graduates who are alsopersonal friends; and 20% of proceedsare to go to various charities dedicatedto restoring the forests across the world.However, this isn’t an academic exercisein worthiness or an exhibition display ofchops: the band is as tight, responsiveand accomplished as you might expect,but the album derives its power andcharacter from the quality of thecompositions, all written by Green (apartfrom an imaginative expansion on JoniMitchell’s My Old Man) and evidencing athorough command of the band’sresources, a sure feel for melody and areal breadth of emotional engagement.The contrapuntal voices and big brassychords of Kaleidoscope demonstrate how

Green makes the most out of the four-horn line-up to create a breadth oftextures that imply a much larger line-up;all the soloists excel, from TommyAndrews’ cuttingly bittersweet alto onTipping Point, to Sam Miles’ tenorworkout on Jack O’Lantern, while therhythm team revel in the challenges ofthe material and audibly delight in beingas precise or flamboyant as the occasiondemands - check drummer Chapman’sworkout on the end of the phrygian GilEvans flavoured Kaleidoscope. Green’strombone is full-toned and nimble, sittingnicely alongside Mullov-Abbado’s equallyprecise and athletic bass, and pianistSam James fills out the arrangementsadroitly and impresses with his dynamicsensitivity on features like ChampagneSky - his trades with Mullov-Abaddo onJack O’Lantern are a delight. There’s animpressive attention to detail in thearrangements but they flow very naturallyand never sound fussy or cluttered, andthe sense of comradeship and benigngood intentions comes across veryclearly even in the complexity of JackO’Lantern which still retains an almostfolkloric melodicism. Uplifting music forthese trying times.

Eddie Myer

30 SJM May 2020

Album Q&A: Alex HitchcockYour new album features two tenors,yourself and Tom Barford. How wouldyou characterise your musicalrelationship?I don’t really know how it’s happenedthat we’ve ended up quite different asplayers, given that we share a lot of thesame influences. I think our approachesto improvisation complement each otherwell, which is important in a band that is50% saxophone! I think in order for thealbum to be listenable beyond quite anarrow group of hardcore sax enthusiastswe’ve had to think quite hard about theroles we’re playing in relation to eachother, and to allow space for each of themusical personalities to come throughstrongly in the music. I honestly thinkTom is up there with the world’s topimprovising saxophonists, so the wholeexperience of collaborating with him hasbeen great for my own playing.

How do you go about composing musicfor the group?We’ve tried a new approach where Tomand I will get together and recordourselves improvising duets, trying outideas and passing them between us.Then separately we’ll take our favouritebits from the recording and use them asa starting point for a new tune. Obviouslythe end product can be quite far awayfrom the initial improvised idea, but itmeans that whoever ends up finishing aparticular tune, they’ve all come from thatoriginal moment of spontaneouscollaborative composition. We’re trying toget to a unified sound where there’ssurprise and variety between tracks (and,hopefully, albums) but have a go atcreating our own sound world at thesame time…

How are you coping in the currentcircumstances, not being able to gigand tour?I’m trying to look at the positives wherepossible! I really miss playing with, andfor, other people but I’m enjoying havingmore time to practise for its own sake

and to work on things I’ve had parked forages. It’s a chance to take a step back,work out what’s next, and start writingfor projects that I want to make happenwhen normal life returns. Being ‘strategic’about my own career doesn’t comenaturally to me so it’s been a bit easier tothink in that way given a bit of properheadspace. The album with Tom is out atthe end of May and the challengessurrounding that are unique seeing aswe’re not able to tour it straight away,and therefore can’t promote the album inthe ‘normal’ way. People have alreadystarted to be very innovative through livestreaming and different types of digitalrelease – although I’m aware there’s acertain amount of debate about the bestway of doing that sustainably. Everyoneis trying to make the best of the situationin their own way, and I think that’s fairenough. It’s been a reminder of thestrength of the musical community we’relucky to have – people are being reallysupportive and encouraging of eachother. Financially I’m most worried aboutthe period between the end of lockdownand venues reopening, when largergatherings are allowed, as I can't seegovernment grants covering that time,and other funding organisations arealready stretched. The longer that periodis, the worse it will be, and I think thatapplies to a huge amount of creativefreelancers too – not just musicians.

How are you spending your days? Areyou in your pyjamas all day watchingNetflix?I’ve kind of allowed myself to do that atweekends, yeah! I’ve been keeping to apretty set routine during the week – Ihave no idea how long that’s going tolast but it’s been helpful so far, trying toget a balance between different bits soI’m not burning out (and drivingneighbours up the wall) by just doingone thing. I love getting to spend moretime at home with my girlfriend, I can’tbelieve how little we did that pre-coronavirus.

SJM May 2020 31

Album Review

AUBAUB

(Edition)

Twin tenorists Hitchcock and Barfordhave already established formidablereputations as up-and-coming saxophonehotshots: both combine a deepengagement with the jazz tradition withan awareness of cutting edgemanifestations, the comprehensivetechnique of post-Brecker stylists likeChris Potter and Seamus Blake, and theadventurous rhythmic conceptions of thecontemporary NYC players. Their voices,both as composers and performers, arevery well-matched - Barford has a littlemore edge and stridency to his tone butwhen they blend together as on theingeniously structured Valencia it’s hardto tell who’s playing what. This projecttoured as a kind of post-Coleman twin-horn free-bop outfit, but this studiooffering presents a far more developedvision. The writing is closely plotted toallow bursts of freedom within some verytight structures, and the textural palette isexpanded with harmoniser effects,distortion and washes of analogue synths- sometimes, as on Glitch all at once - tocreate a kind of very contemporaryfusion sound. All the tunes are aroundthe five minute mark and there’s not asingle wasted moment in the tight,punchy arrangements. Maddren andIreland tackle the challenging rhythmic

figures with tremendous gusto and stepforward to provide additional melodiccontent when required, as on thesonorous solo bass intro to Rufio;Maddren moves effortlessly betweenpunchy deep-toned snare rock groove,and subtle textural playing on Ice Manunder Ireland’s virtuosic explorations.Dual Reality has an extended twin-partwritten piece for both saxes that slowlypeels apart into freedom over a deepbass tone; Groundhog Day has the kindof polymetric flexibility pioneered byDave Holland’s various outfits over whichboth horns soar. This is a real gem of analbum with a distinctive sound of its own,an impressive attention to detail andsome red hot blowing to seal the deal.

Eddie Myer

Alex Hitchcock, tenor sax; TomBarford, tenor sax; Fergus Ireland,bass; James Maddren, drums.

32 SJM May 2020

Album Q&A: Rob LuftHow have you developed and whathave you learnt since your debutalbum?After Riser was released on EditionRecords in July 2017, I embarked on anationwide tour with my quintet in thewinter of 2018. This was an incredibleexperience for me, as it was the very firsttime that I took my original music on theroad. It was incredibly life-affirming tosee how well the music was received byaudiences across the board - young andold, in the big cities as well as in themore provincial smaller towns, and it wasalso really wonderful to seecomplementary reviews coming in fromcritics and jazz promoters too. Thispositive experience instilled within methe motivation to go further with mycompositional endeavours, and to godeeper in the exploration of the sound-world of my quintet. I feel as though I'vedeveloped an almost telepathicconnection with the members of myband, and when I compose for the guysthese days, I barely need to write anynotes on the manuscript paper anymore!They are always so ‘inside’ the music thatthey are seemingly able to make magicaltextures and grooves from minimalcompositional material. The new album ismore of a musical evolution than arevolution for me, in the sense that it isan attempt to develop the band soundthat we laid the foundations for on Riserback in 2017. The addition of ByronWallen's gorgeous trumpet playing andLuna Cohen's subtle backing vocals onthe title track and the closing track ExpectThe Unexpected both bring a new colourto the sound of the original quintet line-up, and I feel that they both bringsomething fresh to the music too.

What inspired the new album, Life IsThe Dancer?The inspiration for the title of my newalbum is a fascinating one. The phrase‘Life is the Dancer’ comes from a quoteby the American spiritualist Eckhart Tolle:"Life is the dancer and you are the

dance". The notion behind this particularphrase really captivated me, in the sensethat is saying that 'life lives you', ratherthan you live your own life. I really believethat this idea helps us all to simply gowith the vigorous flow of life and itsconstantly changing nature. It allows usto accept that the past is in our headsand that the future is very much in ourhands!

How are things going with livestreaming, rather than touring andgigging?The experience of doing live-streamingconcerts via YouTube, Facebook &Instagram Live formats has been a trulyfascinating one! Each of these platformshave their upsides and downsides, and ithas proved a real learning curve gettingused to this totally new medium ofdisseminating one's music. I reallyenjoyed doing a couple of Instagram Livevideos directly from my living room sofasimply using my iPhone in ‘selfie’orientation to record my performance.What is really fantastic with IG live is thatviewers can add their comments andsupport whilst you are actually playing,and as you finish each song you can takea moment to read their comments fromyour iPhone's screen before commencingthe next piece in your set. For me, thisresembles a jazz gig in some ways,because you actually receive directfeedback from your audience whilst youare playing, much like the rounds ofapplause that are often delivered at jazzconcerts after each musician takes a solo.Obviously, it goes without saying thatthere is no digital concert format will everbe able to replace that unmistakableeuphoria of a live jazz concert in the‘analogue’ world, but for now, theseplatforms are providing an incrediblyuseful tool for self-promotion.

SJM May 2020 33

Album Review

Rob LuftLife Is The Dancer(Edition EDN1152)

Rob’s last run of public appearanceswere with the very in-the-tradition organand tough tenor combo with DaveO’Higgins; this new release shines thespotlight back on his own eclecticversatility. While he’s chosen a crew oftop-drawer young jazz musicians to workwith on this programme of Luft originals,there’s a wide range of internationalinfluences at work, and the commonthread is a preoccupation with melodyand an eagerness to engage with themany folk and pop applications of hischosen instrument. In this respect thereare parallels with Julian Lage, with whomLuft also shares a delicate precision ofarticulation and a wonderfully accuraterhythmic sense. There are definite echoesof the hypnotic grooves of the WestAfrican guitar tradition in Life Is A Dancer(enhanced by Byron Wallen’s lush-tonedtrumpet), while Tanpura has a briefglimpse of the vocal glissando techniqueof South Asia, but Luft is too canny tosuccumb to the temptations of shallowmusical tourism, but rather incorporatesthe techniques into his own idiosyncraticfusion. Synesthesia is the closest we getto the language of twitchy contemporaryjazz, and even here it is tempered by

Luft’s accessible melodicism, echoed inJoe Webb’s wonderfully fluent solo. SadStars has a bucolic mid-western feel thatMetheny might appreciate, with JoeWright’s tenor sax mournfully delicate;Byron Wallen returns on the elegaicExpect The Unexpected along with LunaCohen’s evocative vocals, and makes abeautiful closer; while the infectiouslygrooving Berlin makes an irresistibleopening invitation, showing how carefullythis project has been put together formaximum listening pleasure. Luft onlycontinues to grow in stature as acomposer and performer and this latestoffering will delight his fans and shouldwiden his audience outside the jazzclubs and beyond.

Eddie Myer

Rob Luft, guitar; Joe Wright, tenorsaxophone; Joe Webb, Hammondorgan, piano; Tom McCredie, bass;Corrie Dick, drums.Guests: Byron Wallen, trumpet; LunaCohen, vocals (both on tracks 2 &10).

34 SJM May 2020

Congratulations on the new album, TheWomen Who Raised Me. It includes anumber of collaborations. Whatqualities do you look for in otherartists?I was so honored to collaborate with allof the guests on my album! I think themost important thing in a collaboration isthat the artists complement each otherwell. If they are too similar it’s lessinteresting. Also, you never want to feellike it’s one overshadowing the other.Space is a beautiful thing and there is noneed to fill up every space with ad libsetc. I was fortunate to have legends likeNorah Jones and Christian McBride onthis album so I was in awe of them. I’mso grateful...

What was it like, for example, recordingAngel Eyes with Norah Jones?Norah is one of my heroes and honestlyit was surreal having her on my album.But she is so down to earth! She makesyou feel like she is just hanging out andyou’ve known her forever. We actuallyhad met several times and it was lastyear that we ran into each other at theNashville airport in the ladies room! Weexchanged numbers and shortly after thatI asked her to duet with me on AngelEyes. She actually lived near the studiowe recorded at in Brooklyn so we worked

out the arrangement she came up with ather house. Still have to pinch myself!

There’s a great range of tunes on thealbum. If you had to pick a favourite,what would it be?Wow, that’s a tough question... these areall such iconic songs.But I think Solitude might be my favoriteof all. It’s so beautiful and yet haunting. Inever get tired of singing it...

With the current situation around Covid-19, how are you dealing with it andhow has it affected you?It’s been challenging to say the least. It’ssuch a scary time and so many aresuffering. I try not to complain too muchalthough the timing was pretty awful formy album. We had to cancel six monthsof touring the week before my albumcame out and of course I was unable togo to any of the markets to promote it.I’m doing a lot of live streamedperformances for my fans and spending alot of time with my girlfriend and my cats- Prince, Nina and Dusty! So I’m gettingused to the new abnormal...

Kandace’s London show at AlexandraPalace has now been rescheduled toSaturday 31st October.

Album Q&A: Kandace Springs

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Kandace SpringsThe Women Who Raised Me

(Blue Note)

This album is the fifth Blue Noterelease from the thirty one year old,Nashville born vocalist, pianist andcomposer who first came to worldwideprominence with her 2016 recordingSoul Eyes, although until this offeringmost of her recorded tracks fall into thelater category. This is a pity from the jazzfans point of view as she has a perfectvoice for the genre and is an excellentjazz pianist as all who have witnessedher sell-out concerts in London over thepast few years would confirm. The themeof the album's twelve tracks is in the title,but it is a fair question to ask, ‘Is it a jazzalbum?’. For fifty percent of the time itmost defiantly is, as the vocalists thatinspired her include the likes of Billie,Carmen, Ella, Astrud and Diana Krall, plusher self-confessed greatest inspirationNorah Jones. The balance of the output,while not lacking in quality at all, can bestbe described as originating from the soulor R&B genres. The calibre of thesupporting artists and most certainly theguests make this an album that is boundfor success under any criteria.

As far as the jazz tracks areconcerned things get underway with theBob Dorough classic Devil May Care.Here the guest is top bass man ChristianMcBride whose presence at the head ofthe mix dominates proceedings alongsidethe leader’s piano and inventive scat

Album Reviewinterludes. Norah Jones takes the leadvocal on a slow burning version of AngelEyes with more laid back piano fromKandace preceding a closing vocal duet.Gentle Rain has, in the right hands,always been a showstopper and so it ishere with the sultry and wonderfullypaced vocal benefiting from a partnershipwith Chris Potter's tenor weaving the kindof magic that only he can. The vocalist’sapproach to Duke Ellington's Solitude islighter than most, but still full of reflectionand pathos. Once again her pianoaccompaniment is of the highest orderand her musical conversations with ChrisPotter very worthy of further experiment.The 1938 hit The Nearness Of You, hasof course been covered by almosteveryone from Ella and Frank to DellaReese and Sheena Easton! Here the vocalis drenched with emotion and perfectvoice control at the very lowest oftempo's in a performance to standalongside the very best. Strange Fruit is avery dangerous song for anyone to sing,simply because it is just about owned bythe great Billie Holiday. A handful ofalternative versions have been comparedwith Billie's but as yet been unable todraw a favourable comparison. Thisversion does however run it close. Withonly the accompaniment of her ownelectric keyboards, it’s the sheer qualityof the voice that although lacking the rawpassion of Billie, still locks the listenerinto the drama and melancholy of AbelMeeropol's tragic lyric.

The balance of the track listingfeatures songs inspired by andassociated with artists such as Sade,Bonnie Raitt, Lauryn Hill and DustySpringfield etc. Not within the broadchurch of jazz, despite the presence oftrumpeter Avishai Cohen on somenumbers, but never the less of thehighest class, making this recording avery worthwhile purchase for most.

Jim Burlong

36 SJM May 2020

Album Q&A: Chip Wickham

You were born and raised in Brighton.Do you still have a connection to thecity?My family and friends still live inBrighton, yes. I have lived outside theUK for 12 years now but still go thereregularly and still consider it home insome ways! I like the jazz scene aroundBrighton and one of my favourite onlinejazz shows is the Brighton-basedJazzology radio show on 1BTN. I havealso had a lot of support from Brightonlegends like DJ Format. Brighton hasalways been a cool place for jazz for aslong as I can remember. One of myhighlights was playing Love Supremelast summer as it was a realhomecoming for me musically!! So manyfaces in the crowd, and it was packedout! Wonderful day, wonderful festivaland Sussex jazz at its finest!

Where does the title of your newalbum, Blue to Red, come from?‘Blue to Red’ refers to Earth’s possibleMars-like future. Mars was once a blueplanet. Now there is no atmosphere orlife. It’s our own senselessness thatwe’re pushing our planet in the samedirection. We’re heading towards a redplanet. The recent events of Covid-19have only gone on to emphasise howfragile and inter-related we all are. Timefor change, time for greatness not greedbefore Blue turns to Red.

What inspired you the most in creatingthe album?While looking for inspiration for this thirdalbum I found myself deep into theworld of astral journeys and spacetravel. I think it’s a very spiritual sourcefor musicians and especially spiritualjazz. This was my initial starting pointfor the record, but I soon came round toanother way of thinking, that we can’tjust look up, we have to look around,and when you do, it is Blue to Red. Itnow seems so self-indulgent to look faraway to other planets for inspiration andreassurance of our greatness as aspecies. We need to take care of ourown planet before we waste our bestefforts trying to put humans further andfurther into the cosmos! It’s a crisis thatgoes deep into the fundamental natureof how we live and our need to evolvebefore its too late. Evolution in a socialand economic sense.

Tell us about the musicians andinstruments that you have on thealbum.I write and produce all my own musicand I think that getting the rightmusicians into the studio is fundamentalto getting the right sound for the record.I choose my musicians very carefully.I have changed the sound for this album.The previous albums I had similarmusicians, but with this release Irecorded it in the UK for the first timeand used mostly my UK live band. Thisalbum is different. The album sound isvery textural with lots of layers from theharp and Rhodes that swirl and floataround the arrangements, giving themusic a beautiful spiritual sound. Theflute melodies drive the sound and theuse of electronics and effects providethe final layer.

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Album Review

Chip WickhamBlue to Red

(Lovemonk Records)

By nature London is a consumingcity, with so much going on with its richand colourful music scene and itsunimaginable size, it's easy to forget thatmuch happens outside of England'scapital. However, if we turn our heads foreven a second it instantly becomes clearthat this is simply not the case. This iscertainly true for the city of Manchester,producing some of the finest artists inthe modern jazz scene. Gogo Penguin,Mammal Hands, Matthew Halsall and thelegendary Gondwana Records all flew toprominence through its busy musicscene. Embracing a very different soundto London's lively afrobeat and electronicdance influenced music scene, the soundcoming out of Manchester is much moreon the spiritual side of jazz, with heavynods to Alice Coltrane and Yusef Lateef.Out of this Northern English melting potemerges a rising star of the UK jazzscene: flautist and composer ChipWickham. While not a Manchester native,Chip has worked closely with its iconicfigures, frequenting the guest soloist’schair on numerous recordings andperformances under the record labelmost associated with jazz in the North.However, in more recent times we haveseen Wickham make the transition fromsoloist to bandleader. His previous album,

the aptly titled Shamal Wind, wasreleased in 2018 to a warm andenthusiastic reception. Now, with therelease of Blue to Red, his third album asleader, Wickham continues his search inthe realms of spiritual jazz, this timeadding electronics to the mix taking usfrom our desert meditations to the vastregions of deep space. Starting off onfamiliar ground as heard on Shamal Wind,the atmosphere is a warm wash ofswirling sounds and gentle grooves; thistime adding a harp to the ensemble torain down a shower of light notes beforethe flute announces its presence with anairy statement and attentive solo. Theoverall dynamic shape of the album isvaried and to great effect, with sometracks like the title track, Blue to Red,more low burning and spiritual journeysallowing the band leader to explore overthe calm and serene backing of hissteady rhythm section. Whilst othertracks, namely the tune Interstellar, showa slightly different side to Chip Wickhamas composer and soloist taking a stepaway from his signature slow soul-soothing sound to kick up the energy agood few levels with band and leaderboth bring forward some tunes with a bitof attack. Swapping the piano for aFender Rhodes and letting this get grittyas the band pushes the energy further, alluntil taking a step back to shine the lighton and let the effects-laden Rhodes slidefurther and further into the regions ofspace, and once all is quiet thenreappears with Wickham shedding someserious flute, Hendrix style, through awah-wah pedal. The album ends with atrack entitled Mighty Yusef, in honour ofthe great multi-instrumentalist andcomposer Yusef Lateef, a key influence inthe sound of Chip Wickham. With thesuccess of Shamal Winds and with therelease of Blue To Red, Wickhamcontinues on his musical journey as oneof the rising stars of British jazz.

George Richardson

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Altar Double QuintetWe Salute The Night(Real Music House)

There is always a taste ofsomething resembling classicalromanticism in what has been coined‘European jazz’, which like thephrase ‘world music’ is a broad termrepresenting so many variedcountries, cultures and identitieswithin two small words. Of coursesuch terms are indeed helpful whenstacked on the shelf for distributionor on its inception to new listeners.Genre labels can be both a blessingand a curse but fortunately on thisrelease from an all-star doublequartet, the music can more thanspeak for itself. It consists of some ofthe finest players from Slovakia,Serbia, Hungary and the US thathave come together to createsomething truly unique. Straight upfrom the beginning there is no smalltalk as the group dives straight inwith the whole band in full swing inthe opening tune, Gypsy Mustache.This piece carries something of thedrive and solid groove found in thehard bop of Art Blakey’s JazzMessengers, with the rhythm sectionstomping out a clear path for the

soloists to freely dance over. There isalso a good element of the classicromanticism that's more associatedwith the European jazz traditionthroughout the material on thisrelease, with pieces showing a lotmore emphasis on slow melancholicand deeply-thought melodiesechoing the classical influence everpresent in this style of jazz.Frequently we hear the smoothChopinesque piano runs and gentleminimalistic horn lines. However, theswing is not lost, quite the contrary,the group merges these two differentstyles with elegance, easily jumpingbetween the uptempo swing ofAmerican jazz and the soft lilt of theEuropean style. The piano work ofLubos Sramek is a particular featureof the group’s sound, emulatingalmost simultaneously the styles ofBobby Timmons and EsbjörnSvensson, blending the two into one.The presence of saxophonist andbandleader Nicolaj Nikitin is rarelyfelt over the listening course of thealbum, with a couple of short soloshere and there, but overall his roundtone is mostly heard in thepresenting of themes and melodicbacking behind soloists. It seems theleader has chosen to concentratemore on directing the band thanbeing in the spotlight. The real gifthere definitely has to be the trumpetplaying which is spread out betweenthree trumpeters: Juraj Bartos(Slovakia), Tom Harrell (USA) andKornel Fekete-Kovacs (Hungary). Allpaint the tunes with their own brandof unique playing. From tune to tuneand solo to solo Altar Quartet havereally managed to capture theessence of two very important stylesof jazz music and have been able to

Album Reviews

SJM May 2020 39

create a perfect marriage betweenthe two.

George Richardson

AreviejéJourney

(single, self-release)

London always has and alwayswill be one of the creative hubs anddiverse melting pots for theperforming arts from Handel throughto Hendrix, who coincidentally bothlodged in the same building duringtheir respective times as residents inthe city. We have also the recent UKjazz boom which is still runningstrong on the streets of London withnew music and artists appearingregularly in its venues and concerthalls. With so much going on it's easyto forget that if we turn our focussouth east and just down the roadwe have the city of Brighton which isalso building its own scene, seeingacts like Howes3 and Yakul releasingtheir own mind-blowing materialalongside independent musicorganisations such as Off LicenceMagazine and Mr. Bongo bothstrongly doing their part in thesupport and release of new music.It’s in Brighton that we encounter

singer and songwriter Arevieje Nahviand the release of her debut singleJourney. Already an active figure onthe Brighton music scene, Areviejédescribes her vocal influences asranging from Ella Fitzgerald throughto Jill Scott among many others,while her songwriting takesinfluences from a range of genresand styles including jazz, neo-soul,hip hop, dub reggae and worldmusic. She describes this release asa product of her Persian andJamaican heritage and the culturalhistory and music that comes alongwith it. All of this is nicely portrayedin the smooth writing and productionthat has gone into this release. Thelooping hypnotic theme and brightbackbeat carry us forward in thestyle of Fatoumata Diawara; a smallvocal scat leads us to the arrival ofthe main vocal line packed full ofconvictive strength but also pensive.Its lyrics, the voice of reason andquestion, while acoustic guitarcarries out the main melody as itpicks out a West African flavouredline sitting nicely on the main groove.The smooth silkiness of the backingvocals cushioned around the leadvocal brings to mind the soulfulsound of Lianne La Havas. Theoverall sound and production isextremely reminiscent ofcontemporary music giants TheCinematic Orchestra and SlowlyRolling Camera with its smooth mixof acoustic and electronic elements,which are all extremely well done.With a vast number of influences anda driving passion for learning andmusical exploration this single is anexciting release and the product of atrue musical journey in bloom.

George Richardson

40 SJM May 2020

Andre CanniereGhost Days

(Whirlwind WR4753)

Pennsylvania native, UK-basedCanniere has assembled animpressive cast of top-flight UKplayers to realise his follow-up to hisacclaimed The Darkening Bluerelease from 2016. It’s adevelopment of his adventures intothis territory between jazz, folk andfusion, and opening track Suicides(actually about ladybirds) sets outthe stall to good effect. There’s aninsistent, funky ostinato groove fromRhodes, acoustic bass and AndrewBains’ tight but light drums overwhich Brigitte Beraha’s clear,uninflected vocals float, thencombine with the horns to sketch outcoolly minimalist horn charts; thenthe track builds into more jazz-fusionterritory, from an explosive drumbreak into some increasingly intensetrades between the leader’s trumpetand Tori Freestone’s sax. Both hornslay out their customary hipcontemporary jazz language, butFreestone especially seems to berelishing the jazz-rock setting andher sax is full-toned and rhythmical.Colours is particularly powerful as apiece of post-rock, shot through withimpassioned soloing from the hornsover a tight punchy rhythm track,

while Erasure has the kind ofsombrely uplifting melodic structuresthat recall Radiohead or Bon Iver asmuch as Miles Davis, and My Starhas the hushed, relaxed simplicity ofa Norah Jones tune until it opens outinto a pair of truly stunning solosfrom Canniere and Klammer supremoRick Simpson. Throughout, Canniereand co manage to keep the balanceof rock’s directness and linearmelodic development with a healthyquotient of genuine high-level jazzmusic content - Canniere says he stillsees the music as jazz, as informedby his love of Miles and FreddieHubbard as by the influences he’sabsorbed from alt-rock, and followersof both genres will find hisengagement to be authentic andengaging. The whole adds up to afascinatingly individual package thatis accessible and challenging at thesame time - approach with an openmind for uniquely satisfying results.

Eddie Myer

Daniel Carter, Matthew Shipp,William Parker, Gerald Cleaver

Welcome Adventure! Vol.1(577 Records)

In these modern times we haveexperienced the rebirth and re-

SJM May 2020 41

establishment of jazz music as apopular and unifying creative artform, with the UK’s thriving jazzscene bringing forward the likes ofSons of Kemet and Joe Armon-Jones,alongside the US producing newmusical pioneers such as KamasiWashington and Christian Scott. Allof these artists endlessly blend theirvarious influences both current andretro to create the sounds of modernjazz. However, where we have seenthe strong influence of classic jazzstyles such as bebop and fusion takea firm seat in the musical visions ofmany current artists, the sound offree jazz has remained as it has beensince its inception, illusive and hardto pin down. Yet, it has never failedto remain strong and move thehearts and minds of its listeners,remaining a strong style andinfluence in today's modern music.This is presented in full fruition in themasterful interplay cooked upbetween New York free jazz all starquartet consisting of jazz legendssaxophonist Daniel Carter, pianistMatthew Shipp, double bassistWilliam Parker and drummer GeraldCleaver. All four are longstandingnames in the free jazz community,with each musician appearing onmany amazing releases, whether asan in-demand sideman oraccomplished bandleader. Now, hereon their 2020 release softly titledWelcome Adventure Vol.1 these fourmusical giants take full advantage oftheir time together on this recording,consisting of only two lengthycompositional sketches on which theband paints their vivid stories. Thefirst track, titled simply MajesticTravel Agency, is a performance ofpure drive, starting off with a simplelooped statement from Parker andCleaver creating a thick mechanicalgroove that the rest of the band

slowly climbs upon before taking off.Both sax and piano exchange therole of soloist, and this continuesthroughout the majority of theperformance until slowly the drive istaken down and the groove graduallydisappears leaving the open space todraw the tune to an end, gentlyedged forward by slurred notescontributed from each instrumentuntil at 13 minutes and 30 secondsit fades to silence for the final time.The second track, Scintillate, lastsonly a mere four minutes. It straightaway kicks off into a slow, moodyswing with sax and piano tradingsmall melodic statements while therhythm section carries them forwardsto a quiet fade, leading into the thirdtrack, Ear-regularities. Starting as afrenetic free for all, with a flurry ofnotes and musical rambling thatgradually builds to resemblesomething of a groove, as thequartet moves freely onwardsembracing the dissonance andchaos. This ensemble, comprising ofsome of the most important figuresin the free jazz world, certainly havea unique chemistry together andthrough this release they proudlycarry the flag of free music into themodern age.

George Richardson

42 SJM May 2020

Irreversible EntanglementsWho Sent You?

(International Anthem)

After the release and success oftheir self-titled album, Chicago-basedoutfit Irreversible Entanglementscertainly secured their place as oneof the modern representatives of freejazz and all that it encompasses.Spoken with a clear head and asober voice, the ensemble continuesto spread their message of unity,freedom and dark truths. The springrelease of their new album, bluntlytitled Who Sent You?, is full tobursting point with explosiveinterplay, walking hand in hand withthe intense spoken word of fearlesspoet, Moor Mother. The first track,The Code Noir/ Amina whoseintroduction is reminiscent of OrnetteColeman’s Lonely Woman with itspressing drum beat alongside atumbling bass groove, edging usforward into a mist of slurred horncalls echoing through the freneticsoundscape. Then comes MoorMother's words of lamentation for adark past with its message ofhumanity’s confusion, but also itsstrength; each sentence a call to

arms, with phrases like: “where weforget the names of our ancestors”and “at what point do we stand up?”a clear warning of what will happento America and indeed humanity ifwe remain ignorant and do not learnfrom our history. The title track WhoSent You, and its second movement,Ritual, bear the trademark sound ofthe band felt throughout their debutalbum, the sound of people who arestrong and fed up with beingdisregarded and unheard. Themelodic screams and explorations ofEric Dolphy, John Coltrane and DonCherry, fading to the secondmovement of the piece, Ritual,starting with a horn line that bringsto mind the minimalism of TerryRiley, then enters a strong WestAfrican style groove from bass anddrums, before the chilling voice ofMoor Mother returns once more.

While the sounds of chaos,dissonance, freedom and truth areundoubtedly something the grouphas mastered through their playingtogether, here on this recording weare introduced to a different side ofthe band’s playing and arrangementwith the piece No Mas having a moreformulated feel in structure andcomposition. The whole tracksimmers with a strong Caribbeanelement, similar to the music of theUK’s own Sons of Kemet and NubyaGarcia, with a steely bassline andfunky drum beat to match, and allmixed in with the group's own wellcrafted sound. This album is withoutdoubt a fresh release both for thegroup as a whole and for the soundof modern music; a rich tapestry ofvirtuosic interplay and fantasticarrangements upon which a clearimage of the true world, albeit notalways pretty, is placed for us towitness firsthand. With the spirit ofOrnette Coleman in their music and

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the humanist message of NinaSimone in their words, IrreversibleEntanglements have secured theirplace as one of the most promisingbands in modern jazz.

George Richardson

The NecksThree

(ReR Megacorp Necks14)

This is the Australian post-jazzimprov trio’s 21st album release, andwhile it’s too much to say that there’san element of career retrospectivehere, there are nods to their ownmore recent past: the rocking Bodyfrom 2018 or the atmos-jazz of1994’s Aquatic. Three long tracksmake up the album, crafted from thelong spontaneous free-form jams onwhich The Necks have built their livereputation, enriched with overdubsand textural additions to widen thescreen. Bloom has a hint of theDusseldorf motorik in unyieldingchatter of percussion, like a busyfactory working at full output,

creating a dense bed of sound ontowhich Lloyd Swanton gingerly lowersmassive blobs of bass guitar, whileAbrahams drapes poignant minorchords over the top. There’sadditional synth textures workingaway as well, but everything gets abit lost in the sheer sonic density andthe cumulative effect is eitherhypnotic or deadening depending onyour taste. Lovelock is a texturalpiece, with dense clouds of sonicsteam drifting dreamily overhead,colliding and reforming in slow-motion - it clocks in at just over 22minutes but seems much longer.Further has the kind of loping 5/4groove and repeating bluesy basslinethat Alice Coltrane et al specialised inin the 1970s, and which hasreturned to vogue rebranded as‘spiritual jazz’. There are melloworgan and Morricone-style guitaroverdubs, clanking percussion, andtinkly minor key piano, and the wholedrifts pleasantly by for twentyminutes or so before fading away,though it could just as easily havecontinued for the same amount oftime, or ended fifteen minutes earlier.The Necks occupy a space that’s alltheir own and this record will onlyenhance their reputation foruncompromising creativefearlessness.

Eddie Myer

44 SJM May 2020

Jure PuklBroken Circles

(Whirlwind Recordings)

Slovenian saxist and composer Puklis thoroughly embedded in thevanguard of young NYC players; heand his wife Melissa Aldanacomprising something of a tenor saxpower couple on the scene. Thislatest release features a band offorward-looking coevals in aprogramme of originals: the unusualguitar/vibes lineup might suggest achamber jazz feel but the consistentpower and sheer unbridledimagination of the astonishing KwekuSumbry on drums constantly drivethe band to greater heights ofenergy. Both Joel Ross and CharlesAltura are capable of deliveringdizzying sweeps of 16th notes, astheir playing on opening trackSustained Optimism demonstrates,and their tones blend together tocreate an intriguing texture overwhich Pukl’s plaintive, sometimeshoarse-toned sax sketches outtwisting melodies that skirt aroundthe harmonic centres in a mannerthat recalls the idiosyncratic post-bopadventurism of Sam Rivers. BrokenCircles alternates super-tight writtenunisons with short blowing interludesover a chattering rhythm from

Sumbry that evokes his Africanheritage without being in thrall to it.Separation has more of a chamberfeel, with Matt Brewer steppingforward from his pivotal role as theband’s anchor to make a consideredsolo statement. Compassion uses theadditional ghostly rattling of Chileankalimba to introduce a pensivesoprano-led ballad. Triumph OfSociety builds through dazzling guitarand drums tours de force into analmost symphonic conclusion. Puklswitches to dark-toned bass clarinetfor a reading of morbid classicGloomy Sunday that provides analbum highlight, building fromdarkness into light. Brewer comes tothe fore again for the bustling HalfPast Five, a classic slice of straight-eights odd-meter contemporary jazz;Kids opens with some candid audioof a child’s sax lesson as a refreshingcorrective to the high-intensityvirtuosity and develops into a lovelylimpid ballad, and Sky Is The Limitends on a similarly accessible,uplifting note. Pukl uses hisimpressive resources as a composerto create music that displays the fullrange of his band’s impressivetalents, but there is also a sense ofdevelopment, striving towards aunified vision where composition,improvisation and texture all combineto produce a highly individual andaccessible sound that’s more thanthe sum of its impressive parts.

Eddie Myer

SJM May 2020 45

Harish RaghavanCalls For Action

(Whirlwind WR 4749)

This is Harish Raghavan’s debutunder his own name, but fans of theyounger end of the NYC scene,especially as represented byWhirlwind, will already be familiarwith his big-toned powerful attackand deep gutty sound, through hiswork with such luminaries as WalterSmith III and vibes sensation JoelRoss. In fact Ross here repays thefavour and joins in, along with hisregular altoist Immanuel Wilkins and aband of hip young players from thesame scene. They share a commonvocabulary that matches Raghavan’svery contemporary take on what youmight call the avant-mainstream.Newe has a tumbling odd-numbertime feel with a complex melodydancing above the churning rhythmicfigures and some wide-open post-bop solos - Los Angeles has ahushed yet celebratory feel withtraces of gospel in the melody, withthe impressive Kweku Sumbry addingdropped funked-up bombsthroughout - Sangeet showcases thelight-toned Immanuel Wilkins in abright, Jarrett-like dance. There’s a lotof music here over the 70 minutesand the pace, energy and complexitykeeps at high levels throughout - the

solemn, resonant bass intro to I’ll GoAnd Come Back is a delight, andwhile sadly The Meters is abombastic multiple-time texturalexploration rather than a tribute tothe Cissy Strut crew, the ArtEnsemble Of Chicago tribute CallsFor Action is a stately triumph ofdeep bass, shimmering vibes andclear-toned sax developing into adizzyingly virtuosic ensemble. Younggun Micah Thomas excels, but sodoes everyone really, and the solointerludes for bass are especiallysatisfying. The sheer amount ofmusical content can sometimesoverwhelm the listener but its worthit.

Eddie Myer

Spanish Harlem OrchestraThe Latin Jazz Project

(ArtistShare)

The Spanish Harlem Orchestra havebeen running under the guidance ofpianist/leader Oscar Hernandez forseventeen years, accumulating threeGrammy awards and too manyfestival appearances and accoladesto list here. The folk roots of theirmusic reach deep into the African

46 SJM May 2020

diaspora and its multiculturalmingling in the slave colonies of theCaribbean, but the particular iterationthey specialise in has a distinctlyAmerican accent, growing out of theLatino community in New York as itdeveloped from the pre-war Rumbacraze through the modernistic Afro-Cuban big bands of visionaries likeMachito, and into the fusion ofCaribbean styles with modern jazzthat blossomed in the 1970s withthe additional input of the PuertoRican community Spanish Harlem,into the hybrid style known as Salsa.Spanish Harlem Orchestra areworking firmly in the tradition of thegreat 70s labels like Fania andepitomise the enduring strengths ofthe music: tight, intricatearrangements, with modernisticchord colourings from the super-tight, lushly textured horns over bedsof immaculately grooving percussion,thumping bass tumbaos, breathtakingaudacious arrangements full ofperfectly executed breaks and hits,and flamboyant soloing. There’s anall-star cast of top NYC jazz talent onhand here to spice up the salsa: BobMintzer and Tom Harrell providesome top-notch NYC chops, KurtElling contributes a somewhatincongruously nocturnal Invitation,Bob Franceschini adds a touch of theunpredictably outside, Dave Liebmanadds his unmistakably big-toned,adventurously melodic soprano, butthe overall standard of playing is sohigh that it’s impossible to singleanyone out. Pure salsa delight of thehighest quality.

Eddie Myer

Emma-Jean ThackrayRain Dance

(Movementt – MVMTT01)

Super-hip London based multi-instrumentalist Emma-Jean Thackrayfollows up her Ley Lines EP andenriches her resumé of eclectic jazz-plus projects still further with thislatest offering. Rain Dance has aSilent Way era Miles feel to itsshifting thirds chords on FenderRhodes, but there’s a harder,contemporary Ldn club edge to therhythm and the fashionable brassbass sound to bring us firmly into2020. Vels Trio sticksman DougalTaylor excels himself at the kit,bringing some real excitement toproceedings as Thackray blows jazzysquiggles over the groove and ElliotGalvin enriches with squelchy synthtextures. Movementt’s compellingclub groove sounds very like thejazzy hipster house of St Germaineand will fit seamlessly into the playlistin coffeeshops and branches ofUrban Outfitters across the nation.Open has spoken word contributionsfrom Thackray herself, crooning vocalchoruses and a woozily wonky beat,like a mix of contemporary R&B andbeat poetry. It’s super-urban, up tothe minute, confidently evocative oflate-night urban life, and showcases

SJM May 2020 47

Thackray’s strong trumpet playingnicely, though there’s the feeling thatthese sketches only represent apartial view of her abilities.

Eddie Myer

Will Vinsonfour forty one

(Whirlwind WR4752)

Will Vinson is celebrating histwentieth year in NYC sincerelocating from his native London,and a glance through the credits onthis landmark album give a goodindication of his status among thecity’s A-list of jazz players. Thisrecord was conceived as a tribute tosome of Vinson’s formativeinfluences, but also as a very goodexcuse to assemble a dream team offive of Vinson’s favourite everpianists to explore different sides ofhis musical personality. So we haveSullivan Fortner, favourite keysmanfor the late lamented Roy Hargrove,on some artfully deconstructedversions of the classic standards-to-bop repertoire (Heyman/Young’sLove Letters, John Lewis’ Milestones)- culture-crossing time-shifting

virtuoso Tigran Hamasyan on theterrific Vinson original Banal Streetand Keith Jarrett’s mournful Oasis,and young gunslinger and CharlesLloyd associate Gerald Clayton onthe meditative low-slung groove ofCherry Time. There’s still space formaster composer Fred Hersch tolend his utterly original harmonicimagination to Monk’s Work, whileVinson’s longtime collaboratorGonzalo Rubalcaba lends hispowerful attack and pinpointrhythmic accuracy to a pair of Vinsonoriginals. As if this wasn’t enough,the rhythm teams are consistentlyoutstanding throughout, and perfectlymatched to their respective pianists:Brewer and Calvaire’s work on LoveLetters is a particular delight, and itsgreat to hear much-loved veteranBilly Hart in such unaccustomedsurroundings. While the Rubalcababand may seem to wear the laurels interms of current profile, it’s reallyimpossible to pick a front-runner; theless well-known teams all hold theirown in terms of originality, ability andconviction. Vinson’s bitter-sweet,unsentimental alto is the commonthread that ties everything together.Outstanding.

Eddie Myer

48 SJM May 2020

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Regular Live Streams

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Chick Corea, daily on his Facebook page

Elsa Nilsson, on her YouTube channel

Emmet Cohen Trio, daily on Emmet's Facebook page

Fred Hersch, 6pm daily on his Facebook page

Joe Stilgoe, 1pm daily on his Facebook page

Liam Noble via his Twitch

Mike Pappenheim, Saturday evenings on his Facebook page

Peter Martin, every Friday at midnight GMT, on his YouTube channel

Splash Point Jazz with Neal Richardson, check Splash Point website

Yoko Miwa, daily on her Facebook page

More details of live streams can be found on our listings page:www.sussexjazzmag.com/listings

Photo:ChickCoreabyLisaWormsley

SJM May 2020 49

Issue 100

May 2020

Editor

Charlie Anderson

Sub-Editor & Photography

Lisa Wormsley

Contributors

Simon Adams

Charlie Anderson

Anya Arnold

Peter Batten

Patrick Billingham

Jim Burlong

Sam Carelse

Eddie Myer

Patricia Pascal

George Richardson

Simon Spillett

Lisa Wormsley

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Sussex Jazz Magazine

50 SJM May 2020

Pete Recommends...

Because we are all having to copewith the stress of this dreadful time, Ihave decided to offer some help withmy latest recommendation. This quiet,relaxed and sensitive album shouldsoothe the nerves. Please do not treatit as background music; give it yourfull attention and you will enjoy thebenefit.

With his great trio recordings incompany with Scott la Faro and PaulMotian, Bill became recognised as anoutstanding jazz pianist. He remains amajor influence on jazz piano playerseven today. That period in his careercame to a tragic end when Scott waskilled in a car accident. For six monthshe did not work at all. Then he invitedChuck Israels to join him and began toaccept engagements.

After six months he felt ready torecord again. Enough material wascreated for two albums. It was decidedto include the faster tempos in analbum entitled How My Heart Sings.The slower, mainly ballad, recordingswere collected in this album,Moonbeams. The result is a very

Bill Evans Trio

Moon Beams

special collection with an intense butrelaxed feeling, which is maintainedthroughout. For me the track whichsets the mood is a beautiful version ofTadd Dameron’s ballad If You CouldSee Me Now, but I am sure readerswill find their own favourites. In such acontext Paul Motian has to find his rolewith discretion, but he confirms onceagain his claim to be one of the finesttrio drummers. Chuck Israels is aremarkable bass player. You may findsome of his lines surprising, but he iscertainly very confident in hiscontribution to every track.

[Moonbeams was originally issued onRiverside LP 428 in 1962. It is easyto find on YouTube.]

Peter Batten

SJM May 2020 51

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