Record Reviews

HILARIOUS DISASTERS ~ UNNATURAL ROOT AUDIO CAVE 2025/010 (Barcode: 5908451336103) ~ POLAND ~ Avant-Garde Jazz Recorded: 2024 Released: 2025 This is the debut album by the ensemble Hilarious DisastersFind albums by this artist, led by Ukrainian (resident in Poland) pianist / composer Kateryna ZiabliukFind albums by this artist, which also includes saxophonist Alex ClovFind albums by this artist (a.k.a. Alex Clov BaczkowskiFind albums by this artist), flautist / saxophonist Lukasz JankowskiFind albums by this artist, bassist Filip BotorFind albums by this artist and drummer Piotr SzalajkoFind albums by this artist. The album was recorded live at the BMC in Budapest and presents eleven tracks, all of which are original compositions by Ziabliuk or her arrangements of traditional Ukrainian folk songs. Ziabliuk has been very active on the Polish Jazz scene in 2025, releasing no less than three albums (all recorded in 2024), with O.N.E.Find albums by this artist, Zygmunt Pauker TrioFind albums by this artist and this one, as well as several digital only releases, which reflect her versatility and creativity, and add an undeniable whiff of fresh air. The music is strongly influenced by Folkloristic motifs, which then develop into highly improvised passages, bordering on Free and Improvised Music, but staying firmly within a “well behaved” borders. The rhythm section, and especially the bassist, keeps the music firmly on track, and although I never heard about these two musicians earlier on, they perform splendidly. The saxophonist and flautist are slightly more familiar, but still relatively unknown, and again they manage to create a solid, and highly interesting improvisations alongside the leader and splendid unisono background parts, all in perfect ensemble spirit. The live ambience suits the music ideally and although the live recording sound quality is not ideal, it adds to the ambience and general feel of the entire performance, which is truly captivating. I am looking forward to a studio recording by this ensemble. Overall, this is an unusual and quite uplifting album, which challenges the listener and yet manages to retain his attention for the entire duration. It seems that Ziabliuk, in addition to her talent as a pianist and composer, has also a rare gift to find great partners in crime, who stand along her side faithfully and together create fascinating, fresh, challenging and beautiful music. Hats off, again, my Lady!

Updated: 13/03/2026Posted: 13/03/2026

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KAISER, CLOV, AND HARRIS ~ MEASURE ONCE CUT TWICE AMALGAM 009 (Barcode: 888295599122) ~ USA ~ Free Jazz / Improvised Music Recorded: 2016 Released: 2017 This is the debut album by Chicago based Improvising Music trio consisting of guitarist Steve KaiserFind albums by this artist, saxophonist Alex Clov BaczkowskiFind albums by this artist (of Polish descent obviously) and drummer Bill HarrisFind albums by this artist. The album presents eight pieces credited to all three members of the trio. Although the trio plays Improvised Music, there are distinct melodic themes and the improvisation is mostly "well behaved" enough to make the music accessible to listeners beyond the strict Avant-Garde circles. The trio´s unusual instrumentation enables a clear sonic reception of the music without clashes between the instruments that often make Improvised Music sound cacophonic. The trio members demonstrate obvious respect and spirit of cooperation, which of course are the basic qualities necessary for making music together. These young musicians clearly move towards innovative expressionism, rather than joining the hordes or mainstream trotters, which is commendable. Of course they will in time develop a personal language, and based on what they present here they are on the right track. Individual performances are all promising: Kaiser plays a retro sounding guitar with a sound faithful to early Improvising guitarists, Clov has already a well developed technique and sounds especially impressive on the baritone saxophone and Harris, as usual in such environment, plays anything but time, simply adding addition rhythmic layer to the music. Overall this is a promising debut offering, which will be hopefully followed by additional interesting musical explorations in the future.

Updated: 12/04/2019Posted: 03/02/2018

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NIECHEC ~ RECKLESS THINGS AUDIO CAVE 2025/003 (Barcode: 5908298549971) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz-Ambient Fusion Recorded: 2023 Released: 2025 This is the 4th album by Polish ensemble NiechecFind albums by this artist, a quintet comprising of saxophonist Alex ClovFind albums by this artist (a.k.a. Alex Clov BaczkowskiFind albums by this artist, who replaced the founding member Maciej ZwierzchowskiFind albums by this artist), keyboardist Michal ZaleskiFind albums by this artist, guitarist Rafal BlaszczakFind albums by this artist, bass guitarist Maciej SzczepanskiFind albums by this artist and drummer Dominik MokrzewskiFind albums by this artist (who replaced the founding member Michal KaczorekFind albums by this artist), which means than 4/5 of the founding members are no longer members of the ensemble. The album presents nine original compositions, six composed by Clov, two by Zaleski and one by Mokrzewski. The music was recorded at the Monochrom Studio and engineered by Ignacy GruszeckiFind albums by this artist, offering the usual superb sound quality. Despite the dramatic lineup shifts, Niechec manages to continue its stylistic direction pretty consistently, walking on the tightrope between Jazz improvisations and Ambient / electronic instrumental music with a dark / dense sound. It is a very specific musical direction with a pretty much “take it or leave it” attitude, which has it faithful followers, but is definitely not for everyone. After all it has been fourteen years now (and four albums) since they appeared on the scene, and the “statute of limitations” expires eventually. That said, the music is still quite pleasant, inviting and I had again a good time listening to it, despite the omnipresent déjà vu feeling. Overall, it is a pleasant album for the Jazz-Ambient Fusion lovers, which offers basically no innovation or previously uncharted vistas, but is entertaining and even danceable to some extent. As mentioned above, I had a good time and this music is obviously appealing to wide younger audiences.

Updated: 16/03/2025Posted: 16/03/2025

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NINJA EPISKOPAT ~ ALL THOUGHTS ARE BAD THOUGHTS AUDIO CAVE 2023/012 (Barcode: 5908298549742) ~ POLAND ~ Electronic & Ambient Recorded: 2023 Released: 2023 This is the debut (physical) album by Polish trio Ninja EpiskopatFind albums by this artist, which comprises of saxophonist Alex ClovFind albums by this artist (a.k.a. Alex Clov BaczkowskiFind albums by this artist), guitarist Mojzesz TworzydloFind albums by this artist and drummer Patrycja WybranczykFind albums by this artist. A couple of guest musicians appear on selected tracks. The album presents seven tracks, which are uncredited (assumed to be co-created by the trio members) and the total playing time is about thirty-five minutes, which makes it an EP rather than a full album, which is often considered a “standard” these sad days, and which often makes me think of selling wine in bottles half empty… The music is a mixture of many influences, soaked in electronics, but including Rock, Trance, Rap and even Jazz improvisation, which creates atmospheric vistas somewhat of cinematic associations. It is ambitious and quite interesting, but somewhat uneven and lacking a clear statement, possibly intentionally. I enjoyed the music, but by the time it was over I had more questions than answers. The drumming parts are certainly the most impressive instrumental contributions herein. Overall, this is an interesting, but probably prematurely released piece of music, which is intended for a much younger generation of listeners that your truly, but certainly offers enough excitement to watch out for their next outing. Kudos to Audio CaveFind albums on this label for giving it a chance to reach a wider audience and thinking out of the box.

Updated: 16/03/2025Posted: 03/03/2024

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