Record Reviews

AGA DERLAK ~ FIRST THOUGHT HEVHETIA 0090 (Barcode: 8588005257329) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz Recorded: 2014 Released: 2014 This is the debut album by a young Polish Jazz trio led by pianist / composer Aga DerlakFind albums by this artist with bassist Tymon TrabczynskiFind albums by this artist and drummer Bartosz SzablowskiFind albums by this artist. The album presents five lengthy original compositions, all by Derlak. It takes a lot of courage to take the bold step of recording a debut album in the classic piano trio format and play one´s original compositions, like Derlak and her cohorts do on this album. Piano trio is a "naked" environment, where every note, every nuance, even every touch of the keyboard is perfectly audible with absolutely nothing to hide behind. Such endeavors are often quite risky and perilous and therefore I´m happy to say that in this particular case the courage pays off big time. The music is mostly very lyrical and melancholic, almost meditative, even on the mid / up tempo compositions. The melodic statements played as the usual at the entry point of each track develop into lengthy improvised passages, which feature extensive dialogues between the piano and the rhythm section, which gets much more exposure on this album that usually accepted on piano trio albums. Trabczynski and Szablowski both perform wonderfully throughout, using the almost universal approach in today´s young piano trios, where the bass is actually playing the rhythm and the drums are allowed to play "around", often polyrhythmically. There is an obvious empathy and comradeship between the trio members, which is always the best glue which turns musicians into one harmonious entity. Of course not everything is perfect, which is quite understandable considering the age of these young Lions and a Lioness. The extensive improvisations, which last on three of the tracks well over ten minutes, are honestly a bit over the top. It takes a lifetime of playing Jazz to be able to keep an audience on the edge for ten continuous minutes… Perhaps inclusion of at least a couple of additional tunes and shortening the timings considerably would have produced an even more impressive album? But of course these are just my personal musings. Overall this is a most impressive debut, which hopefully will be followed by many more mature albums in the future. I intend to follow the careers of these youngsters, as they are surely a promising bunch. Well done Lady and Gentlemen!

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SABINA MECK ~ LOVE IS HERE FOR TUNE 0090 (Barcode: 5902768701821) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz Recorded: 2014 - 2015 Released: 2016 The new generation of Polish Jazz musicians, which swept the local scene like a tsunami with the onset on the 21st Century, produced a staggering number of superb instrumentalists: trumpeters, saxophonists, pianists, bassists and drummers, but sadly almost no significant discoveries in vocal Jazz arrived on the scene, with just a very few exceptions. There are many possible explanations why this has happened: the crisis in the vocal Jazz idiom in general, the fact that vocalists born in Poland are not native English speakers, yet they tenaciously insist on singing in English even when it works against them, and most importantly the fact that the human voice is not only the most beautiful and limitless instrument, but also the most difficult one. Therefore listening to this album by the young Sabina MeckFind albums by this artist (a.k.a. Sabina MyrczekFind albums by this artist) one can finally release a sigh of relief saying "it´s finally happening". Not only does she sing fabulously but she also wrote all the music and the lyrics on this album, which is almost too good to be true. The whole thing sounds like a classic vocal Jazz album, featuring a set of carefully selected standards; anything but a debut album. Meck selected the accompaniment of a classic piano trio, which is classy, elegant and minimalistic, but also incredibly bold. There is no electric trickery to hide imperfection, but there is a challenging need to combine forces with the trio members at all times. The trio´s performance is by all means as spectacular in every respect as the vocals. The upcoming and still very young Aga DerlakFind albums by this artist on piano is absolutely brilliant as an accompanist and together with the singer they are in a perfect Ying and Yang harmony. The rhythm section, bassist Franciszek PospieszalskiFind albums by this artist and drummer Bartosz SzablowskiFind albums by this artist, adds its support amicably and very skillfully, with nothing short of flawlessness. The insiders of the Polish Jazz scene will of course notice immediately that Sabina Meck is the sister of the incredibly talented vocalist Wojciech MyrczekFind albums by this artist. It will be completely unfair to treat her just as "the sister of", since although she shares with her brother the gene pool of the highly gifted Myrczek clan, this album proves that she is a greatly talented Artist in her own right. Hopefully this is just the first of many wondrous albums to come. You’ve got it, my Fair Lady; you certainly have got what it takes! Side Note The above are my liner notes included on this album's artwork. I am honored when asked by the Artists to write liner notes for their albums, always hoping that my words reflect the true spirit of the music. This is also a symbol of our mutual respect and friendship developed over the years. The same is also true when Record Labels ask me to write liner notes for their releases, mostly in the case of reissues of archival albums, which is a symbol of their appreciation of my knowledge and historical perspective and my recognition of their dedication to the preservation of the history of recorded music and the effort to keep human Culture and Aesthetics alive.

Updated: 19/09/2018Posted: 06/05/2016

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P.E. QUARTET ~ COKOLWIEK MULTIKULTI MPJ 022 (Barcode: 5907529223604) ~ POLAND ~ Avant-Garde Jazz Recorded: 2018 Released: 2018 This is the debut album by young Polish Jazz ensemble called P.E. QuartetFind albums by this artist, which comprises of saxophonist Jerzy MaczynskiFind albums by this artist, guitarist Szymon WojcikFind albums by this artist, bassist Rafal RozalskiFind albums by this artist and drummer Bartosz SzablowskiFind albums by this artist. The album presents eight original compositions, all co-credited to the four members of the quartet. The music was wonderfully recorded at the Monochrom Studio with Ignacy GruszeckiFind albums by this artist in charge of the sound. The music is an interesting mixture of pre-composed themes and improvised pieces, all very open and unrestrained, which allow individual members of the quartet to express their statements as well as involve in collective improvisation. The ingenuousness and obvious openness of these young musicians is truly astounding, as such playing usually requires years of experience. By listening blindly to this music no one would be able to guess the young age of these musicians. The music is also quite complex and sophisticated, and yet flows elegantly and smoothly without awaking antagonism or hardship in the listener. Organized chaos or restrained freedom come to mind, but the only way to comprehend this music is of course to listen to it. At some moments the music is also more relaxed and fluid, but usually that is just a starting point of another intensive improvisation part. The individual statements are all excellent, and diametrically different. Personally my "hero" on this album is Rozalski, who builds wonderful bass intros, full of tension and anticipation. But the guitar work by Wojcik is also superb, regardless if it is beautifully melodic or completely distorted. But Maczynski and Szablowski contribute equally well and this music is first and foremost an ensemble statement, which works splendidly. Overall this is a splendid debut effort, which shows tons of potential and again confirms the incredible strength of the young Polish Jazz scene, which never ceases to amaze. It is frightening to think what these guys will come up with next! Not to be missed!

Updated: 29/07/2018Posted: 29/07/2018

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FRANCISZEK POSPIESZALSKI QUINTET ~ JAZZ.PL VOL.3 POLSKIE RAADIO 2417 (Barcode: 5907812247140) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz Recorded: 2021 Released: 2022 This is the fourth album by Polish Jazz bassist / composer Franciszek PospieszalskiFind albums by this artist, recorded in a quintet setting with trumpeter Piotr DamasiewiczFind albums by this artist, saxophonist Marek PospieszalskiFind albums by this artist, pianist Grzegorz TarwidFind albums by this artist and drummer Bartosz SzablowskiFind albums by this artist. The album presents arrangements of four compositions by Charles MingusFind albums by this artist and one by Jack WalrathFind albums by this artist, all of which originate from the seminal Mingus albums “Changes OneFind albums with this title” and “Changes TwoFind albums with this title” released in 1975. The album was recorded live by Polish Radio during a series of concerts entitled Jazz.pl, hence the title. I have to admit that at the first glace it looked to me as a very cheeky idea to undertake a “face to face” with some of the Jazz “holy ground”: an absolute peak of Mingus career as composer and bandleader and classic American Jazz legacy. These young Polish cats will have to prove being worthy of even playing this music, let alone playing around with it. It is with great relief and satisfaction that I find this attempt to be successful and astonishingly creative. The quintet manages successfully to Europeanize the music, by adding many minor, by highly significant touches, which appear all over this music quite unexpectedly. These highly skilled musicians have a lot of fun on the way and show clearly that they are able to take these wonderful compositions to new places, which Mingus would have never even thought of, but I am pretty sure he would have approved of. I am sending this music to my Friend Jack Walrath to hear his input on it, and I can imagine his face when he listens to these interpretations. With all due respect to Franciszek Pospieszalski for the idea and initiative, the true hero of this album is obviously Tarwid, who is in charge of most of the modifications via his charmingly brilliant piano work, twisting the entire aesthetics of this music. But to be fair, all five of these young devils play superbly from start to finish. Overall, this is an absolutely marvelous album, which shows how a fifty years old music, as genius as it originally was, can be revitalized, expanded and subtly redirected, all by using European Jazz shticks and tricks, to became even more brilliant than originally conceived. I bow my head in awe and respect!

Updated: 03/03/2023Posted: 03/03/2023

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RASP LOVERS ~ ROMANTIC ALTERNATIVE SCHIZOPHRENIC PUNK HOWARD 4 (Barcode: 5903420816273) ~ POLAND ~ Avant-Garde Jazz-Rock Fusion Recorded: 2019 Released: 2019 This is the debut album by the Polish Jazz ensemble RASP LoversFind albums by this artist, led by guitarist Szymon WojcikFind albums by this artist and also including saxophonist Jerzy MaczynskiFind albums by this artist, pianist Marcel BalinskiFind albums by this artist, bassist Rafal RozalskiFind albums by this artist and drummer Bartosz SzablowskiFind albums by this artist. However, four of the above listed musicians (all except Balinski) appeared last year as members of the P.E. QuartetFind albums by this artist which released their debut album "CokolwiekFind albums with this title" then, so one might wonder why the change of moniker? The album presents eleven original compositions, all by Wojcik. The music was recorded at the Monochrom Studio and engineered by Ignacy GruszeckiFind albums by this artist, who is probably the only person on earth up to the task. To my surprise the music on this album does not continue the direction of the above mentioned P.E. Quartet´s debut album, which perhaps answers the question about the name change. It is a harsh, often conflicting amalgam of many musical elements, from Avant-Garde, Jazz, Rock and Punk (more in attitude than musically). As a result the music shakes the listener at first contact, which perhaps is the desired effect. It is very difficult to find a coherent direction or concept in this music at first, again perhaps intentionally so, with the music jumping between rocky riffs and improvised music parts without warning and which, as a result, can be quite masochistic for a casual listener. But on the other hand one has to admire the non-conformism and the courage to follow the Artistic vision, which obviously stands behind this music. The five musicians all perform wonderfully and imaginatively throughout this album, creating absorbing flow and fascinating moments, given the opportunity to be heard and noticed. It takes time and patience to create a mental bridge to this music, which probably very few listeners are able to build eventually, and which is probably not a primary concern of the music´s creators. For hardened Improvised Music / Avant-Garde fanatics this is an obvious chaotic heaven, the rest of the world – you have been warned ;)

Updated: 14/12/2019Posted: 14/12/2019

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DARIUSZ ZIOLEK ~ FORGET NOT YET SJ 067 (Barcode: 5902596066987) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz Recorded: 2022 Released: 2022 This is an album by Polish Blues / Jazz bass guitarist / composer Dariusz ZiolekFind albums by this artist, recorded in a quartet setting with Cuban clarinetist / saxophonist / trumpeter Joaquin SosaFind albums by this artist, pianist Grzegorz ZiolekFind albums by this artist and drummer Bartosz SzablowskiFind albums by this artist. The album presents nine original compositions, seven by Dariusz Ziolek and two by Grzegorz Ziolek (son of Dariusz). The album offers an excellent sound quality, which is very important in delivering the music as naturally and acoustically, as it was intended. The music is all beautifully melodic Jazz, consisting mostly of low-key ballads with strong melancholic / lyrical feel. The level of the compositions is excellent and the entire duration of the album is a pleasant, relaxing experience. There are no surprises or unforeseen explorations, but the delivery is solid and the music flows coherently. The electric bass gets naturally more than usual soloing opportunities, in view of the fact that it is played by the leader, but most of the solo parts are performed by Sosa and Grzegorz Ziolek. Dariusz Ziolek is of course an excellent musician and his smooth, lingering bass lines are at the epicenter of the music, clearly audible for the entire duration of the album. Overall, this is a highly entertaining musical encounter, superbly put together and full of well composed music, which should make all mainstream / melodic Jazz listeners perfectly happy. The simplicity and relaxed atmosphere are a completely valid alternative, as long as they are backed by professional support and talent, which certainly are plentiful herein.

Updated: 28/01/2023Posted: 28/01/2023

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