Record Reviews
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  | BAGLAND ~ CIRKEL
JAEGER COMMUNITY MUSIC 030 (Barcode: 5707471059821) ~ DENMARK ~ Jazz
Recorded: 2018 Released: 2019
This is the third album by the Danish quintet BaglandFind albums by this artist led by trumpeter / composer Jakob SorensenFind albums by this artist with guitarist Alex JonssonFind albums by this artist, keyboardist Mathias JaegerFind albums by this artist, bassist Frederik SakhamFind albums by this artist and drummer Frej LesnerFind albums by this artist. The album presents nine original compositions (one repeated twice as the intro and outro), seven of which were composed by Sorensen and one each by Jaeger and Sakham.
The music is a type of spacey Nordic melodic Jazz, based on beautiful melodic lines and executed with a rather minimalistic approach, which leaves a lot of breathing space and creates a very atmospheric ambience, somewhat resembling the work of Polish Jazz Master Tomasz StankoFind albums by this artist.
The music, in spite of its seemingly modest exterior, is in fact very diverse and offers a wide palette of melodies, harmonies and sounds, which are wonderfully coherent and emotionally effective. The album has a natural flow taking the listener from one tune to another as if time has stopped.
Sorensen has an excellent tone and his solo parts are all brilliantly executed, but all the rest of the quintet members also offer superb level of musicianship and unique instrumental abilities, especially so Jonsson on guitar, who plays some amazing and highly unusual guitar parts, as well as Jaeger, who is able to play romantic piano parts and spice the music with synthesized sounds. The rhythm section is also excellent, providing a solid and steady pulse which enables the soloist to express their parts with amicable support.
Overall this is a fascinating album from start to end, often surprising and always fresh, proving that the young Scandinavian / European Jazz scene is moving forward constantly. Highly recommended to connoisseurs of modern European Jazz, and of course trumpet buffs, which should have a field day with this album!
| | Updated: 09/06/2019Posted: 09/06/2019 | CD 1 Digipak Recommend To A Friend |
  | BAGLAND ~ STATES OF BEING
JAEGER COMMUNITY MUSIC 068 (Barcode: 5707471084144) ~ DENMARK ~ Jazz
Recorded: 2021 - 2022 Released: 2022
This is the fourth album by Danish Jazz quintet BaglandFind albums by this artist, led by trumpeter / composer Jakob SorensenFind albums by this artist, which also includes guitarist Alex JonssonFind albums by this artist, keyboardist Mathias JaegerFind albums by this artist, bassist Frederik SakhamFind albums by this artist and drummer Frej LesnerFind albums by this artist. Cellist Josefine OpsahlFind albums by this artist and violinist Anna JalvingFind albums by this artist appear as guests. The album presents ten original compositions, four by Lesner, three by Jaeger and one each by Sakham, Jonsson and Sorensen.
The music continues the almost ambient Nordic Jazz character of its predecessor, but adds synthesizer and strings, which significantly changes its sound character. The minimalistic approach to clear melodies and spare instrumental parts remains intact, and is still highly effective, placing Bagland apart from most other Scandinavian contemporary ensembles.
Offering all the members to contribute their compositions also paid out big time, as the album’s coherence, diversity and flow was greatly improved on this album, making it not only more listenable, but simply graceful and elegant.
The individual performances are all as perfect as one might expect from these well trained and already quite experienced musicians. Bagland is definitely more about ensemble performance than soloing, which of course does not mean that everybody gets enough space herein to show their chops.
Overall, this is a wonderful album, full of graceful music and excellent performances, which proudly represents the Scandinavian Jazz tradition and innovation, which these young musicians dare to introduce, refusing to simply repeat the past achievements. It might take a while for Jazz listeners less acquainted with that specific European Jazz flavor, but for those patient ones the reward will be forthcoming. It is great to see the band moving forward and a true pleasure to hear this wonderful music!
| | Updated: 19/07/2022Posted: 19/07/2022 | CD 1 Digipak Recommend To A Friend |
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