Record Reviews

MOW ~ HISTORIE ZEBRANE HEVHETIA 0169 (Barcode: 8588005258319) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz-Pop Fusion Recorded: 2017 Released: 2018 This is the debut album by Polish ensemble MOWFind albums by this artist, which comprises of vocalist / songwriter Ania BratekFind albums by this artist, pianist Aga DerlakFind albums by this artist, bassist Mateusz SzewczykFind albums by this artist and drummer Patryk ZakrzewskiFind albums by this artist. Guitarist Jakub MizerackiFind albums by this artist guests on three tracks. The album presents eleven original songs, all featuring lyrics (in Polish language) written by Bratek and all but one were composed by Bratek and one co-composed by her. All songs were arranged by the ensemble members. The album was recorded at the Monochrom Studio and was engineered by Ignacy GruszeckiFind albums by this artist, with the expected excellent sonic result. The music is a Jazzed-up Alternative Pop, but basically eschews clear genre classification. The focus is naturally on the lead vocals, accompanied by a piano trio, which collectively offers a constant stylistic duality between the vocal parts, which are more Soul / Pop oriented and the instrumental piano trio parts, which are clearly Jazz related. The mixture does work together well and the album is an interesting listening experience. For the Polish speaking audiences, the well crafted and intelligent lyrics offer an additional benefit. Bartek´s vocal delivery is somewhat theatrical, which emphasizes the messages delivered by the lyrics. She is able to express the emotions as well as the melodic / harmonic contents with ease and sincere involvement, and her compositions are exciting and diverse enough to make the music flow swiftly and keep the listener interested all the way through. The instrumental work is also excellent, which is hardly surprising as Derlak´s piano playing already earned her a lot of attention in spite of her young age and short mileage. The rhythm section sticks to the Jazzy formula with great bass lines and inventive drumming moving the music forward. Mizeracki´s guitar parts are also admirable and it´s a pity he wasn’t featured as a regular member of the band. Overall this is an excellent debut offering, which will hopefully be followed by new music soon. The two female Artists on this album are a sign of the growing role of the Women Power in Polish Jazz, which is wonderful of course. Kudos to the Slovak HevhetiaFind albums on this label label for supporting the Polish music scene since several years, and for offering new opportunities and exposure to creative Artists, which the local Polish record industry is unable to contain. Well done Milady and all the best in the years to come!

Updated: 22/12/2018Posted: 22/12/2018

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FREDERIK VILLMOW ~ LIVE IN COPENHAGEN AMP 052 (Barcode: 013415901510) ~ GERMANY ~ Jazz Recorded: 2019 Released: 2019 This is the debut album by the young German (resident in Norway) Jazz drummer Frederik VillmowFind albums by this artist recorded with his quartet which also includes German saxophonist Marc DoffeyFind albums by this artist, Danish pianist Carl WintherFind albums by this artist and Norwegian bassist Julian HauglandFind albums by this artist. The quartet is expanded into a quintet with the addition of the veteran Swedish saxophonist Tomas FranckFind albums by this artist. The music was recorded live at the legendary Jazzhus Montmartre club in Copenhagen and presents seven tracks, five of which are original compositions (three by Villmow and two by Franck) and two are standards. The music is typical European modern mainstream, mostly post Bebop oriented, based on solid melodic themes, which serve as basis for extended improvisations by the quintet members. The album does not venture into any experimental ground and stays on solid conventional Jazz path. The focus of the album is on the fiery, scorching soloing by the saxophonists and the pianist, which offers an intense barrage of notes and superb highly energetic virtuosic display of Jazz energy, except for one intimate duo track (sax and bass). The rhythm section supports the soloists formidably and with an obvious display of youthful energy, which suits the music perfectly. The ensemble playing, especially considering the fact that this is a live recording, is excellent and all the musicians seem to be in high spirits obviously enjoying the opportunity to play together. Overall this is a classic, highly energetic mainstream Jazz album, full of excellent music and heartfelt performances, which should satisfy any true Jazz lover around the globe. Warmly recommended!

Updated: 23/09/2019Posted: 23/09/2019

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FREDERIK VILLMOW ~ MOMENTUM LOSEN 278 (Barcode: 7090025832789) ~ GERMANY ~ Jazz Recorded: 2022 Released: 2023 This is the third album by German (resident in Norway) drummer / composer Frederik VillmowFind albums by this artist, recorded in a quintet setting, with Norwegian musicians: pianist Olga KonkovaFind albums by this artist, saxophonists Gisle JohansenFind albums by this artist and Erlend Vangen KongtorpFind albums by this artist and bassist Julian HauglandFind albums by this artist. The album presents nine tracks, all of which are original compositions by the leader and the participating musicians. Two tracks are solo drums improvisations, one is a duo (drums / saxophone) improvisation and another two are trio (drums / piano / saxophone) improvisations, which leaves four fully composed ensemble pieces, including the title track, which are naturally the longest tracks on the album. The music is excellent modern Jazz, melody based to some extent but with a lot of breathing space and freedom, which allows the participants to improvise extensively. The music flows coherently from one track to the next, offering an interesting aural journey, spiced with excellent soloing. As it often happens with drummers’ albums, the level of composition is highly surprising, and this album follows the pattern. Although Villmow is an excellent drummer by all standards, his music goes far beyond just drumming skills, presenting a refined ensemble sound and complex flow of ideas. He is definitely in the center of the performances throughout, but his drumming is certainly not just a showoff of his abilities, but the driving force of the ensemble. The album offers a nice balance between the composed pieces and the solo / duo / trio improvisations, which is easier for the listener to follow than albums dedicated completely to Improvised Music, which can be overbearing. Overall, this is an excellent modern Jazz album, with great compositions and brilliant performances, full of excitement and intelligent exchange of ideas. It offers the European approach to Jazz at its best, and is not actually that much Nordic Jazz oriented, despite its origin. Most warmly recommended!

Updated: 13/05/2023Posted: 13/05/2023

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VILLMOW, MICHAEL / KBB ~ N LIPSTICK 89004 ~ GERMANY ~ Jazz-Rock Fusion German guitarist and band leader Michael Villmow is well known in the European jazz circles. This is an excellent fusion album with his KBB (Koln Big Band - not to be confused with the Japanese fusion group KBB!), which is a rather unusual approach to fusion involving an entire Big Band. Excellent compositions and many interesting solos, all this with the powerful sound of the Big Band.

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