Record Reviews

MICHAL AFTYKA ~ FRUKSTRAKT MULTIKULTI MPJ 027 (Barcode: 5903068683381) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz Recorded: 2023 Released: 2023 This is the debut album by Polish Jazz bassist / composer Michal AftykaFind albums by this artist recorded in a quintet setting with trumpeter Marcin ElszkowskiFind albums by this artist, saxophonist Marcin KonieczkowiczFind albums by this artist, vibraphonist Tymon KosmaFind albums by this artist and drummer Stefan RaczkowskiFind albums by this artist. The album presents eleven tracks, all original compositions by Aftyka. This album is a wonderful verification of my theory that Jazz bassists, despite their seemingly “behind the scenes” role, often are the best composers out there, which has been proven time after time. The brilliant, concise, coherent and non-trivial compositions on this album are a pure delight from start to finish, presenting a wide spectrum of what might be considered as “Chamber Jazz” of the highest class and the album sounds like a progression of musical gems, separate but parts of a greater whole. The instrumentation, with vibraphone / xylophone replacing the traditional role of the piano, is absolutely perfect for this music, adding a unique ambience and taking the harmonic balance into a separate dimension from most common Jazz recordings. The individual performances by the quintet members are all spotless and highly imaginative, although the music is first and foremost an ensemble effort. Unusual meters and “exotic”, but rather vague World Music elements also play an important role in the final result. This music requires a very intensive / attentive listening procedure in order to expose the many layers hidden from a casual exposure, and with each approach displays new hidden treasures. Aftyka’s bass playing is the ultimate frame, which supports all the music, and he masterly leads the structural progression of each tune. The warm, encompassing bass sound holds the complicated melodic / harmonic structures in perfect accord. Overall, this a true Masterpiece of contemporary Polish Jazz and certainly the best debut recording on this year’s long list. It offers a perfect amalgam of highly intelligent compositions and Masterly performances, which refuses to conform and bravely steps into uncharted territory. It makes me extremely happy to see that the young Polish Jazz scene is able to produce such refined, Artistic, aesthetic and mature music as this. A was beginning to wonder…

Updated: 11/12/2023Posted: 11/12/2023

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JERZY MACZYNSKI ~ JERRY & THE PELICAN SYSTEM (POLISH JAZZ VOL.83) WARNER MUSIC POLAND 190295475895 (Barcode: 190295475895) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz Recorded: 2019 Released: 2019 This is the debut album as a leader by young Polish Jazz saxophonist / composer Jerzy MaczynskiFind albums by this artist, recorded with his quintet which also includes trumpeter Marcin ElszkowskiFind albums by this artist, keyboardist Marcel BalinskiFind albums by this artist, bassist Franciszek PospieszalskiFind albums by this artist and drummer / flautist Wiktoria JakubowskaFind albums by this artist. Hindu violinist Apoorva KrishnaFind albums by this artist guests on one track. The album presents eight original compositions, two of which are in three parts and one in two parts – together thirteen tracks. The music was beautifully recorded at the Monochrom Studio, engineered by Ignacy GruszeckiFind albums by this artist. Maczynski is an archetypical representative of contemporary young European Jazz musician: musical education from early age, academic studies in Poland, then Odense in Denmark, then Berklee in Valencia, Spain, recordings, concerts and festivals, a biography that reflects the borderless Europe which allows its young musicians to get exposed to diverse education systems, meet musicians from many different places and cultures and develop their personal styles in a span of just a few years, something that usually took decades to achieve in the not so distant past. It is not surprising therefore to see these young musicians to show characteristics such as diversity, openness and multi-genre / multi-cultural approach to the music they create. The music on this album is exactly like that – an amalgam of influences which encompasses such radically different genres as Rock, Yass (a Polish variety of Jazz rebellion with a strong Punkish attitude), Jazz-Rock Fusion, Free Jazz and even Avant-Garde, spiced with beautifully melodic, almost Popish balladry - a multi culti heaven on earth. One can not avoid an immediate feeling of likeness to the music created by Kuba WiecekFind albums by this artist, who after all is of almost identical age and biographical background, and who is another proud representative of the young Polish Jazz generation. The musical approach that this album reflects has one imminent danger, however. The diversity, as blessed as it is, can, and in this case does, create a slight sensation of lack of musical focus. Perhaps it is the highly emotional debut album responsibility, perhaps the untamed youthfulness, but this music creates an impression that Maczynski tries to say a bit too much in the scope of one album. Strangely (or perhaps not really) the two albums by Wiecek suffer from the same slight predicament. But all things considered, this is by all means a splendid debut effort, full of potential, great promises, exciting musical ideas and superb playing by all the participants. As already stated earlier, many Jazz musicians of older generations had to wait for years to produce an album as rich in contents and talent as this one, which means that congratulation are in order. Since I am writing these words exactly on Jerzy´s birthday (completely accidentally BTW) I can only wish him many future achievements, which will surely outshine this one, surely after such an outstanding liftoff! Side Note The iconic "Polish Jazz" series of recordings, originally released between 1965 and 1989 by the Polish state owned record company Polskie NagraniaFind albums on this label, which used the MuzaFind albums on this label label as its moniker, consists of seventy six LP albums. It presents the history of Polish Jazz recordings during that period, which includes some of the most important Polish / European modern Jazz milestones and reflects the extraordinary development of Jazz music behind the Iron Curtain. It is one of the most important historic documents of Polish Music and of course Polish Culture in general. The series had an eminent logo designed by Roslaw Szaybo and the albums were numbered sequentially from Vol.1 to Vol.76 accordingly. The album's artwork was wonderfully stylish and modernist, featuring the brilliant photographs and characteristic design by the legendary Polish Artist Marek Karewicz. Stylistically the series presented all Jazz genres, from Traditional Jazz to Avant-Garde / Free Jazz, which was extraordinarily liberal considering the cultural censorship imposed by the Socialist Regime. It suffered from some inconsistency, as far as the musical quality and aesthetics were concerned, as well as the internal "politics" of the Polish Jazz scene at the time, but in retrospect it achieved a spectacular overall result, unparalleled as far as consistently documenting a national Jazz scene is concerned. After the Polskie Nagrania catalogue was bought by Warner Music PolandFind albums on this label, the new owner started a reissue process of the Polish Jazz series, carefully remastered, repackaged and including extensive liner notes, which keeps the artwork as close to the original design as possible. So far forty four volumes of the original series were reissued. In 2016 Warner Music Poland decided to continue the original series by releasing new contemporary Polish Jazz recordings under the same format and even to continue the sequential numbering starting with Vol.77 – a decision I personally consider almost sacrilegious. Some things are simply untouchable, and the "Polish Jazz" series is surely one of those things. If Warner Music Poland wants to produce Jazz albums, which is always more than welcome, they could have started a new series, under a new title, rather than exploiting the reputation of the historic series. As a result, some artist whose albums are released as part of the new series might be led to expect instant gratification, fame and stardom, just for being an artificial part of a prestigious past, which of course is as bogus as it is sad.

Updated: 17/03/2020Posted: 17/03/2020

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SUPERMINIMALISM ~ PRELUDE LJF 002 ~ POLAND ~ Jazz Recorded: 2023 Released: 2023 This is the debut album by Polish Jazz quintet SuperminimalismFind albums by this artist, comprising of trumpeter Marcin ElszkowskiFind albums by this artist, saxophonists Robert WypasekFind albums by this artist and Jakub LepaFind albums by this artist, bassist Michal AftykaFind albums by this artist and drummer / percussionist Stefan RaczkowskiFind albums by this artist. The album presents seven short original compositions by Raczkowski, totaling in under half an hour, which makes it an EP rather than a full album. The music offers very interesting approach, with minimalistic motives and unusual sound, with brass and rhythm section only. The music is full of internal tension and simply “asks for” to be developed further, but of course it is the artistic choice of the ensemble to leave it sort of hanging in the air. Despite the fact that the music seems like a teaser / sample, of what the quintet is capable of, it is truly fascinating from start to finish, and definitely does the job of arising the listener’s attention perfectly. Overall, this is a wonderful sample of modern Polish Jazz and the talents of the young generation ready to invade the scene. The compositions are fascinating, the performances highly professional and the result simply enchanting – well done!

Updated: 20/12/2023Posted: 20/12/2023

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