Record Reviews

FIIL FREE ~ EVERYTHING IS A TRANSLATION FILL FREE 0916 (Barcode: 5707471047866) ~ DENMARK ~ Free Jazz / Improvised Music Recorded: 2016 Released: 2016 This is the third album by Danish Jazz pianist / composer Lars FiilFind albums by this artist, this time recorded with an international septet called Fiil FreeFind albums by this artist, which features also Polish trumpeter Tomasz DabrowskiFind albums by this artist, Swedish guitarist Henrik OlssonFind albums by this artist and four Danish musicians: saxophonist Henrik Pultz MelbyeFind albums by this artist, vibraphonist Martin FabriciusFind albums by this artist, bassist Casper Nyvang RaskFind albums by this artist and drummer Bjorn HeebollFind albums by this artist. Together they perform five original compositions, all by Fiil. The music is a typical European Free Jazz / Improvised Music endeavor, which in spite of its many degrees of freedom is wonderfully well composed, organized, structured and played, presenting a challenging yet coherent listening experience. The individual compositions develop slowly, starting with single notes or chords, gradually increasing in intensity and complexity, taking the listener on a ride along the process of its development. All the participants contribute their personal input, playing solo passages, which often are very different from typical Jazz solos, but play in fact a similar role. These young musicians are amongst the finest European improvisers and can be heard on many other recordings. This particular setting is actually very minimalistic and there is little place to show the individual skills in a very expressive way, but this minimalism pushes the players to their limits and makes them to reinvent their performing techniques. Dabrowski, as usual, plays some stunning passages, proving again that his diversity and talent know no borders, but as already said earlier, this album is not about individual statements, but deals with collective improvisation and cooperative performance. One of the pieces starts off with the septet playing a swinging Bebop tune, which has a wonderful small Big Band feel about it, but of course it soon disintegrates into Free Form collective improvisation, which is sort of decomposing the initial structured statement, only to return to it at the very end. There are many such wonderful surprises as the music progresses and when it finally ends, one is definitely left with a wish for more. Overall this album is another proof that the young European Improvising scene is alive and kicking like never before, creating a melting pot of influences between Scandinavian, East and West European cultures, forging a strong Jazz Culture, which hopefully will last for a long time and keep developing in the process. Not to be missed by any Free Jazz fans anywhere in the world!

Updated: 17/10/2016Posted: 17/10/2016

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FIIL FREE ~ UNDER OVERFLADEN FIIL FREE 0320 ~ DENMARK ~ Free Jazz / Improvised Music Recorded: 2020 Released: 2020 This is the second album by the international septet Fiil FreeFind albums by this artist led by Danish pianist / composer Lars FiilFind albums by this artist and including Polish trumpeter Tomasz DabrowskiFind albums by this artist, Danish saxophonist Henrik Pultz MelbyeFind albums by this artist, Swedish guitarist Henrik OlssonFind albums by this artist and three additional Danish musicians: vibraphonist Martin FabriciusFind albums by this artist, bassist Casper Nyvang RaskFind albums by this artist and drummer Bjorn HeebollFind albums by this artist. The album presents six original compositions, all by Fiil. Musically the album follows the pattern set up by the debut, offering well structured compositions, which are performed with an open attitude of group improvisation, collectively achieving a well organized Free Form, what might be considered as an oxymoron, but works splendidly in practice. The music tenders a typical Scandinavian melancholy and spacey atmosphere, but is full of interesting concepts and the compositions present together a diverse palette of ideas and moods. The sound moves smoothly between intimate and quiet passages and powerful, almost orchestral statements. Obviously this kind of music is heavily dependent on the individual abilities of the participating musicians, and Fiil is lucky to have collected a wonderful group of highly skilled instrumentalists, who are able to offer both splendid individual statements and impressive collective improvisations of the highest level. In many respects this album offers a model for contemporary European Free Jazz, which concentrates on the attempt to combine individual freedom of expression with collective performance, a balance that is quite difficult to achieve in any Artistic endeavor. Fiil and his cohorts manage to get the best out of this specific idiom. And deserve particular credit, especially in view of the fact that they not only managed to repeat the formula but even improved it. Overall this is a brilliant sophomore effort, which proves that the debut was not just a "lucky strike" and offers a clear conceptual approach, which is promising and will be hopefully explored further. For European Free Jazz connoisseurs this is an absolute must!

Updated: 07/05/2020Posted: 07/05/2020

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SCANDINAVIAN ART ENSEMBLE / TOMASZ STANKO ~ THE COPENHAGEN SESSION VOL.1 APRIL 141 (Barcode: 5709498114125) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz Recorded: 2016 Released: 2025 This is a sensational album, which documents a meeting between a group of Scandinavian / Polish young Jazz musicians, called Scandinavian Art EnsembleFind albums by this artist, with the legendary Polish Jazz trumpeter / composer Tomasz StankoFind albums by this artist. As the title suggests, this is the first part of the music recorded during this session. The lineup includes Polish trumpeter Tomasz DabrowskiFind albums by this artist, pianist Artur TuznikFind albums by this artist and drummer Radek WoskoFind albums by this artist, Danish saxophonist Thomas HaasFind albums by this artist, vibraphonist Martin FabriciusFind albums by this artist and bassist Richard AnderssonFind albums by this artist, Finnish vocalist Johanna Elina Katarina SulkunenFind albums by this artist and Islandic trumpeter Snorri SigurdarsonFind albums by this artist, and of course Stanko, which makes it a nonet. The album presents five tracks, all original compositions, one each by Sigurdarson, Fabricius, Sulkunen, Stanko and Andersson. The sound quality of the music is exceptional. The music, although based on composed themes, offers both wonderful ensemble performances and plenty of individual improvisations, all with space allowing free and expanded improvisations by the participants. All the individual performances are excellent, which is hardly surprising considering the explosion of young talents on the European Jazz scene, both in Poland and Scandinavia, as well as the excellent level of academic music education. The mixture of the Polish Jazz lyricism and melancholy and the Scandinavian “Jazz Noir” proves itself very fruitful since the early 1960s, when Polish Jazz musicians started to appear on the Northern scene, including of course Krzysztof KomedaFind albums by this artist. Stanko also collaborated with many Scandinavian musicians during his career, and this album is a natural continuation of this phenomenon. Although there are three trumpeters present here, Jazz aficionados will have no trouble to single out Stanko’s contributions, although since the appearance of Tomasz Dabrowski on the Polish scene, I have repeatedly singled him out as a natural successor of Stanko’s unique style and sound, and this album beautifully exemplifies their similarities, already a decade ago. Overall, this is a brilliant album in every respect, but also a phenomenal addition to the recorded legacy of Tomasz Stanko and Polish Jazz as well of course. I can’t wait to hear the promised second volume of this session, which promises more of these incredible goodies. For Polish Jazz / Stanko buffs, this is of course an absolute / unconditional must have!

Updated: 16/09/2025Posted: 16/09/2025

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