Record Reviews

KAROLINA KOWALCZEWSKA ~ CHIARA NOT ON LABEL ~ POLAND ~ Jazz-Classical Fusion Recorded: 2014 Released: 2014 This is the debut album by Polish Jazz pianist / composer Karolina KowalczewskaFind albums by this artist, recorded with a core trio consisting of bassist Maurizio RolliFind albums by this artist and drummer Jozef EliashFind albums by this artist, which is joined on various tracks by saxophonists Mariusz MielcarekFind albums by this artist, Adam WendtFind albums by this artist and Michal KobojekFind albums by this artist, a couple of vocalists, a violinist, a choir and even a symphonic orchestra (sampled mind you) arranged by Leszek KulakowskiFind albums by this artist on the opening track. The album presents eight original compositions, all by Kowalczewska, with one of them being repeated twice as the opening and closing track. Kowalczewska is clearly flirting with both the Classical and Jazz idioms, a perilous game, which is rarely very successful. The music ranges from forms like a concerto for orchestra and sax, via a choir psalm and saxophone trio (with a lot of almost free blowing) which slowly degrades to a bluesy ballad in which the trio supports a lengthy saxophone solo, a series of mainstream quartet pieces, three vocal tracks and a sax quartet to round things up: altogether an unimpressive hodgepodge of musical ditties lacking any coherence or sense of direction. Yes there are some nice melodic themes and nice sax solos but in all honesty there is nothing here which deserves special attention or something that wasn´t played endless times before at best and at it´s worst moments this albums sounds like a junior high school band, completely amateurish. I am truly sorry but this stuff is really embarrassing and releasing this material for the world to hear is a major misjudgment of quality, which should be avoided at all cost.

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JECEK PELC ~ ON THE ROAD JACEK PELC RECORDS 006 (Barcode: 5908254159572) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz-Funk Fusion Recorded: 2015 Released: 2016 This is a wonderful live album by Polish Jazz / Fusion drummer / composer / bandleader Jacek PelcFind albums by this artist, recorded in a quartet setting with saxophonist Maciej SikalaFind albums by this artist, keyboardist Bartosz HadalaFind albums by this artist (resident in Canada) and Italian bassist Maurizio RolliFind albums by this artist. The album presents seven tracks, six of which are original compositions by Pelc and one is an arrangement of a famous Pop song by the group SkaldowieFind albums by this artist, dedicated to the memory of the great Polish guitarist / composer Jaroslaw SmietanaFind albums by this artist, with whom Pelc played for many years. The music is a mixture of mainstream Jazz and Funk / Groove, with excellent melody lines and superb rhythmic approach. As such it is easily accessible to a wide range of Jazz and Fusion listeners, who enjoy sophisticated individual contributions by the band members, which are the highlight of this album. All four instrumentalists really play their hearts out, each contributing several outstanding solos and the quartet performs like a well oiled reliable mechanism, which never fails. Rolli is the great surprise on this album, as his virtuosic performances are simply breathtaking both when he plays his wonderfully structured solos and when he amicably accompanies his fellow band members. His electric bass performances are among the finest one can find anywhere on record in recent years. Pelc also does a great job behind the drums, playing very intensively but at the same time not overriding the other band members. He is one of the most melodic / musical drummers on the Polish Jazz scene, something I recently had an opportunity to witness in person. Overall this is an honest, extremely well played Jazz / Funk album, which is a great fun to listen to, and which will hopefully reach many fans of the genre around the world, as it truly deserves. It proves that the veteran Polish Jazz scene is still alive and kicking, contrary to the general media trend, which often tends to overlook or plainly forget these wonderful musicians. Fans of virtuosic electric bass playing and students of the instrument simply must grab a copy of this album to realize what this instrument can do in the right hands. Well done!

Updated: 04/10/2016Posted: 04/10/2016

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