Record Reviews

ANDY LUMPP TRIO / ANDRZEJ PRZYBIELSKI ~ MUSIC FROM PLANET EARTH NABEL 4687 (Barcode: 4011471468721) ~ GERMANY ~ Free Jazz / Improvised Music Recorded: 2000 Released: 2000 This is an album by German pianist / composer Andy LumppFind albums by this artist, recorded with his trio: bassist Heinrich ChastcaFind albums by this artist and drummer Stefan HoelkerFind albums by this artist and with the legendary Polish trumpeter Andrzej PrzybielskiFind albums by this artist. The album presents a live (but without an audience) recording of twelve improvised pieces, co-credited to all the four participating musicians. This is the first of the two albums recorded by the same quartet on the German NabelFind albums on this label Records label. The music is a typical European Free Jazz / Improvised Music setting, which develops slowly and allows for the interaction between the musicians to build up step by step, creating a cohesive and coherent musical expression. The music is mostly subdued and somewhat melancholic, exposing fragments of melodic themes and regular rhythms, which quickly dissolve into the next chapter of the improvisation. The individual performances are all excellent and show the great respect and comradeship between the players, which allows for solo, duo, trio and quartet passages, all worked out in real time. For Free Jazz / Improvised Music connoisseurs this is an instant classic. Przybielski plays some incredible phrases here and his superb dynamics, power of expression and genius are captured here for posterity. The album is a very important part of Przybielski´s relatively limited discography, being one of the very few recordings capturing him with musicians coming from outside of Poland and also one of the recordings with a very high recording quality, which enables proper presentation of the incredibly diverse range of sounds produced by him. Overall this is an excellent album in the Free Jazz / Improvised Music idiom, definitely worth seeking out and for Polish Jazz collectors this is an absolute must!

Updated: 14/02/2022Posted: 14/02/2022

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ANDY LUMPP TRIO / ANDRZEJ PRZYBIELSKI ~ MUSICA EX SPIRITU SANCTO NABEL 4694 (Barcode: 4011471469421) ~ GERMANY ~ Free Jazz / Improvised Music Recorded: 2001 Released: 2002 This is an album by German pianist / composer Andy LumppFind albums by this artist, recorded with his trio: bassist Heinrich ChastcaFind albums by this artist and drummer Stefan HoelkerFind albums by this artist and with the legendary Polish trumpeter Andrzej PrzybielskiFind albums by this artist. The album presents a live recording of an eight-part musical improvisation, recorded in a monastery. All the music is co-credited to the four musicians participating in the recording. This is the second of the two albums recorded by the same quartet. The music is a typical European Free Jazz / Improvised Music conception, which develops slowly and allows for the interaction between the musicians to build up step by step, creating a cohesive and coherent musical expression. The music is mostly subdued and somewhat melancholic, exposing fragments of melodic themes and regular rhythms, which quickly dissolve into the next chapter of the improvisation. The individual performances are all excellent and show the great respect and comradeship between the players, which allows for solo, duo, trio and quartet passages, all worked out in real time. For Free Jazz / Improvised Music connoisseurs this is an instant classic. Przybielski plays some incredible phrases here and his superb dynamics, power of expression and genius are captured here for posterity. The album is a very important part of Przybielski´s relatively limited discography, being one of the very few recordings capturing him with musicians coming from outside of Poland and also one of the recordings with a very high recording quality, which enables proper presentation of the incredibly diverse range of sounds produced by him. Overall this is an excellent album in the Free Jazz idiom, definitely worth seeking out and for Polish Jazz collectors this is an absolute must!

Updated: 14/02/2022Posted: 02/05/2017

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TONY OXLEY ~ UNRELEASED 1974-2016 DISCUS 129 (Barcode: 5051078993126) ~ UK ~ Free Jazz / Improvised Music Recorded: 1974 - 2016 Released: 2022 This is an archival album compiling recordings by British Jazz drummer / violinist / composer / improviser / electronicist Tony OxleyFind albums by this artist, recorded between 1974 and 2016 with some of the top British / European Avant-Garde musicians. The first three tracks from 1974 present a quintet with bassist Barry GuyFind albums by this artist, trumpeter Dave HoldsworthFind albums by this artist, pianist Howard RileyFind albums by this artist and trombonist Paul RutherfordFind albums by this artist. Although recorded in 1974, the music was much later into the form present on this album in later dates between 2005 and 2020. Next track from 1981 presents a quintet with guitarist Hugh MetcalfeFind albums by this artist, Riley, saxophonist Larry StabbinsFind albums by this artist and violinist / electronicist Philipp WachsmannFind albums by this artist and finally the last track presents a duo with German percussionist Stefan HoelkerFind albums by this artist. All the music was all composed by Oxley. The album is a spectacular showcase of British / European Improvised Music at its best and has very limited to what most people consider as Jazz, sonically exploring interstellar space rather that our humble earthy neighborhood, but obviously preserving the improvising spirit and using sound as a metaphysical medium to express emotion and artistic expression. The three early tracks form 1974 are perhaps the most remarkable, considering the date of recording, which proves that Oxley already at that time was light-years ahead of most the other musical explorers at the time. The absolute freedom from any references and restrictions characterizes these recordings as completely pioneering at the time, and honestly standing up to anything created in Improvised Music ever since. Kudos to Oxley for releasing these recordings from his personal vaults and to Martin ArcherFind albums by this artist for releasing them faithfully on his DiscusFind albums on this label label, making them available to the world. You make us all spiritually richer being able to listen to this music. Overall, this is a tremendously important historical material, which opens yet another window into the musical legacy of one of the most important British / European Improvising Music personas, which are both delightful and enlightening. An absolute must for Improvising Music followers!

Updated: 05/04/2022Posted: 05/04/2022

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