Record Reviews

MONOSIES ~ STORIES OF THE GRAY CITY SOLITON 742 (Barcode: 5901571097428) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz Recorded: 2016 - 2017 Released: 2017 This is the debut album by the Polish Jazz quintet MonosiesFind albums by this artist, led by guitarist / composer Lukasz KomalaFind albums by this artist, which also includes trumpeter Zbigniew SzwajdychFind albums by this artist, pianist Michal SalamonFind albums by this artist, bassist Krzysztof AugustynFind albums by this artist and drummer Mateusz KaronFind albums by this artist. The album presents eight original compositions, all by Komala. The music is very melodic, well within mainstream Jazz with slight Fusion touches, which are pretty natural when lead guitar is involved. Most of the tunes are pretty slow tempo, melancholic / romantic in nature, but excellently put together. Typically for the young generation of Polish Jazz musicians, the musicians mature with solid compositional abilities, which is apparent on almost all debut albums released on the Polish Jazz scene. All the eight tunes on this album are little gems, which are a pleasure to listen to. All the members of the quintet are also excellent instrumentalists. Szwajdych plays several superb trumpet solos, which are well suited to the melodic line of the compositions. Salamon plays fluidly and always with the exact dynamics required at each specific moment, Augustyn solidly supports the flow of the music with his bottom line pulsations and Karon keeps the energy of the music kicking in. Komala produces some very unusual guitar sounds, especially when playing chords, obviously using a plethora of electronic devices. His solos are more Fusion than Jazz oriented, but they are concise, coherent and elegant, and certainly avoid the unnecessary doodling that plagues most contemporary Fusion recordings. Overall this is an excellent debut album, which is full of great tunes and excellent performances. Guitar fans should have a lot of fun with this, but all melodic Jazz connoisseurs will find this album to be an exciting listening experience. Perhaps not very innovative, but this is definitely a sold, well executed project which presents Komala as a gifted composer and the entire ensemble as an eloquent group of young Jazz lions. Well done indeed!

Updated: 10/11/2017Posted: 10/11/2017

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MICHAL SALAMON ~ LION`S GATE NOT ON LABEL (Barcode: 5903802495409) ~ POLAND ~ Smooth Jazz Recorded: 2019 Released: 2020 This is the debut album as a leader by Polish Jazz pianist / composer Michal SalamonFind albums by this artist recorded in a quintet setting with trumpeter Zbigniew SzwajdychFind albums by this artist, violinist Mikolaj KostkaFind albums by this artist, bassist Milosz SkwirutFind albums by this artist and drummer Dawid FortunaFind albums by this artist. The album presents ten original compositions, all by Salamon. The music is all very melodic, melancholic and lyrical, developing very slowly and without much dynamics. It is only marginally Jazz oriented and could be easily considered Smooth Jazz or New Age. Although the team includes some very talented young Polish Jazz musicians, there are very little opportunities offered to Kostka or Szwajdych to improvise and solo extensively and the music is dominated by repetitive waves of piano phrases. The melodies are pretty similar to each other and there is not much happening for the duration of the album musically beyond what one can hear in the first few minutes. Yes, it is all very pretty and smooth, but it does not convey any musical message unfortunately. The album’s artwork is full of mystical / spiritual symbols as are the titles of the compositions, reflecting the New Age spirit behind the album. Overall for me this album is quite disappointing, especially since Salamon’s earlier recordings sounded way more promising. This music often sounds very similar to the music of Leszek MozdzerFind albums by this artist, who is a master playing such soulless music – lots of notes, no content. Of course this is only me, sorry Michal, not this time…

Updated: 19/03/2021Posted: 19/03/2021

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STANISLAW SLOWINSKI ~ LANDSCAPES TOO EASY TO EXPLAIN HEVHETIA 0139 (Barcode: 8588005257978) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz Recorded: 2016 Released: 2016 This is the debut album by a quintet led by Polish Jazz violinist / composer Stanislaw SlowinskiFind albums by this artist, which also includes trumpeter Zbigniew SzwajdychFind albums by this artist, pianist Katarzyna PietrzkoFind albums by this artist, bassist Justyn MalodobryFind albums by this artist and drummer Maksymilian OlszewskiFind albums by this artist. Together they perform seven original compositions, all by the leader. The music is an excellent example of modern Polish Jazz, which although melody based and well within the mainstream convention, manages to maintain a very high level of compositions and performances. It is soaked with typical Polish melancholy and Slavic melodic motifs, and of course focuses on the violin as the leading instrument, and as a result one can hardly find a more spiritually "Polish Jazz" album than this one. The pairing of the violin and the trumpet as the two lead instruments proves to be extremely effective and harmonically attuned, in spite of its rarity. As usual with the new generation of the Polish Jazz musicians, Slowinski, despite his young age, has already an impressive list of accomplishments to his credit, which includes leading / membership in several projects, including as diverse directions as Improvised Music on one hand and Classical Music on the other. This album, which sits, as already mentioned, comfortably within the mainstream Jazz idiom, presents yet another facet of Slowinski´s versatility and is primarily dedicated to presenting his compositions. But of course his performances on the violin are full of beautiful sensitivity and technical excellence. It is worth mentioning that Slowinski is yet another representative of the Polish Jazz Violin School, which enjoys an incredible renaissance in the last decade, and places Poland in the leading position as far as violin artistry is concerned in the Jazz field. He joins the ranks of many of his colleagues, who proudly continue the traditional role of the violin as one of the most expressive instruments available to mankind. The rest of the quintet members are all of course excellent performers as well. Szwajdych delivers melodic accompaniment and excellent solo parts, Pietrzko lays out the harmonic layer upon which the tunes progress and fills the gaps with her delicate but solid statements, and hopefully will play more solo parts on future recordings. The rhythm sections provides admirable and flawless support to the soloists, and plays always at the right levels to make the music a whole bigger that the sum of its parts. This is definitely a very impressive debut, which comes with a firm recommendation to follow these wonderful young people in their future endeavors. Well done indeed!

Updated: 30/12/2016Posted: 30/12/2016

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STANISLAW SLOWINSKI ~ VISIONS – VIOLIN CONCERTO NO.1 NOT ON LABEL ~ POLAND ~ Jazz-Classical Fusion Recorded: 2018 Released: 2020 This is the third album as a leader by young Polish Jazz violinist / composer Stanislaw SlowinskiFind albums by this artist, recorded with a Jazz septet comprising of musicians that took part in the recording of the two earlier albums: trumpeter Zbigniew SzwajdychFind albums by this artist, saxophonist / flautist Marta WajdzikFind albums by this artist, guitarist Szymon MikaFind albums by this artist, pianist Kuba PluzekFind albums by this artist, bassist Justyn MalodobryFind albums by this artist and drummer Dawid FortunaFind albums by this artist, as well as the AUKSO Chamber OrchestraFind albums by this artist conducted by Marek MosFind albums by this artist. The music, recorded live, presents a violin concerto in three movements, and includes both the audio (CD) and video (DVD) version of the premiere performance of the concerto. The music is a typical romantic Classical concerto, incorporating melodic themes strongly based on Polish folkloristic influences, full of melancholy and beautiful lyricism. The Jazz and Classical elements are loosely integrated, which causes the music to move between the Classical and Jazz worlds rather than present a unified / amalgamated approach, with the solo violin parts serving as a bridge between the two worlds. As expected, the performances, both by the septet members and the string orchestra, are excellent from start to finish, as are the violin solo parts by Slowinski. He joins the ranks of the young Polish violin stars, which are constantly growing, building the new generation of the Polish Jazz Violin School. This ambitious undertaking is perhaps a tad too tamed overall, with Slowinski taking no risks and following 19th Century Classical Music conventions and mainstream Jazz patterns, whereas contemporary listeners probably expect a little more experimentation these days. Having said that, this album is a solid, well structured and beautifully performed piece of music, which can be enjoyed by a wide range of listeners, both from the Jazz and Classical Music circles. Definitely worth investigating!

Updated: 11/01/2023Posted: 20/02/2020

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STANISLAW SLOWINSKI ~ VISIONS (BETWEEN LOVE AND DEATH) HEVHETIA 0163 (Barcode: 8588005258265) ~ POLAND ~ Jazz Recorded: 2017 Released: 2017 This is the second album by Polish Jazz violinist / composer Stanislaw SlowinskiFind albums by this artist, recorded in a sextet setting with two of the musicians who played on his debut: trumpeter Zbigniew SzwajdychFind albums by this artist and bassist Justyn MalodobryFind albums by this artist and three new players: guitarist Szymon MikaFind albums by this artist, pianist Kuba PluzekFind albums by this artist and drummer Dawid FortunaFind albums by this artist. Vocalist Joanna SlowinskaFind albums by this artist guests on one track. The album presents seven original compositions, six of which were composed by Slowinski and one is a collective improvisation. The music is a continuation of the approach initiated by the debut, with major emphasis on the compositions, which have a suite-like structure, such that the entire album could be considered as one continuous piece of music. Although clearly melody based, the music allows individual freedom of expression and personal interpretation by the sextet members. The melodic themes are again mostly very lyrical and somewhat melancholic, but at the same time dynamic and multi-layered enough to keep the listener at his toes. As expected form the sextet´s lineup, which consists of some of the most prominent representatives of the young Polish Jazz scene, the individual contributions are all fabulous. Szwajdych is the romantic element, Mika the Fusion oriented vigorous voice and the leader takes the role of a charmer, with his violin seductively swirling around the basic melody lines. With these three front-line players sadly there is very little solo space left for Pluzek, who is an excellent player but is limited here mostly (except for one track) to the role of an accompanist, which of course he fulfills perfectly. The dynamic rhythm section is an integral part of the sextet and steers the soloists safely across the sometimes troubled waters of the tricky compositions. Overall this is an excellent sophomore album, which definitely stands up to the expectations aroused by the debut. The Polish Jazz violin school is proudly developing before our very eyes, which is a source of joy, and albums like this one confirm that Polish / European Jazz is doing well and manages to avoid stagnation. Well done indeed!

Updated: 01/02/2018Posted: 01/02/2018

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