The other founder members, Reid Anderson and Dave King, keep to the band’s ethos and approach to creating music – sometimes intense, sometimes light and humorous, though the occasional air of whimsy no longer accompanies them. On their second album together, the two newer members of the band, Chris Speed and Ben Monder, bring a broad palette, offering new dimensions and textures.

The new format asserts itself from the opening track, Anderson’s Grid/Ocean. Building in intensity from the simple opening drum pattern, Monder’s ethereal treated guitar adds depth whilst Speed’s saxophone scales the heights. Culminating in a return to King’s repeated tom tom figures, it’s as if the album is encapsulated in one intensely emotional, sparsely beautiful track.

At the other end of the record is Monder’s Li Po. This slowly edges along as if finding a path from Monder’s arpeggios through some impressionistic free sections to the abstract soundscape of more textured guitar. In between are several faster tunes, such as Speed’s Cupcakes One, which feels almost punky, and Anderson’s rocky Deep Water Sharks.

The Bad Plus have kept many of their distinguishing features even as they have developed in other ways. Anderson’s thoughtful approach to composition results in some beautiful tunes; King’s sometimes off-kilter, skitterish drumming adds an irreverent, humorous touch. But the addition of guitar and saxophone bring more resources, more dimensions, and the result is a wonderfully balanced collection of tunes.

Patrick Hadfield lives in Edinburgh, occasionally takes photographs, and sometimes blogs at On the Beat.

The post The Bad Plus – ‘Complex Emotions’ first appeared on UK Jazz News.

Paying tribute to his legacy in his centenary year was Charles Tolliver, who played with Roach in the 1960s and 70s. In the first half, Tolliver lead a septet playing Roach’s music from the 1950s and 60s, particularly from his bands with Clifford Brown – perhaps the quintessential band in the transition from bebop to hard bop.

Filling the drum seat was Darrel Green – a role he fulfilled admirably. Joining Tolliver in the front line were Camille Thurman on tenor and vocals and tenor, and Tony Kofi on alto. Completing the rhythm section were pianist Danny Piers, bassist Larry Bartley and percussionist Cheikh Diop.

Thurman was a strong presence on saxophone, but she came into her own on the deeply spiritual vocals on Members Don’t Got Weary. This was an powerfully anthemic performance that reached back to Roach’s civil rights resistance with his wife, singer Abbey Lincoln, but was painfully resonant today, too.

Closing the first half was Garvey’s Ghost. This featured Diop in a percussion tour de force as he dueted with Green. Diop played a talking drum for much of the piece as well congas, the two drummers keeping up an intense dialogue, driving each other on: Green was also tremendous. The other musicians picked up a variety of percussion instruments – there were polyrhythms right across the stage. It seemed the audience was dancing out of the hall at the break.

Tolliver directed the big band assembled by Kofi from some of the UK’s finest musicians, such as Byron Wallen, Denys Baptiste and Jean Toussaint as well as some younger members, together with Kofi, Green, Thurman, Bartley and Piers. Much of the second half was taken up by the Drum Suite, which Tolliver had orchestrated for a performance in Montreux in 1971. Green naturally provided the link, soloing between the four sections. The closing passage was a moving return to the spirituals which had been such an important part of the concert with the words from Singin’Wid a Sword In My Hand, Thurman’s rich singing accompanied by Piers producing a deep organ sound redolent of church.

The big band encored with Tolliver’s number Grand Max, a fast, swinging bop tune which featured Tolliver on trumpet. It was an upbeat way to end to an evening dedicated to one of jazz’s greats.

First half – Septet: Charles Tolliver – Trumpet, Darrel Green – Drums, Camille Thurman – Tenor, Cheikh Diop – Percussion, Tony Kofi – Alto, Danny Piers – Piano, Larry Bartley – Double Bass

SET LIST: Powell’s Prances 
Effi
I Get A Kick Out Of You 
Always Love(d) You
Members Don’t Get Weary
Garvey’s Ghost

Second half – Big Band

Charles Tolliver – Director and Trumpet
Darrel Green – Drums
Camille Thurman – Tenor

Tony Kofi (Alto/Soprano Saxophone & MD), Donovan Haffner (Alto Saxophone/Clarinet), Jean Toussaint (Tenor Saxophone). Denys Baptiste (Tenor Saxophone/Clarinet), Charles Rothwell (Baritone Saxophone/ Bass Clarinet), Josh Short (Lead Trumpet), Byron Wallen (Trumpet), Dan Coulthurst (Trumpet), Alexander Polack (Trumpet), Matt Seddon (Trombone), Harry Brown (Trombone), James Wade Sired (Trombone), Richard Henry (Bass Trombone), Danny Piers (Piano) & Larry Bartley (Double Bass).

SET LIST: Suspicion 
Drum Suite 
Grand Max

The post Charles Tolliver celebrates Max Roach @ 100 first appeared on UK Jazz News.

The three piece of Binker Golding, Moses Boyd and Simon Ratcliffe – the first two the inestimable Binker & Moses, the last one half of dance act Basement Jaxx – were augmented by Max Luthert on bass, pianist Deschanel Gordon and percussionist Oli Savill. This made the music less dependent on Ratcliffe’s electronic wizardry and maybe more jazzy – though no less danceable. The inclusion of Savill gave some numbers a more Latin feel.

The groove was definitely there. The band seemed unstoppable – and they barely paused during the ninety minutes. Golding stood centre stage, notes cascading from his tenor during his many solos of the evening. Boyd demonstrated that he deserves his reputation as one of the best drummers around: he was superb, propelling the band forward. Both his several solos and his duets with Savill kept the beats flowing.

Deschanel Gordon added some beautifully soulful solos, adding a balance to the more visceral aspects of Golding’s playing. The totality was a formidable chimera, an infectious mixture of tremendous danceable jazz.

The post Village of the Sun (Binker Golding, Moses Boyd, Simon Ratcliffe…) first appeared on UK Jazz News.

The folk foundations may be deep, but Norman&Corrie build a music that defies definition. Using a variety of instrumentation – as well as his alto sax, Wilmore plays organ pedals to provide the bass and uses electronic effects and pre records, whilst Dick has augmented his drum kit with a range of percussion and drum triggers – they make a sound with more depth than a duo rightly ought. The effect is by turns stunning, mesmerising and dazzling.

From meditative trance through dance-grooves and raucous ceilidh music to ominous bass and portentous screaming from the alto, the journey around Shetland took the audience to sing far flung places. Haltadans, a five bar fragment allegedly transcribed from a trowe (troll) dance band before they were turned to stone on Fetlar, had a suitably bewitching, magical feel; John O Voe / Da Oyster was beautifully sad to start but grew with a strong groove, screaming sax and powerful drumming. Several of the pieces had a spiritual-blues feel, others were joyously exuberant.

Corrie Dick is proving himself to be one of the most imaginative, inventive and entertaining drummers around. At times providing textures beneath Wilmore’s top line, he developed complex drum patterns which drove the music along, as well as being adept at both dance rhythms and swing. Wilmore, too, is becoming a creative force. Together, they felt unstoppable.

The post Norman&Corrie first appeared on UK Jazz News.

Long-time collaborators Ant Law and Alex Hitchcock on guitar and tenor sax respectively were joined for this outing of the music from their recent record Same Moon In The Same World by bassist Misha Mullov-Abbado and Franco-Brazilian drummer Ananda Brandão. The latter was a new name for me but she proved a highly sensitive percussionist with an ability to propel things along when necessary. Mullov-Abbado is a forceful, energetic presence, but adept to the more delicate nuances in the music. The responsiveness of all four musicians to each other, and the twists and turns in the music, meant that they really felt like a single entity.

The intimate feel was aided by Hitchcock and Brandão playing acoustically; without the intervention of sophisticated mixing, the sound was balanced perfectly, at least where I was sitting.

Across a single set, with few introductions to the pieces from Law and Hitchcock, the music morphed from one tune to another. It it developed organically as they shifted from one theme to another. The music moved from quiet sparseness through abstraction to forceful insistence with a natural fluidity.

The focus was naturally enough on Hitchcock and Law, both of whom played some great solos. Law let rip a few times, wringing lines from feedback. Mullov-Abbado and Brandão contributed some stand out moments, too, the bassist playing a couple of extended, pulsating solos. This was an evening of exciting, accessible and very enjoyable music.

The post Ant Law/ Alex Hitchcock/ Misha Mullov-Abbado/ Ananda Brandão first appeared on UK Jazz News.

Joined by Carmichael, together with Alan Benzie on piano and Greg Irons, drums, Watson weaves a gentle meander through the themes. There is an upbeat feel throughout the album, which is full of lovely music from start to finish. There is a slight influence of Scottish folk music, and in common with Carmichael and, for instance, Fergus McCreadie, Watson takes inspiration from the Scottish environment: the album heralds titles such as Glen, Moss, Earth and Snow Drift. Watson’s take is distinctive, though taking what seems a more mellow approach.

Watson’s writing provides lots of room for the musicians to improvise, and all four make significant contributions. It is particularly pleasing to hear Benzie’s playing: a keystone of the Scottish scene for many years, he has made relatively few appearances on record. Carmichael presents a softer side to his playing, in keeping with the gentle mood.

Watson’s own playing is excellent. Earth is an extended bass solo, aside from some embellishment from Benzie and Irons, and is one of the many highlights of this successful record.

Ali Watson Quartet are appearing at the Traverse Theatre in Edinburgh on 25 November 2024.

The post Ali Watson – ‘Terrarium’ first appeared on UK Jazz News.

They weren’t really a band to begin with, but they have become one. They’ve also paid tribute to all sorts of jazz composers and characters, from Duke Ellington to Bill Frisell, including quite a number of jazz pianists for a group that has no piano player. Some sessions have been completely spontaneous, although the accent has always been on approachability.

Various guests have joined the ‘core four’ on these Thursday sessions in the Outhouse in central Edinburgh, and during the pandemic this continued on Zoom. Morse Code Through the Lights documents some of these sessions, with guests including some of the top improvisers around. Cellist Ernst Reijseger was formerly part of the influential Clusone Trio. Piano-trumpet pairing Satoko Fujii and Natsuki Tamura are long-term collaborators and prolific improvisers. From the UK, trumpeters Laura Jurd and Byron Wallen, saxophonists Denys Baptiste and Iain Ballamy, and vibraphonist Corey Mwamba all featured in sessions. The results are often remarkable.

The album encapsulates a variety of moods, from sombre bowed strings through eery trilling to jubilant fanfares. Much of it is moving, perhaps because of the strange time during which it was recorded. Bancroft and Caribe give whatever they do swing and drive, characteristics that help bring the listener along in some of the more challenging sections.

Interspersed with the music, the four members of Playtime explain their motivation, practice and method. Kershaw notes that, technically, they didn’t really know what they were doing, but it worked; Caribe says the weekly sessions became their highlight, and this comes through in the exuberance of some pieces.

Morse Code Through the Lights is a collection of highly accessible music, by turns thought-provoking, challenging and entertaining. If you like improvised music there’s much to enjoy, and if you think you don’t like improvised music, maybe it’ll change your mind!

Playtime continues on alternate Thursdays at the Outhouse. Some of their lockdown videos are still available to watch on Facebook. Following the success of these, Playtime received funding from Creative Scotland to livestream their regular gigs; although this funding has now finished, videos featuring these shows can be seen on YouTube.

Patrick Hadfield lives in Edinburgh, occasionally takes photographs, and sometimes blogs at On the Beat. He is @patrickhadfield@mastodon.scot on Mastodon.

The post Playtime with Guests – ‘Morse Code Through The Lights’ first appeared on UK Jazz News.

I was fortunate enough to see a performance of Luminescence during this year’s Edinburgh Fringe, one of four dates that make up this record. Neither the audience nor Rud’s evolving artwork come across on the recording: the audience because there was rapt silence at the unfolding music and spectacle, at least until the end of each performance; for Rud, because she was concentrating on the dialogue between Smith’s improvising and her expanding images, although her influence is felt in Smith’s playing in response to both her images and the sometimes rhythmical strokes of her painting.

While Rud’s art is an intrinsic part of the live event, Smith’s music and its relationship to the cathedral is sufficient. I initially downloaded the music to listen to the specific performance I attended; I was surprised to find myself listening to the whole album – more than three hours of music. It doesn’t drag in the slightest, even after hearing it several times.

Smith has been making solo performances for many years now. He recorded the album Into Silence in 2001, in Hamilton Mausoleum, a space renowned for its lengthy natural sustain. He has also performed improvised sets in other churches, including the Round Church in Bowmore on the Hebridean Isle of Islay, Dunfermline Abbey and Lichfield Cathedral, working with each building’s acoustics. Such performances necessarily take on a spiritual air.

The three and a half sets that make up this record are naturally similar – but each is different too, conveying a different mood: they feel quite separate. While each set is improvised, fragments of familiar melodies bubble up – a touch of Fascinating Rhythm here, The Peacocks there. Some sections are reminiscent of bluesy spirituals or Scottish folk tunes..

Smith’s relationship to melody and rhythm is strong: this is improvised music, but not free improvisation. He is following a path and taking the audience along with him, though he doesn’t know when he sets out where he’ll lead us.

The effect on the listener is quietly meditative. This is music to lose yourself in.

Patrick Hadfield lives in Edinburgh, occasionally takes photographs, and sometimes blogs at On the Beat. He is @patrickhadfield@mastodon.scot on Mastodon.

The post Tommy Smith – ‘Luminescence’ first appeared on UK Jazz News.

Skald is a Norse word for a particular type of poet, composer or bard – making music commemorating the heroes. Modern Vikings clearly does that: this is modern jazz music with influences deeply embedded.

One might imagine that Modern Vikings could sound like an extended version of McCreadie’s trio, but it is a very different project with a sound of its own. There are several excellent piano and bass solos – but it is part of a whole which is distinct from the trio’s work. There are folk elements, but they are low-key here, just one element in a more extensive mix.

For Henderson’s part, the focus here is on his composing. One of the most exciting drummers in the Scottish scene, he only takes two significant drum solos in the course of the album. His playing supports the tunes and the other musicians who are freed up by his compositions.

The fact that there are two chordal instruments in this group means that Stephen’s role often consists of enriching textures, such as during McCreadie’s solo on Oslo, during which he adds accents and emphasis on top of McCreadie’s playing. Stephen’s own solos – such as slow, moody and abstract on Night Sky, aided by a variety of pedals and effects, or upbeat and melodic on Back Home or Tales of the Skald – emphasise his empathetic playing.

Wisniewski, perhaps best known for his forceful playing on the bigger stage with SNJO and for his stellar contribution to the chamber duo New Focus, contributes a scalding solo to Carson which raises it to another level. On the gentle, reflective November, he brings emotional clarity, fluency and authenticity.

Tales from the Skald is a powerful, energetic record, with plenty of rhythmic interest and incident (though nothing you couldn’t tap your foot to), with outstanding playing from all involved.

Patrick Hadfield lives in Edinburgh, occasionally takes photographs, and sometimes blogs at On the Beat. He is @patrickhadfield@mastodon.scot on Mastodon.

Modern Vikings are touring from the end of August to early October, with gigs at the Catstand, New Galloway (30 August); the Globe, Newcastle (1 September); Perth Theatre (13 September); Lancaster Jazz Festival (14 September); Jazz at the Merchants House, Glasgow (22 September); Soundhouse at the Traverse, Edinburgh (23 September); the Blue Lamp, Aberdeen (26 September); and Jazz at the Lescar, Sheffield (2 October).

The post Modern Vikings – ‘Tales of the Skald’ first appeared on UK Jazz News.

It’s the middle of July, and the Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival comes around again: ten days crammed with interesting music – so much so that the inevitable clashes mean hard choices have to be made.

Usually this would preclude local musicians. But the Edinburgh institution that is Playtime, whose regular gig could hardly be more local for me, brings special guests to the festival. Celebrating their tenth anniversary with a new record, their guest this time was trumpeter Byron Wallen, one of several who feature on the record. They played three varied, written compositions, one each by Tom Bancroft, Martin Kershaw and Wallen himself, interspersed with two wholly improvised pieces. The latter were powerful and moving, as they were conjured art from nothing; one saw Wallen lay down his trumpet in favour of conch shells, producing eery calls over an evolving groove from the bass and guitar combination of Mario Caribe and Graeme Stephen respectively. The only thing wrong with the set is that I wanted it to go on and on.

But that would have meant missing sax star (and Radio 3 jazz host) Soweto Kinch. Backed by Nick Jurd on bass and Louis Hamilton-Foad on drums, and with samples, effects and the occasional backing track, Kinch played alto and tenor saxes, a wind synthesiser and rapped – all to the audience’s delight. His rapping is an integral part of his performance – a different kind of improvisation – his clever rhymes highlighting passionate political themes. His use of effects to loop his saxes as he goes along resulted in a rich sound – at times a choir of saxophones – but his unadorned tenor, accompanied just by the bass, was perfect in a beautiful rendition of Lush Life, too. The trio played a hugely entertaining set in front of a full house, showing why they’re festival favourites.

EJ&BF specialise in commissioning new projects and music. Matthew Kilner presented the premiere of his four-part Culkein Bay Suite and several other original tunes with his new quartet of Paul Harrison (piano), Ewan Hastie (bass) and Alyn Cosker (drums). Kilner was open about his influences – I picked up hints of Wayne Shorter, Coltrane and Ellington, whilst one piece was dedicated to Paul Motian and another to Peanuts Hucko. Most of the music was spritely post-bop, but there were some beautiful moments, too – the last segment of the suite featured an emotional duet between the tenor and piano, and later on there was some powerful, melancholy sax. Harrison, Hastie and Cosker played with the excellence one would expect from such musicians; the quartet are going into the studio soon to record this material, so there’ll be more chances to hear it.

Many of the gigs in the festival focused on the intersection between folk and jazz music, partly because much of the native Scottish scene exists in that liminal environment, but also because trumpeter Laura Jurd was the guest curator for a series of concerts themed “From Folk To Freedom”. Jurd herself premiered a new quintet featuring Martin Green, part of new-folk band Lau, on accordion and electronics, fiddler Ultan O’Brien, with Ruth Goller on bass and ever-rewarding Corrie Dick on drums. The relationship between Goller and Dick seemed to work superbly, keeping the music grounded but fluid. In keeping with Jurd’s theme, there were many free sections: spontaneity was to the fore; some passages brought to mind the Art Ensemble of Chicago, others the gentle folk-infused improvisations of Henri Texier.

Jurd and Dick were also part of the Norman Willmore Sextet, playing tunes from his 2023 album For All Your Needs. That has a distinct folk feel, but the addition of Jurd and Dick brought out the jazz inherent in the pieces too. Willmore’s alto playing was exciting and seemed to span the instrument’s capabilities, from melancholic, keening foghorn through to raucous euphoria. Shetlandic pianist Amy Laurenson played some beautiful, thoughtful passages. Fiddler Harry Gorski-Brown and bassist Brodie Laird-Jarvie, both of whom appear on the album, completed the sextet with some great playing.

Tim Garland’s Lighthouse Trio also had a folk element, albeit one rooted in the Middle East: percussionist Asaf Sirkis was playing an eclectic drum kit comprising a range of frame drums and cymbals, as well as a terracotta udu which was used to haunting effect. They mostly played pieces from their latest album, Moment of Departure, which cut back to the trio alone shone with new clarity. Sirkis’ playing was a revelation – it was the first time I had seen him live. He spent most of the show with a broad grin on his face – something infectiously joyous about the music. At times Garland and pianist Gwilym Simcock made it a percussion trio, Simcock beating the innards of his piano and Garland using his saxophone keys in sympathy with Sirkis’ rhythms. Garland also used the piano to great effect, blowing right into its body for the strings to resonate on Kenny Wheeler’s Sly Eyes. As well as Sirkis, Simcock and Garland seemed on their top form, producing some remarkable music. The empathy between the musicians was exceptional. In a festival packed with superb music, the Lighthouse Trio was an absolute treat.

The post Edinburgh Jazz and Blues Festival 2024 first appeared on UK Jazz News.