VEIN trio ("Porgy & Bess" / "Live - Lemuria" and at PiecART) + interview

VEIN

Michael Arbenz - piano

Thomas Lahms - bass

Florian Arbenz  - drums

"Porgy & Bess" Unit Records 2011

VEIN +

David Liebman - tenor and soprano sax

"Live - Lemuria" Unit Records 2012

VEIN trio are twin brothers Michael Arbenz (piano), Florian Arbenz (drums) and Thomas Lahms (bass). You can hear them on their own on the „Porgy & Bess” (Unit Records 2011) as well as „Live – Lemuria” with Dave Liebman (Unit Records 2012).

The first cd puts an original spin on some of the tunes from the Gershwin's famous opera. „I got plenty o' nuttin'” strides nicely on the fast piano bass-lines. „I loves you Porgy” is lush and delicate as it's supposed to.

High Definition at Piec'ART (23.02)

Piotr Orzechowski, Alan Wykpisz, Patryk Dobosz

There's something incredible happening around in the polish jazz scene. Young musicians with incredible skills sets, fantastic education, open mindset and no complexes. I have just written briefly about jam session at Literki and here's another clear chance to write about new polish jazz. I stumbled first on Piotr Orzechowski's name on Maciej Nowotny's polish-jazz blog. High Definition is a quartet led by Piotr and they play jazz that is clearly inspired by the classic sound of the 60', 70'  yet is unmistakenably modern - I think especially about hi-hat/rimshots drums'n'bass patterns played by Patryk Dobosz. They opened the night with Ana Maria by Wayne Shorter, there are strong echoes of Keith Jarret's american quartet in Orzechowski's playing and compositions - some blues, gospel echoes as well. Great rhythm section, fantastic composition's structure (no easy task to keep the audience's attention for 20 minutes pieces of music no matter what genre you play), fiery solos - it was all there. High Definition is clearly going to be at the top of polish jazz scene and they deserve as well international attention (the band won I prize in Jazz Hoeilaart last year, Orzechowski won the Grand Prix at Montreux as well). Let me keep the text short - the videos below should make up for the lack more description. Absolutely great concert from the band that only started what I hope will be a long and succesfull journey.

Piotr Orzechowski - piano
Mateusz Śliwa - saxophone
Alan Wykpisz - bass
Patryk Dobosz - drums

Piec'ART. Krakow. 23.02.2012

Vojtech Prochazka Trio at Piec'ART (25.05)

It would be great to listen to music without having any kind of expectations. I've recenlty been proven wrong assuming Piec'ART is exclusively a mainstream jazz venue (I guess it's still mostly mainstream but it's a big difference). I recently reviewed inspiring performance by JazzTrio Trabant and Adrian Myhr's coming back to Piec'ART was a big reason that I wanted to be there again. Still, I assumed it could very well be another modern-jazz-post-bop piano trio (something I tend to dislike strongly) but I was proven wrong again. And I love surprises like that.

First good omen was when Vojtech Prochazka, while introducing the band, said that it would be a concert of 'improvised music'. Second good omen happened when instead of taking a seat he bent over the piano looking inside and started playing on piano strings with mallets. In fact it's hard to think about this performance as a piano trio as during the extended improvisation that filled the first set (around 40 minutes) Vojtech barely touches the keyboard, instead he plays on strings with drumsticks, mallets, metal objects, ducktape, bare hands. The piano sounds like harp, toy, marimba, machine .... the spirit of John Cage was definitely somewhere near the place. The trio engages in dialogue that is beyond any genre of music, beyond most traditional views on what is called music actually. Evoking eerie moods with unusual sounds, minimal, barely audible hushes, scraping the strings and drums, bowing the plates. With incredible focus and attention to detail. Abstract yet cohere, going into the rabbit hole, right into the logic of madness, where texture, structure, harmony, note, lenghth, tempo become all non-sense terms.

The entire performance (including the second set improvisation - another 40 minutes) was also absolutely egoless, almost no soloing (in sense of making a single statement that proves the musicall prowess on the instrument) - instead a playing that follows the feeling of the moment, the natural (and irrational) flow of the music, without any clear leading part (or, if anything, one provided more often by the bass, not the piano). All three musicians display considerable skills playing both conventional and (for the most part) unconventional ways. Dark, mysterious, full of rising tension, focused performance demanding a focused listening but absolutely rewarding. 

With music as intriguing and deserving as much attention as any, much more popular, names in the field of improvised music it seemed wrong that such concert was appreciated by the audience only slightly larger that the number of the musicians on the stage. I strongly hope those musicians will get the recognition they deserve.

ps 1. After the break Vojtech talked again bit more (although I think the audience present had already understood that) that, nonetheless they're playing in a 'jazz club' their music is not jazz at all and it's much better to call it 'just music', a fitting term indeed.

ps 2. Whilre writing the post I'm listening to the "Amoeba's Dance" cd by this trio and I have to admit I feel bit cheated as it is exactly what I feared the concert would be - a piano trio recording (no extended improvisation, no sonic experiments, no prepared piano). In fact it was called by the group 'their best shot so far at playing jazz music' and while it's not bad at all (brings back some compositions by Herbie Nichols, a great cover of Ornette's "Una Muy Bonita" tune and couple of nice originals) the music is not nearly as compelling, gripping and thrilling as the live performance they've just delivered. Which makes me hope that they will record an improvised session soon.

Vojtech Prochazka - piano, prepared piano, whistle, mouth organ, objects
Adrian Myhr - double bass
Tore Sandbakken  - drums

Piec'ART. Krakow. 25.05.2011

Samuel Blaser solo & Jam Session at Piec'ART (13.05)

Second evening in a row at Piec'ART for me and another good concert. This time my expectations were high (I did see Samuel Blaser already on stage, I do know his cds) but not necessaraily very clear. Because what can you expect from a solo trombone concert? It's a cliche to say, but somehow very true, that a solo recital can be treated as the most difficult form of performance - both for the artist and the audience.

The concert started with some timbral explorations, lot of playing with the mute and wah-wah effect. Definitely intriguing but also very demanding piece. But it only got better with each piece. It's definitely unexpected to write about harmonic depth when describing a solo trombone concert, but it was there indeed, and the level of control of those multiphonics techniques is what makes Samuel's playing really impressive (and gets him, deservingly,  all the Albert Mangelsdorff comparisons). Sometimes it almost sounds like an african choir chant, somehow it reverberates through all the brass material, Blaser is making it seem easy which is a great talent.

Even better, it makes the music surprisingly accessible, as he manages to create an engaging rhytmic structure anchoring the groove in a returning bass note, keeping the time with his foot. His actually very fond of blues, and his jubilant and roaring lines are downright humorous. Those rhythmical bluesy tracks (like "Solo Bone", "Lonely Blues" or "Finally Alone" which ends the concert) are for me definite highlights of the night.

For a bis Samuel plays "Mood Indigo" by Duke Ellington and his take on this classic shows both adventorous spirit and respect towards the jazz history.

If you think that solo trombone jazz concert can't be fun Samuel Blaser is there to proove you wrong.

Samuel Blaser

Piec'ART. Krakow. 13.05

After the concert there was a jam session (well, sort of) and I have admit I feared it a lot, expecting same old cliche, elegant mainstream but I was enormously surprised. The (sax - piano - bass - drums) quartet with the first track really blew my mind as they played this free-from post-bop jazz, indebted definitely to John Coltrane Quartet, but with a sesne of urgence, with a very raw energy and clear passion that was infectious. The music was adventorous and quite wild, the solos would dig deep, the interplay was apparent as the quartet would break into smaller groups (into a piano trio to begin with but then the sax-piano, piano-bass or bass-drums duos. An ankle breaking drum&bass indebted drums solo was among the highlights, the sax player experimented a lot with distorted sound and influence of free and avant-guarde techniques was very clear, the pianist was storming through the keys. 

The second track wasn't that wild, some jazz standard, the reading of the theme almost elegant if it wasn't for the distorted sax sound (some nice unaccompanied saxophone passages on this one too) and the piano solo started bit too conservative, but then it would through history, getting back even to ragtime and the band would play the theme like it was a soundtrack to a slapstick Charlie Chaplin movie (which puts a big smile on my face immediately).

After the break (with a change on the drummer's spot) the band plays a strange tune with a hypnotic salsa rhythm, led by a saxophone player using both tenor and alto and they were joined by Samuel for a lenghty solo on this one. They (quintet now) end the evening with simple blues, having a lot of fun.

While the first track promised more than they eventually delivered I'm still very positively surprised by that part of the evening. While, in private conversations with other jazz fans in Krakow, the theme of bad jazz education returns quite often (the system produces very capable musicians with almost no sense of individuality) the things might be actually better than I'd have thought and those young guys made me a beliver again. Beware! Youth is coming!

unfortuantely I did manage to write down only two names:

Slawe Pezda - tenor sax, alto sax

Pawel Orzechowski - piano

JazzTrio Trabant at Piec'ART (12.05)

Piec'Art is usually a mainstream jazz venue but evey once in a while there's a space for something more adventorous too. I have to admit that this band was completely anonymous for me and I came by this concert completely unprepared, almost by accident, not knowing really what to expect. Couple of listens to some samples from myspace convinced me enough to come and I'm really glad I did.

Trabant trio (great name really) is a sax trio wchich from the beginning earns them my trust as this is an instrumental setting I really like, and even when played in a mainstream way it gives a sense of freedom and flexibility that really good jazz needs (just listen to Sonny Rollins trios to hear what I mean, some amazing music there). Secondly on their MySpace you can find a cover song by PJ Harvey and in the descripion of the band you'll find named other influences like The Band or Led Zeppelin. Perception of jazz as an exclusively elite and extremely demanding music is hurting it big time. And I love it when young jazz musicians admit willingly that they like popular music and it influenced they way they play jazz. The Thing turn punk outside out, Ken Vandermark after hours sings along to the sax solos of James Browns funky tunes. If you are my age you probably were listening to Nirvana. Trying to disconnect jazz from popular music is artificial and pretentious. But let me get back to the concert as this monologue is getting too long...

The music is charmingly melodic, the themes are downright catchy, the clear pulse keeps the foot (well, at least my foot) tapping. And that's not only the covers I'm talking about but the originals proposed by the band share the some song-like quality. Among the covers there's a tastefull rendition of Dylan's "The Times Are A-Changin'", riff-rocking "Ocean" by the Led Zeppelin, moody, dark  "Talk to you" by PJ Harvey, dreamy and enchanting "Sleeping Lessons" by The Shins and very appealing "Unfaithful Servants" by The Band. Quite a ground to cover (so to speak) and good example of how versatile this trio is. 

Svein Magnus Furu posesses a very beautifull tone on tenor, fragile and gentle in slower tunes, soulful and passionate when the grooves is on, very Jimmy Giuffre-sque on clarinet. His soloing is very melodic, phrasing reminds you of a classical jazz tunes but the melodics inspired by the tunes (including the originals) are less juzz inclined, much more modern. But that doesn't mean he can occasionaly hit a high, screaming note or polyphonic whisper (nice solo with a delay effect). Adrian Myhr on the bass keeps the harmony simple but not banal, his soloing is sensible, his touch is very light, very melodic. Audun Lunnan Hjort is my personal hero of the evening, his playing is infectiously energetic, he stirrs the things up, he times the accents perfectly, he both follows and pushes the solo narration, and he adds this little bit of crazy ingredient. While being very attentive to the melodic aspect of the drums, he never forgets to keep the rhythm going.

This band's performance is built on melodies but that doesn't mean the are afraid of letting it loose every once in a while, and though those freer passages are rare, the possibility of them happening, the open-mindset keeps the audience on their toes. The only band that can play rock tunes like that I can think of is Jewels & Binoculars (a trio led by Michael Moore which plays exclusively Bob Dylan's songs). Those guys are still pretty young, their playing is fresh, energetic and also very accessible, so, even if their names tell you nothing, be sure to watch them play if they have a gig nearby. I'm really glad I did and I'm waiting impatiently now to hear their first cd (coming later this year). 

In the meantime you can check their myspace page.

http://www.myspace.com/triotrabant

JazzTrio Trabant

Svein Magnus Furu - tenor saxophone, clarinet

Adrien Myhr - double bass

Audun Lunnnan Hjort - drums

Piec'ART. Krakow. 12.05.