BERARDI JAZZ CONNECTION - ANYWAY

Berardi Jazz Connection is the brainchild of drummer and percussionist, Francesco Lomagistro, whose idea it was to put together all of the experiences that come from his passion for African-American music, the groove, and the synergy between rhythm and melody. Lomagistro partnered with Ettore Carucci (piano and fender rhodes) to form Berardi Jazz Connection, along with three other talented musicians – Vincenzo Prestra (sax); Andrea Sabatino (trumpet); and Camilo Pace (double bass). Berardi is actually the name of the street where Lomagistro arranged the room of an old apartment to become his first rehearsal studio. He used to spend most of his time there. Along with Ettore Carucci, they began to play their early jazz standards, researching what was destined to become in time their style of playing. They shared a few experiences as "sidemen" and nurtured the ideas that would eventually create their first album project. The atmosphere on each of their releases is assuredly jazz, but with "modern" influences that can be easily associated to the nu-jazz movement coming out of Europe. The group has three releases to date - The Way I Like It, Do It, and Anyway (released 2010). With Anyway, they're even more jazz-based than before – still with rhythms aimed at a club jazz crowd, but mostly played live, with a spontaneous sort of energy that rivals the best of the Ricky Tick record label scene, and maybe a bit of the Schema world too. There seem to be more great keyboards that ever before – nice and warm, but never slick or smooth – and some cuts have vocals – although most of the grooves are still in an instrumental jazz mode, and one that really sums up the sound of Italy's scene in the 60s, 70s, and 80s. Titles include "The Right Time", "Walking In The Village", "Running Away", "Indecision", and "Just Let Me Be". Berardi Jazz Connection is one of those groups who seem to impress more and more with each new album.