HAKON KORNSTAD – TENOR BATTLE
The title's a bit misleading – as the
record's hardly the sort of tenor battle you might have heard from Wardell Gray
and Dexter Gordon back in the day – and instead, the title's a bit of a pun, in
that Hakon Kornstad plays both tenor sax, and sings in a tenor voice too! The
record opens up in this really magical flow that begins with the saxophone
sound of Hakon Kornstad, and blends in sublime sounds on instruments that
include harmonium, cimbalon, harpsichord, and percussion – plus some excellent
work from bassist Per Zanussi, who really grounds the whole thing. The record's
easily one of the most compelling we've heard from Kornstad so far – that's saying
a lot, given the strength of his other albums – and Hakon's got this new level
of sensitivity that really comes through in the way he approaches his sound –
not just his core performance on tenor, but also his use of a bit of flute, and
process of looping live with the instrumentation too. Many of the compositions
are from operatic sources – part of Kornstad's growing fascination with the
format – and Hakon also sings a bit, in this stunning tenor voice that's really
wonderful – completely captivating, especially amongst this instrumentation –
and never forced or hokey at all. We'd hardly believe that such blend could
come off so well – but it does, and with uniquely beautiful results – on titles
that include "Je Crois Entendre Encore", "Song Of India", "En
Fermant Les Yeux", "Morgen", and "Marechiare". ~ Dusty
Groove
THE BROKEN ORHESTRA - GLASS (FEATURING
MELENTINI)
The Broken Orchestra are a UK based
production duo creating soulful, chilled yet experimental music with layers and
textures of instrumentation and sounds. They began creating music in 2010 and
since then have worked with world-renowned vocalists Inyang Bassey, Shawn Lee
and Natalie Gardiner. In 2012 they released their first full length album
‘Shibui’ which was released in Japan through P-Vine Records. In 2015 they
continued to develop and work with a range of vocalists and followed up with a
series of single releases featuring female emcee Lady Paradox on ‘Digital Age’
and the heart felt vocals of Jack Conman with ‘Shallow Humour’. Both tracks
received national airplay on BBC Radio 6 Music with ‘Shallow Humour’ also being
featured on BBC Radio One.The latest single release from The Broken Orchestra
see’s a return to layered textures and experimental sounds with the surreal but
intriguing vocal talents of Melentini. Written as collaboration between the duo
and Berlin based vocalist, ‘Glass’ features a haunting blend of layered vocals
and subtly crafted instrumentation. Whilst musically remaining routed in the
simplistic style and sound the duo has evolved and grown over the past few
years, it has been highlighted as an exciting progression in the collectives’
development.
HAROLD DANKO – LOST IN THE BREEZE
A really well-balanced trio outing from
pianist Harold Danko – so much so that almost all the compositions here are
attributed to the trio of Danko, bassist Jay Anderson, and drummer Jeff
Hirshfield! That sort of compositional credit is key to the workings of the
record – as the role of the players is very equal, and there are even moments
when Anderson's bass seems to take more of the center stage than Danko's piano
– in a really great way that creates a marvelous interplay between the two
instruments. Hirshfield is maybe a bit more understated on drums, but clearly
plays a key role throughout – and titles include "Fall Splits",
"Big Squeeze", "Salt N Sugar", "Stumble Crush",
and "Fish Road" – plus versions of Duke Jordan's "If I Did Would
You" and "Paula". ~ Dusty Groove
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