Reviews
It’s only three years since Marius Neset, at 26 years of age, burst on to the scene with the wonderful Golden Xplosion and delighted audiences with virtuoso performances at many venues. Hot on the heels of its success he wasted no time before releasing Birds, again flexing his muscles and extending his talent way beyond the tradition.
It was clear Neset, while more than capable of dazzling audiences with his brand of quick fire muscular pyrotechnics, enjoyed the compositional challenge. Following on from a commission to compose for the renowned project-driven collective, the Trondheim Jazz Orchestra, for a concert at the 2012 Molde Jazz Festival, Neset said: “After the premier in Molde the compositions felt so special we decided to record this album and play more concerts with it.”
Lion is the young Norwegian’s debut on the prestigious ACT label and, as well as new compositions, it features a few tunes from both Golden Xplosion and Birds. It’s probably safe to assume the marvellous Marius is tired of comparisons and references to fellow countryman Jan Garbarak and the late US sax maestro Michael Brecker, such is his impressive body of work so far.
Neset has spread his creative wings far beyond the realm of jazz music: like Birds this also strays into the world of contemporary classical music. The opener Lion starts off slowly enough but soon enters typical boisterous and belligerent Neset territory before Eric Johannesen’s trombone pulls the piece back into the world of the big band, even though added to Neset’s saxes are only 13 other instruments, such is the marvellous mix of colours on the ensemble’s collective sound palette.
The reworked ‘Golden Xplosion’ gets the multi saxophone Gatling gun delivery and the third track ‘In The Ring’ has all the hallmarks of round two of ‘Boxing’ from last year’s Birds with fine stick work from drummer and percussionist Gard Nilssen. A rather short (54 seconds) ‘Interlude’ leads into the wonderful stand-out piece on the album, ‘Sacred Universe’. This track features Neset’s sister Ingrid on flute and piccolo, and a remarkable contribution from Petter Eldh’s bass, before the floodgates open and, like a river in spate, the whole ensemble showcases the virtuosity of the collective and the compositional skills of the young Norwegian lion in all his glory. Highly recommended.
Star Rating: 4/5
During its first ever tour of the US, the Scottish National Jazz Orchestra managed to coax some A-list musicians to play with them during a two-day stretch at the Avatar recording studios in New York City.
Such is the stature of the orchestra’s leader and founder Tommy Smith, that guitarist Mike Stern, trumpeter Randy Brecker, saxophonist Dave Liebman, drummer Clarence Penn and singing sensation Kurt Elling joined other guests of the Scottish saxophonist and composer (who founded the SNJO in 1995) to perform modern jazz classics by John Coltrane, Wayne Shorter, Charles Mingus, Marcus Miller, Chick Corea and Richie Beirach.
American Adventure is one of those rare gems: a truly inspirational collection of music from people at the top of their game. This is evident from the opening track, Marcus Miller’s ‘Splatch’ — first heard on Miles Davis’s Tutu — where Mike Stern’s exuberant guitar wah-wahs over a big band in full swing, all the way to the fantastic ‘Pinocchio’, arranged by Jacob Mann and written by Wayne Shorter.
Shorter’s ‘Yes or No’ (from JuJu, Blue Note, 1964) is the second piece by the US sax maestro and features a thundering performance by vibes player Joe Locke.
While the whole album is pure joy, a few standout performances are worth noting: pianist David Kikoski and trumpeter Randy Brecker on John Coltrane’s ‘Dear Lord’; drummer Alyn Cosker and Stern’s joyous guitar on ‘Splatch’; and Tommy Smith with Kurt Elling on ‘Duke Ellington’s Sound of Love’.
But from the opening track you feel the whole project is going to work a treat — and it does. If the sound of a big band floats your boat then this is for you. One of the outstanding albums of the year.
Star Rating: 5/5
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