Soil & Pimp Sessions have done their fair share of DJing and guest billing on other albums for the last few years. In addition, they have pulled off an amazing feat in today's music world, of releasing five albums since their formation in 2003.
The Japanese "Death Jazz" (their term, not ours) sextet, returned with their sixth album this year. Aptly titled 6, was a raucous and relentless release with buzz saw crowd pleasers like "Papa's Got A Brand New PigBag," "Pop Korn" and "Quartz and Chronometer" blazing the way to the dancefloor.
But the group has grown into more than just a consistent source of dance heavy tunes. They have managed to turn on the lovelight with the midtempo stomp of "My Foolish Heart" and "Double Time." The bands constant touring globally has sharpened their influences more so now than on their previous records.
6 spreads the themes around with tinges of Latin funk on "Paraiso" and soulful grooves of both "Mirror Boy" and a second version of "My Foolish Heart." British semi-pop superstar, Jamie Cullim sits in on "Stolen Moments" surprising recreating Mark Murphy but it works.
If it always sounds like a good time on Soil & Pimp Sessions records, its because they try to recorded everything live in the club. That's no different here. You get the feeling of party and you have the feeling its never gonna stop.
Soil & Pimp Sessions have remained in the "underground' for far too long. This is by far their best and most cohesive album to date and well worth seeking out. 6 is a party album, no doubt about it. But its the kind of album that will also have you stopping in your tracks to listen to "that" song again...and again...and again.
Over the next two weeks JazzWrap revisits our favourite albums of 2010.
Soweto Kinch (sax, vocals; b.1978) The New Emancipation (Soweto Kinch Recordings)
Resurfacing this year with an incredible document, The New Emancipation (SK Recordings), Soweto Kinch may have established himself as the premier storyteller of the new British jazz generation influenced by Hip Hop. This fertile underground mind delivers the trials and tribulations young London life trying to reach the better horizon.
That story is capsulized in perfectly on the opener, "Trying To Be A Star". Maybe in a similar fashion as some of Courtney Pine's earlier records but with a more updated and solid vision.
One of the brilliant things to come out The New Emancipation for me was the way Kinch has grown as a musician on sax. His playing especially on the hard bop of "A People With No Past" is very reminiscent of Branford Marsalis circa Crazy People Music. In the first two full tracks Kinch has made his case that Jazz and Hip Hop an coexist within the same sphere.
The influence of both someone like Branford, Sonny Rollins, Jackie McClean and Hip Hop artists Mos Def, KRS-One and Black Thought (of The Roots) can be felt throughout Soweto's discography but even more so on The New Emancipation.
And it's not just Soweto who stands out here either. He's band a superb. Guitarist, Femi Temowo and drummer Justin Brown act as wonderful counters to Kinch's fierce, rolling vision on the more traditional jazz pieces, including "The Never Ending" and "Suspended Adolescence."
The rhythm based pieces such "Raise Your Spirit," "Axis Of Evil" and the hilarious "Paris Heights" show the lighter yet bold side of Soweto's lyrical storytelling. But overall, The New Emancipation is sold jazz album. It balances Hip Hop and Jazz to perfection. This lyrical delivery of Soweto Kinch has never been more clear than now. Soweto has become a more mature and focused player and songwriter.
The New Emancipation is not only a statement of our culture. It is a blueprint of what Jazz and Hip Hop should sound like. It was one of my favourite albums during the second half of the year and I haven't stopped listening.
Over the next two weeks JazzWrap revisits our favourite albums of 2010.
One For All (group; formed 1997) Incorrigible (JLP)
Eric Alexander (sax) Jim Rotondi (trumpet) David Hazeltine (piano) Joe Farnsworth (drums) John Weber (bass) Steve Davis (trombone)
One For All have consistently delivered albums of quality and distinction for over a decade now (15 albums in all). This years, Incorrigible (Jazz Legacy Productions) was no exception.
Driven by an unparalleled sense of unity, each member of One For All writes music for their records. Incorrigible demonstrates once again that One For All are that rare breed of band that you can tell has been together for a long time. They play off each other extremely well. They challenge each other with every note. And they have fun doing it.
From the eternal standard "Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered", the lovely tribute to Freddie Hubbard "Voice" to what could easily become a standard in twenty years, the Steve Davis penned "Spirit Waltz"--Incorrigible is an album that is quite accessible for any music fan.
One For All have always been compared to Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers (a comparison they enjoy in fact). But they continue to show that they are a new breed for a new generation of jazz fans. This is a group enjoys playing together while having their own highly successful individual careers.
The title track, "Incorrigible," was written by Eric Alexander and it rips with delight. Jim Rotondi's playing is immaculate as always and the interchanges between the horn section are superb. But as with all One For All records each musician standout in their own way. Hazeltine, Webber and Farnsworth all have shinning moments throughout Incorrigible and that's what makes One For All one of the most important jazz groups of the last decade.
One For All are not a band out to reinvent the wheel--but they definitely make the wheel look alot better with each outing. Their sense of unity and continuing drive of making the perfect record is one of the things we have always enjoyed. Incorrigible is highly recommended and one of JazzWrap's favourites this year.
Over the next two weeks JazzWrap revisits our favourite albums of 2010.
Mikrokolektyw (group; formed 2004) Revisit (Delmark; 2010) Kuba Suchar (drums, electronics) Artur Majewski (trumpet, electronics)
The melding of electronics inside jazz (particularly European jazz) has been a prominent force over the last decade. One of the best pioneers of this fusion is Nils Petter Molvaer, with numerous artists and groups emerging since Molvaer's groundbreaking Khemer release. One group were the Polish quartet Robotobibok. Robotobibok recorded three stellar albums in the mid-nineties--their 2000 debut, Jogging (Vytvornia OM) is highly recommended. After the group split in 2004, Suchar and Majewski carried on as a duo, now known as Mikrokolektyw (pronounced Microcollective).
Mikrokolektyw have created a magnificent piece of Eastern European jazz, electronics and acoustic improvisation with their debut, Revisit (Delmark). More atmospheric and live instrument based than like-minded countryman, Skalpel, Mikrokolektyw present beautiful soundscapes, rich in texture and lyrical expansion. While the absence of a bassist and pianist seem bizarre on the surface, its Majewski's sublime trumpet playing and Suchar's hypnotic patterns of percussion that make tracks like "Running Without Effort" and "Revisit" completely flawless. The listener never realizes that this is a duo (with the added accompaniment of a minimoog) driving the forceful yet melodic nature of the tunes.
This is similar ground that Robotobibok covered during its seven year run, so anyone familiar with those records won't be too surprised. But its the fluidity of Revisit as a whole that makes this one of the best albums of the year for me. The interplay between Suchar and Majewski on "Almost A Good Morning" is infectious and mind blowing all at once. There could be comparisons to Molvaer but that would only be on the surface of the melodic nature of the music. The improvisation and bending of sound of "Lipuko" and "Tar Man" show deep sense of creativity and search for sounds beyond jazz and electronica.
Mikrokolektyw released a companion DVD entitled Dew Point (Delmark) which will really convince you that this is a duo with serious intentions. The performance blew me away. It also includes a few numbers which aren't on Revisit. So it is well worth having both documents.
Mikrokolektyw have definitely made one of the best "boundary pushing jazz" records of the year - one that I can't stop listening to. Revisit builds on the experimental traditions of Miles Davis' latter fusion material and the worldly recordings of Don Cherry (a major influence) but then blast into Sun Ra territory without you ever noticing. This is confident work from musicians who have been on the scene long enough and continue to search and explore new sounds. I urge you if you haven't been turned on to Mikrokolektyw yet--now is the time.
