Polish altoist Maciej Obara releases his second excellent album of the year, now in a trio format with John Lindberg on double bass and Harvey Sorgen on drums.
The result is jazz at its purest : free, rhythmic, lyrical, full of soul and depth. Obara's playing is fabulous, with a nice warm tone, extremely versatile and with an emotional power that brings him close to Tony Malaby : he has the same quality of making his horn weep and sing at the same time, full of incredible passion.
Lindberg is one of the best bass-players and composers around, due underrecorded, recently working with Wadada Leo Smith, but most of his output as a leader is really worth checking out for. His playing has the same powerful lyricism as the Polish altoist and hence a perfect match. Listen to Obara softly moan over Lindberg's arco on "Wolverine Breath", as if both instruments were designed to play this piece.
Harvey Sorgen is the regular drummer of the Fonda Stevens Group, but also with Hot Tuna in one of its last line-ups in the nineties. His drumming is also underrated, as he demonstrates here again, both in the uptempo and slower pieces he demonstrates his rhythmic subtleties. Especially in the more open-ended pieces, like "Muss Influx", his implicit keeping of rhythm is brilliant. Or listen to his precise underpinning of Lindberg's boppish solo on "Noodles With Sammy Blues".
Complete on >> http://freejazz-stef.blogspot.com/2010/12/maciej-obara-lindberg-sorgen-three-2010.html
Tuesday, December 21, 2010
Maciej Obara, Lindberg, Sorgen - Three (2010)
Posted by jazzofilo at Tuesday, December 21, 2010 0 comments
Labels: Maciej Obara
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Maciej Obara Special Quartet - Four (Ars Cameralis Records, 2010)
Another easy album to recommend. Upcoming Polish alto saxophonist Maciej Obara, meets some great jazz musicians of the moment in New York earlier this year: Ralph Alessi on trumpet, Mark Helias on bass, and Nasheet Waits on drums. The result is this fantastic album. Even if the pieces are composed, yet barely, the focus is on the open improvisations, the respectful and measured interplay, full of lyricism and melodic expansion.
Obara has released two albums so far, and is best known for his collaborations with Polish trumpeter Tomasz Stanko. Even if the music is relatively calm, it has its bouts of intensity. Influences abound, from the boppish last track, to Ornette Colemane-style unision themes, to more open and free interplay. The latter, no surprise, gets my preference and it also represents the band's best moments. Enjoy!
http://freejazz-stef.blogspot.com/2010/05/maciej-obara-special-quartet-four-ars.html
Obara has released two albums so far, and is best known for his collaborations with Polish trumpeter Tomasz Stanko. Even if the music is relatively calm, it has its bouts of intensity. Influences abound, from the boppish last track, to Ornette Colemane-style unision themes, to more open and free interplay. The latter, no surprise, gets my preference and it also represents the band's best moments. Enjoy!
http://freejazz-stef.blogspot.com/2010/05/maciej-obara-special-quartet-four-ars.html
Posted by jazzofilo at Sunday, May 23, 2010 0 comments
Labels: Maciej Obara
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