Personnel:
Jaume Llombart (g), Alfred Artigas (g), Miguel Villar (ts), Pau Domènech (b-cl), Marc Cuevas (b), Joe Smith (d)
Reference: FSNT-461
Bar code: 8427328424615
Under a mixture of influences, rooted in jazz and classical music, guitarist Jaume Llombart explores, through original pieces and arrangements of jazz standards, the possibilities that this sextet offers.
Together they work under the parameters of a chamber group where each musician is a clear, unique and indispensable voice. The search for the nuances that each instrument or section of instruments can give, in terms of textures and colors, defines the character of the band born in Barcelona and in which the restless Catalan guitarist has surrounded himself with five solid and honest voices of the local jazz scene.
"An unusual instrumentation delivers a group sound in which the usual hierarchies of lead and rhythm are neatly overturned. The two guitarists exchange places and roles, while the horns alternate ostinato accompaniment with strikingly effective solo excursions.
Llombart's musical world seems to stretch from the bop-into-cool of the title track to the fringes of rock, though it's drummer Joe Smith who claims the credit on the set's only noisy shredder, the fine Current Electric. For the most part, the mood is quite sombre and thoughtful. The familiar Miles Davis line sounds almost mournful in this arrangement and even Gershwin's Liza has an elegiac twist. There's more boppy stuff on Motivotion, which is credited to the leader but could easily pass as something from the Blue Note archive, but it's the more atmospheric material which stands out and the broken-figuration of Bajada is just exquisite. Another of Jordi Pujol's great finds."
—Brian Morton (August, 2015)
Jazz Journal
