Light Coorporation – Chapter IV: Before The Murmur Of Silence (2014)

Light Coorporation

Mariusz Sobański - guitars, baritone cello
Paweł Rogoża - tenor saxophone
Kuba Jankowiak - trumpet
Witold Oleszak - acoustic grand piano
Piotr Oses - double bass
Krzysztof Waśkiewicz - bass
Miłosz Krauz - drums, percussion

Chapter IV: Before The Murmur Of Silence

ReR LC04

By Adam Baruch

This is the fourth album by Polish Progressive Rock/Jazz-Rock Fusion ensemble Light Coorporation, led by guitarist/composer Mariusz Sobański. The album was recorded by a septet, which also includes saxophonist Pawel Rogoża, trumpeter Kuba Jankowiak, pianist Witold Oleszak, bassists Piotr Oses (acoustic) and Krzysztof Waśkiewicz (electric) and drummer Miłosz Krauz. It includes eight original compositions, all by Sobański, which are accompanied by eight poems also written by him, printed in the album's booklet, which remain as unsung lyrics accompanying the music. The music was recorded live in the studio, but the sound quality and dynamics are excellent.

For the fourth time in a row Sobański and his ensemble manage to surprise me completely, which happens extremely rarely with other artists. The chameleonic ability to constantly change the lineup and the music, but at the same time create some of the most fascinating music on the Polish scene, which is exploding with talent and extremely competitive, is truly astounding. This album is definitely the most jazzy and most open of the ensemble's releases so far, and brings fond memories of some of the Frank Zappa ambitious projects, which incorporated Rock, Jazz and contemporary Classical idioms, but also the work of some early British Jazz-Rock pioneers like Rock Workshop. The "dirty" guitar tone and the superb brass solos, backed by a funky rhythm section are simply delightful and completely unique. There is no other group, neither in Poland nor anywhere else on this planet, which plays anything remotely similar.

There are also new elements, which appear here for the first time, such as the Improvised Music approach the ensemble clearly demonstrates, and of course the element of freedom in the improvisations, which are often quite bold and clearly reach beyond the boundaries of Prog, which initially defined the group's orientation. Over time Light Coorporation managed to evade and steer clear of all attempts to get neatly categorized, which is one of their major fortes. The last track on the album, which lasts over seventeen minutes, is a modern symphonic poem, of rare beauty and intensity, which simply de facto defines the music.

Listening to this album is like a rollercoaster ride, which themes, rhythms, intensities, crescendos and silences chasing each other constantly. The music takes the listener by the throat and does not let go well until the last echoes of the music are all gone; a completely unique experience, which happens only once in a blue moon.

I have no idea why Light Coorporation gets such a limited feedback in Poland, but the fact that the prestigious British ReR label releases their album for the fourth consecutive time is a symbol of distinction and appreciation. Hopefully they will be able to get more recognition back at home, as they truly deserve. This is definitely one of the best and most interesting Polish albums of 2014, and another great accomplishment by Sobański and his cohorts.

Nicole Mitchell & an_ARCHE NewMusic Ensemble - Arc Of O (2012)

Nicole Mitchell & an_ARCHE NewMusic Ensemble

Nicole Mitchell - flute, vocals, electronic samples, composition, conduction
Renée Baker - violin
Mwata Bowden - baritone saxophone, bass clarinet, clarinet
David Boykin - tenor saxophone

Rafał Zapała - artistic direction of the project, electronics, percussion

Krzysztof Dys - piano

Kuba Jankowiak - trumpet

Ksawery Wójciński - double bass

Paweł Szpura - drums

Arc Of O (2012)

By Tom Burris

The first thing you hear as this disc begins is the dense sound of manic sawing and staccato notes jamming the circuits of your brain. No lead-in. No counting time to give you a second or two of anticipation. Just BLAM! You're dropped into an environment of immediate suffocation & paranoia. Then just as quickly as it assaulted you, the music drops and drones with a mournful tension that grows gradually until it reaches another climax of psychological drama. 

The effect is jarring, compelling and sets the tone for the rest of this extremely ambitious work, which was recorded live in front of an audience in Poland. Mitchell augments a quartet for this composition with the Arche NewMusic Ensemble to great effect, often reminding me of those classic Alice Coltrane arrangements for Impulse. And moving toward even further sonic possibilities, she is playing a sampler in addition to the flute. 

Constant movement pervades throughout "Arc of O". Mitchell follows the introductory onslaught with a flute passage that is surrounded by the light fluttering of the collective in a way that invokes the Rite of Spring. (Like the Rite, Mitchell's composition seems to be a musical representation of rebirth and the regeneration of all life-cycles.) An exotic sounding melody follows, featuring David Boykin fighting with his saxophone, like he's struggling to get the thing out of his mouth while some unknown force keeps shoving it back in. Drums pound relentlessly while a tea kettle threatens to boil over, warning of some sort of sacrifice.

The next section begins with a march tempo. The seven dwarfs go to Hell as a melodic figure arises conjuring up a Braxtonian parade. It takes a few more unusual turns until tension becomes almost constant. Then out of nowhere, a surprise on par with the opening few minutes appears: a comic finish! There is relief where none could be seen & it drops in as if from out of the sky. Change as the only constant in the universe, Nicole Mitchell style. 

To alleviate the heaviness of “Arc of O,” Mitchell has paired the composition with “Afrika Rising,” which seems light-hearted by comparison but is no less sophisticated in approach or scope. It opens with the quartet playing vintage hard bop before the strings appear in the arrangement, again conjuring up those wonderful Alice Coltrane scores of yore. (I never understood the controversy over her string arrangements. They are majestic and beautiful). This is followed by a kalimba inspired melody with a funk rhythm underneath, while Boykin and ARCHE's trumpeter, Kuba Jankowiak, duel over the top. 

The next sections run the gamut between funk, Germanic big brass melodies, minimalism, and a couple of free blitz blowouts. The last section is a work of total joy, beginning with Mitchell soloing over a kinetic and tense rhythm/riff. As it opens up and the orchestra enters, Boykin solos in tribute to Alice's husband, leading the orchestra down the trail Trane once blazed in search of ultimate spiritual enlightenment. A baritone sax solo from Mwata Bowden builds to screaming intensity. The string section repeats the melody before Mitchell's flute appears, soloing to a gorgeous intensity. (The map is good!) 

A fantastic piano solo by ARCHE's Krzysztof Dys is so melodically well-constructed it sounds composed. (All praise the map!) The strings enter to play the main theme again and resolution is declared. Put the CD on repeat to hear the cycle begin again. Absolutely, positively wonderful.

Tfaruk - Love Communication (Multikulti, 2011)

Tfaruk

Tomasz Ballaun - percussion, electronics
Michał Fetler - saxophones
Piotr Mełech - bass clarinet
Krzysztof Kaliski - bass guitar
Daniel Karpiński - drums

guests:
Kuba Jankowiak - trumpet
Franiu Frank - rhodes, rattle
Tymon Tymański - bass guitar (only on "Dla Taty")
Wojtek Mazolewski - bass guitar (only on "Miłość zwycięża kiełbasę")

Multikulti 2011

Free Jazz Alchemist (check his site) reports on one of newest issues from excellent Polish Multikulti label:

Polish listener will smile just from seeing the name of this band ("Tfaruk" being as incorrect as possible way of spelling "cottage cheese") and I guess this form of anarchic absurd humour (that shows up also in the titles) is easily associated with the yass scene - polish jazz revolution movement of the 90's. Both Tomasz Ballaun, the founder of the band, and one of the guests - Tymon Tymanski are strongly connected with yass movement indeed (Tymon being in fact its spiritus movens). Still there's a lot of fun for non-polish listeners here too.

The band kicks right into an old-school groove and tight horn arrangements with the first track, with a Latin-funk twist to it. The hard hit rock groove catches on with the "Mistrz kierownicy ucieka" (Polish title for the cult car-chase movie "Smokey and the Bandit") and there's more fun rhythm chasing coming with "Miłość zwycięża kiełbasę" ("Love Wins Over Sausages"). The catchy and driving grooves pair nicely with the tight horn riffs and make a nice platform for some nasty soloing by the horn players (fat saxophone sound, crisp trumpet, round and sensual bass clarinet).

The latter half of the album explores less retro, more nu-jazz territory, with more electronic effects, some loops and samples, fast drum'n'bass drum breaks (as in "Dla Taty") working more on the idea of creating improvised music with a steady and trance rhythmic base ("Lhasa 2008" is more or less in the same vein). Much less satisfying in my ears but it's no surprise really - I love funk but don't appreciate nearly enough the electronica-club scene to get a kick out of this kind of jazz (although the tracks have their moments - like a nicely done horns arrangement in the "Lhasa 2008").

The band gets back on the acoustic and groovy track with the last track of the cd "Gdynia" that starts with the gentle bass clarinet intro, follows into a klezmer tune with a slow beat (baritone sax gives the riff a great kick) and delivers the most adventurous and opened solos of the album, and ends with the short and frenzy car chase (police siren in there). 

I have my mind split in half about this cd really - the more acoustic playing is fun and have the right punch, to it, the electronica is more pensieve and somehow less exciting. Still this is a nice listening, great for the summer, very accessible, quite energetic, keeps your feet tapping. Would be great for an action movie soundtrack.

you can check out some of the tracks on their website http://www.tfaruk.art.pl/ or/and watch this video:

Author of text: Bartek Adamczak 

http://jazzalchemist.blogspot.com/ 

...