Axel Stinshoff, Jazz thing (Germany)
ESPERANZA SPALDING: 12 Little Spells (Concord)
A selection of the hot new music surfacing across the continent this month by the top European jazz magazines and websites
Luca Vitali, Giornale della Musica (Italy)
FIRE! ORCHESTRA: Arrival (Rune Grammofon)
Paweł Brodowski, Jazz Forum (Poland)
EABS: Slavic Spirits (Astigmatic Records)
Following their sensational and highly acclaimed debut "Repetitions (Letters to Krzysztof Komeda)” of two years ago, this young septet, which fuses jazz, hip-hop and electronic effects, has come up with another inspired project, this time dedicated, as the title says, to "Slavic Spirit,” which has informed Polish jazz and rock music over the years. The DeLuxe edition includes a 300-page booklet (!) with a fascinating, in-depth essay, in Polish and English (!), tracing the Slavic roots and heritage, and their impact on contemporary Polish culture.
Anna Filipieva, Jazz.Ru (Russia)
MAKAR NOVIKOV AND HISKE OOSTERWEIJK: Stereobass (Rainy Days Records)
Jan Granlie, salt-peanuts.eu (Pan-Scandinavian)
FIRE! ORCHESTRA: Arrival (Rune Grammofon)
Fire! Orchestra has maybe made the best and most creative record this year, and we are only in June. A more controlled Fire! Orchestra than before, and the strings are making it perfect.
Christine Stephan, JAZZTHETIK (Germany)
JOAKIM BERGHÄLL TRIALITY: The Arctic (Eclipse Music)
Viktor Bensusan, jazzdergisi.com (Turkey)
WYNTON MARSALIS: Bolden (Blue Engine Records)
Who is the first jazz musician whom everybody knows but no one has ever heard? How did the recognizable jass he played evolve into something universal and at times even beyond recognition? Charles Buddy Bolden, the Adam of the Jazz Bible, will come to life with the music of Wynton Marsalis in the movie "Bolden" and its soundtrack.
Magnus Nygren, OrkesterJournalen (Sweden)
FIRE! ORCHESTRA: Arrival (Rune Grammofon)
On their new album Arrival this extraordinary power orchestra goes into new territories. With condensed energy the group, which now also includes a string quartet, are playing some beautiful melodies in their own specific way, not at least Blue Crystal Fire by guitar player Robbie Basho.
Cim Meyer, Jazz Special (Denmark)
JESSE LEWIS AND IKE STURM: Endless Field (Biophilia Records)
Some may find this release a little too airy on melody and solo performances but still it’s an exuberant universe that brings Pat Metheny to mind. The compositions draw from folk, jazz, rock, classical and ambient in a setting of organic sound influenced by nature.
Lars Mossefinn, Dag og tid (Norway)
ELEPHANT9: Psychedelic Backfire I (Rune Grammofon)
Matthieu Jouan, Citizenjazz.com (France)
FIRE! ORCHESTRA: Arrival (Rune Grammofon)
The Fire! Orchestra offers an astonishing and magnificent combination of strings, woodwinds and voices. More than the previous ones, Arrival has a pronounced vocal colour, with two surprising covers: "Blue Crystal Fire" (Robbie Basho) and "I last I am free" (Chic). The vocal colours of Mariam Wallentin and Sofia Jernberg are complementary and give the whole album a rock colour. Fire! is an omnipotent orgiastic orchestra.
