With 18 albums under his belt and over 40 years of musical connectivity at the heart of his practice, the Danish composer and educator Torben Westergaard is a musician striving to work in an egoless environment. On his fantastic new album 'The Gori Project II', his second immersion into the merging of influences between Nordic jazz and Korean folk music has come good, creating something that belongs entirely to the four musicians involved. Cinematic, theatrical and blissed out at times, the album really does take you away. Read / Listen.
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Just some of the CDs April Records has sent to us!
April Records - Denmark's jazz powerhouse - label focus
April Records is a ridiculously prolific record label from Copenhagen, their widescreen approach to jazz and their championing of young musicians alongside veteran musicians from across the Scandinavian region has produced a highly impressive catalogue of recordings. We asked co-founder Jan Schmidt about the curatorial approach of the label and delved a little into the history of the Danish jazz scene. Read / Listen.
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Rumpistol 'ISOLA' (Raske Plader) - a review
Award-winning Danish pianist, composer and electronic musician Rumpistol (aka Jens B. Christiansen) has created a beautifully immersive album that sits somewhere between neo-classical composition, slow-burning jazz and pastoral whimsy, and should tickle the heartstrings of fans of Max Richter, Nils Frahm and Ryuichi Sakamoto. Read / Listen
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Alawari 'Alawari' (April Records) - a review
Alawari are a young 7 piece jazz collective from Denmark and this, their debut album, is a truly stunning musical document that seems to manage to capture the troubled times that we are living through. A brilliant mix of lush classical arrangements with levels of uninhibited free jazz expression, the record is “Inspired by the spirit of revolution and ancient war” and it sounds like it. Exceptional. Read / Listen here
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Jakob Dinesen/Anders Christensen/Laust Sonne 'Blessings' (April Records) - a review
‘Blessings’ is a new live album from the Danish trio of Jakob Dinesen, Anders Christensen and Laust Sonne and it is a charmer of a set, walking through summery ballads and Middle Eastern tinged groovers and includes a superb version of ‘Freedom Jazz dance’ by Sonny Rollins…..Read /Listen
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