To Hell With (UK) - original article


CD REVIEW
In The Country: Losing Stones,
Collecting Bones
Tekst: SCOTT


Over the past 10 or so years morton qvenild (pronounced kven-il) has proven himself a master in the art of composition and melody with the keys. as an early original member of jaga jazzist and more recently susanna and the magical orchestra and the shining, his pedigree is very much established.

In the country is qvenilds’ more traditional jazz trio. while jaga are obviously jazz tinged their sound has often been more akin to electronica or post-rock than pure jazz, and in the country really showcases qvenilds' grand piano playing excellence in both composition and technical ability. what should be pointed out from the start is that in the country are never tempted down the wailing john coltrane in his crazy stage jazz that you might be thinking about. this is more sedate in the main, but crescendos are allowed to rise up through hammering piano and on the button drums from pal hausken. unexpectedly (though perhaps not so when you consider qvenilds love of vocals through susanna etc), there are a couple of vocal tracks here, most notably 'everyone live their life', which belies the seemingly optimistic title with a preceding line of 'everyone is going to die'.

Always emotive, this is a trio of musicians who despite not being massively inventive still manage to craft a jazz album of the like you won't have heard before. this is due in part to the production, but anyone who may have seen them live a few weeks ago (with susanna and supersilent) can attestto the fact that their pure passion and musicianship make this trio endearing to anyone with even a slight yearning for some jazz without the endless soloing.

 
Publisert : 27.11.2006