a r t i s t : Jonas Kullhammar Quartet
t i t l e : Son Of A Drummer
d a t e : 2006
l a b e l : Moserobie
g e n r e : Jazz
r l s. d a t e : Feb/2007
t r a c k s : 05
b i t r a t e : VBRkbps
s i z e : 60,8 MB
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Jonas Kullhammar: Tenor Saxophone
Torbj÷rn Gulz: Piano
Torbj÷rn Zetterberg: Bass
Jonas Holgersson: Drums
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Over the past several years, jazz fans have been quite lucky
to hear a significant amount of new work from Scandinavian
improvisers. However, most of the Scandinavian improvisers who
have cracked the international jazz scene are committed to
free improvisation. Those who embrace more traditional roots,
while still dedicated to pushing at the boundaries of those
roots, are not mentioned in the same breath as Mats Gustafsson
or his compatriots. Swedish tenorman Jonas Kullhammar is one
of a small legion of inside-outside jazz artists who could
change that landscape.
Son of a Drummer is KullhammarÆs fourth release for his
Moserobie label. HeÆs recorded free improvisation with Paal
Nilssen-Love and folk-rock with Nicolai Dunger, but most of
KullhammarÆs recordings follow a snaky path of unbridled,
gutbucket tenor amid a modal post bop setting, a la Sam Rivers
or Alan Skidmore. Snake City North paired this free-swinging
small group sound with the Norbotten Big Band for a 100% Proof
aesthetic; Son of a Drummer is a bit more reined-in, allowing
room for plaintiveness as well as high-energy music. With his
working quartet of pianist Torbj÷rn Gulz, bassist Torbj÷rn
Zetterberg and drummer Jonas Holgersson, Kullhammar approaches
four originals and the Swedish jazz standard ôCorny Waltzö
with a subdued fire.
ôHitmanö is an uptempo swinger, coupling a sharp, staccato
head with a wide modal wingspan. Kullhammar stretches his post
bop chops in fine, heel-digging fashion, quickly edging into
coarse multiphonics that show his lineage from Newk to Pharaoh
and beyond. In some ways, though the rhythm section is tight
and honed their backing of Kullhammar doesnÆt always fit his
stretching exercises. ôStormenö is a lilting folk ballad, its
theme played perhaps a bit too cleanly, but as Gulz drops out
for the first half of the tenor solo, Kullhammar nags a phrase
in an intense, slow crackle, mining an entirely new set of
dense textures from the tuneÆs parameters.
Pianist Berndt EgerbladhÆs ôCorny Waltzö is given a decidedly
relentless treatment, Kullhammar going for keening skronk as
Zetterberg and Holgersson set up an intense thrum, Gulz's
chords roiling less than might be but still providing able
support. As an example of inside-outside playing, the quartet
almost seems to be fighting for its identity rather than
walking an aesthetic tightrope. It will be interesting to see
how this group progresses over the next album or two, but for
now Son of a Drummer is a worthy notch in its cap.
Clifford Allen, allaboutjazz.com
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Some reviews in Swedish:
http://www.svd.se/dynamiskt/rec_skivor/did_12412100.asp
http://dagensskiva.com/index.asp?datum=2006-6-18
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01-Hitman [08:19]
02-Stormen [11:12]
03-Bendiksen [05:21]
04-Corny Waltz [09:25]
05-The Rise And Fall Of Sour T [10:28]
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44:45 min