Kadri Voorand
Tallinn, Estonia
Sunday 12 Oct 2008
Festival City
They’re barely together a year, and have yet to make a debut recording but it will be worthy of your attention when they do. There is an abundance of compositional ambition and conceptual purpose with these six audacious musicians from Gothenburg, home to much that is good in Swedish jazz right now. Built around the captivating voice of Isabel Sörling, who morphs effortlessly from an intimate Bjorkesque delivery into uninhibited improv, she forms a fulcrum with the quietly effective pianist Henrik Magnusson, together building the melodically direct statements that drive the band onward. Bassist Lars Lorinius and drummer Carl-Johan Groth play their part, with taut control of groove and dynamics. It’s a free pass for horns Otis Sandsjo (tenor) and Kim Aksnes (trumpet), who interact instinctively with the voice to create ethereal textures that build as far as, but never beyond, the point of abstraction. Deservedly, their playful intensity and strong sense of group flow won them the prestigious YNJC prize for 2010.
