Music / Jazz
Bristol’s week in jazz, June 17 – 23
Plenty of guitars in jazz action this week, from classic swing to psych-jazz fusion and beyond, while the classical scene invites some syncopated hot-shots to join their party and albums are released all over the place.
But talking of hot-shots, the highly rated Zenel make their Bristol debut this week (Gallimaufry, Thursday 20) thanks to adventurous promoters Astral Tusk. Part of South London’s thriving Jazz Re;freshed scene this young trumpet-led trio bring fearlessly improvisational approaches to electronic production music and were quickly tipped for greatness by Jazzwise magazine.
The guitar charge begins on Tuesday (18) with the fiery Flamenco Thief (Canteen), a loop-based avalanche of Spanish-rooted jazz on solo acoustic guitar, followed by Ishmael Ensemble’s fretmeister Stephen Mullins guesting with Waldo’s Gift (Gallimaufry, Wednesday 19). Then there’s sizzling Gypsy jazz quartet Schmoozenbergs (Wardrobe Theatre, Thursday 20) who will be launching their new album Awaken.
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Across town on Thursday there’s duelling guitars fronting the Libor Smoldas & Nigel Price Quintet (Future Inn) with Czech guitarist Libor returning to the UK in the company of Future Inn favourite Nigel. Plenty of groove-rooted blues and jazz should ensue, as will also be evident when saxophonist John Pratt’s JP3 visit Canteen (Wednesday 19)
Eclectic and unpredictable jazz-rock guitarist Neil Smith pops up on Saturday (22) in clever prog-psych quartet Milon (Old England) alongside the exploratory electroacoustic sax/accordeon duo Lore.
Having already successfully collaborated with Andy Sheppard and Get The Blessing Bristol Symphony Orchestra director and conductor William Goodchild’s latest project invited the excellent flautist Gareth Lochrane’s quartet and Bristol-based brass ensemble Dakhla to develop an orchestral dimension for their music. Jazz meets Bristol Symphony (Clifton Cathedral, Saturday 22) will showcase the results. Get The Blessing trumpeter Pete Judge shows up elsewhere twice, too – with fellow Dakhlaite Sophie Stockham in Orphic (El Rincon, Friday 21) and in ambient trumpet/drum duo Eyebrow (Tobacco Factory, Sunday 23).
Two veteran masters of the wild side meet explosively at The Exchange (Wednesday 19): Keiji Haino & Charles Hayward are a pair of near-legendary uncompromising post-rock improvisers touring the UK to promote a new album. It’s a real coup for local promoters Cacophonous Sarcophagus, not least as this is Fushitsusha multi-instrumental main man Keiji’s Bristol debut. Sadly the other improvisational highlight of the week is on the same night when Abbatoir/Satori headline a triple bill of electronic mayhem at The Cube. Calmer electronica pops into the Old England (Thursday 20) in the shape of ambient-techno industrialists Distant Flows, also promoting a a new album.
Then there’s the usual assortment of jazz-informed grooviness, starting with post-Mariachi outfit Los Kamer (The Bell, Wednesday 19), followed by Afrobeat singer/keyboard man Dele Sosimi (Old Market Assembly, Friday 21) vying with Afro-Latin funksters King Lagoon’s Flying Swordfish Band (Canteen Friday 21) and the amazingly voiced Israeli singer Noga Ritter (Canteen, Saturday).
And finally, new venue The Den-Dockside maintains its high-quality weekly offering this week with Gary Alesbrook’s super-cool Duval Project (Friday 21) – boasting another amazingly voiced vocalist in Marie Lister – and then what may be the Bristol debut of in-demand pianist Greg Foat (Saturday 22). Very much in the Gilles Peterson zone, Greg’s group have been described as ‘soul jazz for the 21st century’.
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