The atmospheric and darkly beautiful playing of Danish guitarist Jakob Bro in the Paul Motian Band and in Polish trumpeter Tomaz Stanko’s current quartet has brought him to the attention of adventurous jazz fans and ECM aficionados in Europe and the States. For his auspicious debut as a leader, he calls on some revered and open-minded elders in drummer/mentor Motian, 82-year-old alto sax legend Lee Konitz, and guitarist Bill Frisell, easily Bro’s most profound influence on the instrument. Along with bassist Ben Street, they delve into the intuitive zone on bewitching Bro originals like the ethereal and aptly titled rubato opener “Weightless,” the simple and delightful feature for Konitz, “Evening Song,” the mesmerizing “Greenland,” and the somber, sparsely meditative “Starting Point,” which begins as a delicate duet between Bro and Frisell on acoustic guitars and develops into a stirring trio number as Konitz enters halfway through (there’s also a bonus electric version that pushes the envelope on guitar effects). - Bill Milkowski
The 2009 release Balladeering started off the album trilogy. Of the three recordings, it’s the one that most reflects the influence that Bill Frisell has had over modern guitarists. His mix of jazz, folk and rock presented with a strikingly melodic, hazily ambient presence and sometimes ominous tone is stamped indelibly on this recording. And while Jakob Bro is certainly his own man when it comes to a singular creative voice, if it can be said he came out of one particular “school of Jazz,” it would the Frisellian.
“Weightless” speaks directly to this distinction. With its layers of melody and effects, it creates a swirling mist of sound whose form is defined by the path it drifts in as much as it is by its sequencing of one gorgeous note after the next. “Terrace Place” runs very similar to this, but Konitz’s sax cuts through the fog like a knife.
“Vraa” sparks with life. Konitz’s sax is thick with emotion, heart wide as the day is long. Paul Motion’s drums match Konitz’s forward motion while kicking up a bit of propulsion. On “Evening Song,” the melody serves as the source of propulsion, with lyricism as the fuel.
Aside from the lovely tone they provide, the use of steel-stringed guitar on “Starting Point (Acoustic)” portends an essential element that leads to the success of Balladeering‘s follow-up… Time. But for this session, it’s all about the warmth those guitars generate, and how a distant beauty grows much closer and embraceable.
Tracks
01 Weightless
02 Evening Song
03 Vraa
04 Staring Point / Acoustic Version
05 Greenland
06 Terrace Place
07 Sort
08 Starting Point / Electric Version
LEE KONITZ alto saxophone
BILL FRISELL guitar
JAKOB BRO guitar
BEN STREET double bass
PAUL MOTIAN drums
All music composed by Jakob Bro
Loveland Records - LLR011