COMPOSERS: Marius Neset
LABELS: Edition
ALBUM TITLE: Marius Neset: Birds
WORKS: Birds
PERFORMER: Marius Neset (sax), Ivo Neame (piano), Jim Hart (vibes), Jasper Høiby (bass), Anton Eger (drums)
CATALOGUE NO: EDN1040
From saxophonist Jan Garbarek to trumpeter Nils Petter Molvær, Norway’s well-funded arts scene keeps on producing extraordinary and innovative jazz talent. But there’s still no such thing as a ‘Norwegian sound’, as the country’s latest export Marius Neset shows.
Neset, a freewheeling soprano and tenor saxophonist is the next in a long line of individualistic players to burst out of the north with a totally new thing. His second release, Birds, has a diamond bright, modern classical feel: complex, through composed original compositions but with Neset’s improvised runs seared into the arrangements. There are some daring choices in the sound palette, and they work. The core jazz quintet is augmented by surprise splashes of colour from flute (played by sister Ingrid Neset), tuba, French horn and even accordion. As for Neset, his exuberant playing blows through the arrangements, often pulling his sidemen into a delicious maelstrom of music. Scintillating stuff.
Garry Booth