Pianist Oli Howe, 36, is originally from Surrey. SJM editor Charlie Anderson began by asking him what first brought him to Brighton. “I came here when I was 32 for the music scene, really, and to play jazz properly with people that were good at it, and lots of them. I was living in […]
Tell us about your group ENEMY. “It’s a trio of myself, Petter Eldh and James Maddren where me and Petter write the music. The music is all quite rhythmic, quite intense. It’s about creating quite difficult forms but still trying to be free on them. Petter uses a lot of hip hop influences and […]
Tell us about Melt Yourself Down. What inspired you to put it together? “I was inspired to do it by listening to the music of Ali Hassan Kuban which made me want to create something with the huge energy and joy of his and other Nubian musicians’ performances.” How do you go about […]
MAISHA New Generation Jazz,The Verdict, Brighton Friday 31st March 2017 Drummer Jake Long’s MAISHA specialise in post-Coltrane world-influenced music, very much in the spirit of Pharaoh Sanders and this was apparent from the first number, Welcome to a New Welcome. The final piece of the first set was introduced by an extended […]
Christian Brewer/Leon Greening Quartet The Verdict, Brighton Friday 7th April Despite flies buzzing around the stage, attracted by the bright stage lights in a darkened room, the band began with a blistering slice of hard bop, in the form of Cedar Walton’s Ugetsu, made famous by Art Blakey’s Jazz Messengers. The groove of […]
Jamie Brownfield & Liam Byrne Smalls at The Verdict Thursday 13th April Beginning with Hackensack (a tune based on Lady Be Good) it was obvious that trumpeter Brownfield and tenor saxophonist Byrne have a fantastic musical chemistry. Vocalist Imogen Ryall paid tribute to Billie Holiday performing Mean to Me and a memorable […]
Rick Simpson’s Klammer The Verdict, Brighton Friday 14th April 2017 A mesmerising evening of highly original contemporary material from pianist Rick Simpson featured some outstanding performances from reedsman Mike Chillingworth and saxophonist-of-the-moment George Crowley. Simpson’s esoteric compositions were ideally suited to the wide range of timbres at his disposal, including Chillingworth’s bass […]
You’re performing at Smalls in Brighton on Thursday 13th April with Liam Byrne. What can the audience expect to hear? “When Liam and I play together you can expect to hear anything from 1930's/40's swing through to 1950's Bebop, numbers by Ellington, Charlie Parker and Lester Young to name a few. People have commented […]
Normally I start interviews with the question ‘How did you get into jazz?’. “Oh my god! Have you got a week?! Right, my whole family is in jazz, which helps. My mother had four brothers, all of whom were bandleaders. One brother, Sid Phillips, had Britain’s number one dixieland band and was a wonderful […]
Which tenor saxophone players are you influenced by? “My biggest influences are probably Lester Young and Ben Webster. Other favourites of mine include Al Cohn and Zoot Sims as well as the more bebop orientated tenor players such as Wardell Gray, early Sonny Rollins and Sonny Stitt.” Are there any saxophone players around […]