EABS "Repetitions (Letters to Krzysztof Komeda)" - An Eastern-European response to the Jazz Renaissance
The growth in popularity of jazz music in recent years has been described as a renaissance or new chapter for the genre. Attracting new audiences has seen a growth in acclaim for international artists including Kamasi Washington & The West Coast Get Down collective or BadBadNotGood. This resurgence has also been felt within british jazz scene. Musicians such as Yussef Kamaal, Shabaka Hutchings, Ruby Rushton, Nubya Garcia or Moses Boyd have put a new stamp on jazz music by fusing elements of classic jazz with modern sounds. Polish septet, EABS applies a similar philosophy to their music, blending traditional Polish Jazz with sounds from other genres, thus creating a new and personal interpretation of modern jazz.
Carefully chosen compositions, the background of the movies for which the music had been written and Marek Pędziwiatr’s lyrics all add up to “Repetitions” being some kind of a concept album about the condition of the human soul in the 21st century. The questions one may ask might be similar to those which could have been asked by the artists witnessing post-war debris: will history come full circle? Lack of knowledge, flourishing idiocracy, aggression, aiming for conflicts, shortage of community spirit and love may lead to another doomsday. Perhaps we simply aren’t able to see the impending doom now… Just like in a poem by Czesław Miłosz, “A Song on the End of the World”, to which Krzysztof Komeda wrote “Waltzing Beyond”.
EABS have created their unique compositions by employing an approach exercising the idea of “reconstruction from deconstruction” where sampling and looping are merged with jazz improvisations. The injection of hip-hop, jungle, funk, gospel and electronic music add a futuristic tone to the tracks. However EABS have made a conscious decision to ensure their nod to Komeda enables the spirit of the Polish Jazz to remain alive. Michal Urbaniak another Polish Jazz legend is the only guest on the album. His violin can be heard on the track “Free Witch And No Bra Queen/ Sult”.
1. Knowledge (Introdukcja do Etiudy Baletowej) 04:08
2. Perły i Dukaty XIV / Repetition 10:55
3. Private Conversation VIII 06:16
4. Niekochana 05:07
5. Pingwin VI 07:18
6. Free Witch and No Bra Queen / Sult ft. Michał Urbaniak 05:52
7. God is Love (Bariera XIII) 04:59
8. Step Into the Light (Wiklinowy Kosz) 10:54
9. Waltzing Beyond (The Song on the Day the World Ends) 03:48
Marek Pędziwiatr - piano, synths, vocal
Vojto Monteur - guitar
Paweł Stachowiak - bass
Jakub Kurek - trumpet
Olaf Węgier - tenor sax
Marcin Rak - drums
Spisek Jednego - turntables
