Artist: Storms Nocturnes

Date of Release: 19/04/2011

Catalogue no: Origin 82591

Label: Origin Records

Price: £9.90

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Track Listing

Appearances by

Joe Locke, Tim Garland

"VIA" is the new recording by the Storms/Nocturnes Trio:
Tim Garland, Geoffrey Keezer, Joe Locke

"This trio is unique, a chamber jazz form that truly sizzles with virtuosity and creativity. Tim, Geoffrey and Joe make an amazing trio" - Chick Corea

With “VIA” the third album by the Storms/Nocturnes Trio, celebrated British saxophonist Tim Garland, world leading vibraphone virtuoso Joe Locke and recent Grammy nominee, pianist Geoffrey Keezer, create a unique three way dialogue of captivating, immersive music. This enduring international alliance of three Jazz giants is celebrating its tenth anniversary with this album, released on Seattle-based Origin Records on April 19th 2011.

After two successful recordings — "Storms/Nocturnes" (2001) and "Rising Tide" (2003, both Sirocco Music) — and a gap of seven years busy running their respective bands and other musical collaborations, the trio came back together in 2010 with renewed energy and ambition, with greater maturity as artists, and a strong sense of being able to push the boundaries of each of their musical roles within the group, reviving one of the most sustainable and timeless transatlantic partnerships in Jazz today.

VIA is original on yet another level. One unusual and forward-thinking feature of this release is that a large share of its costs was funded in advance of the recording sessions through Kickstarter.com, a funding platform for creative projects, allowing fans and investors to support and participate in the realisation of artistic visions. The success of this campaign confirms the enduring popularity of Storms/Nocturnes since their first two recordings and opens up their music to a new, wider audience.

This release will see Storms/Nocturnes starting to nudge for a place among the elite of world-class ensembles.

Reviews

02/05/2011 NDR album of the week

VIA", the new album by "Storms / Nocturnes" has - above all musical qualities - as its most striking feature an addiction factor: you'll look forward to listening again and again. A positive atmosphere of love of life rings in almost all pieces, marked by relaxed virtuosity as well as sensitive melodies. Piano, vibraphone and saxophone are an extraordinary combination enabling the crystal clear chamber sound as well as dense complex harmony. Pianist Geoffrey Keezer lives in San Diego, vibraphonist Joe Locke in New York, and saxophonist Tim Garland in London. They've been playing together for 10 years. "VIA" is their third recording after "Storms / Nocturnes" (2001) and "Rising Tide" (2003). read in German on NDR website

Expressive and free

The unusual band name "Storms / Nocturnes" promises a wonderful melancholy that's supported by explosive virtuosity. The music - though expressive and free - is constructed in such a fine and elegant way that its Nocturnes suggest a warm, glowing, pleasant dusk. It's like singing in the dark, gaining courage in an often dire world. Playing their original tunes of timeless, lyrical beauty, these three impress particularly by their effortless and relaxed interaction. Occasional minimalist tonal chains string together or open up a space for artistic freedom, all naturally connected with one another. The jazz journalist John Kelman puts it perfectly: "VIA is a remarkable confluence of form and freedom with telepathic spontaneity.

18/04/2011 John Kelman - All About Jazz

If VIA bridges a perceived American/European divide, it also draws a clear line between compositional detail and painstaking melodicism. The delicately descending changes to Locke's "Snowfall in Central Park" do, indeed, evoke the image of snowflakes falling on a strangely quiet Manhattan, but their being in an irregular meter in no way dilutes their natural rhythm, evidence that what goes on under the covers of such a richly composed piece are meant to remain just that. Closing VIA with Locke's "Miramar"—a tune with a completely different, more potent complexion on Live in Seattle—demonstrates just how far Storms/Nocturnes has come and that, sometimes, the passage of time makes a group stronger, not weaker, as its members bring everything they've acquired to the table, while still retaining their special collective voice, one born of effortless flexibility. Here, scored and spontaneous counterpoint ebb and flow beneath Locke's singable theme, leading to a vibraphone solo that marries Locke's allegiance to melody with unfailing virtuosity, never losing sight of the song's essence, or becomes an end unto itself.

Read all on http://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/article.php?id=39289&pg=1