There are wildly divergent sounds on this album, all held together by the freshness and exuberance of the playing. African party rhythms crop up on "Presence" and "Go." Schott's guitar stars on both, darting and chipping over exuberant drumming as the rest of the band dances in his wake. The instrumental "Felta Road" carries a pastoral Old West feeling, with Wilson featured as the ensemble lead and lyrical solo player. She also cheerfully chirps over guitar and pizzicato violin to a rural shuffle beat on "Lullaby & Exile". She sings the twangy "Quiet Rust" and the solemn "Young Woman" in an endearingly natural voice, accompanied by swaying guitar and violin on the former and calmly folkish piano. There are also more specific country and folk tunes on the album, especially Wilson's vocal features. Then Jerome Harris' bass bubbles up and Schott's perky licks lead the group in a jazz-funk direction, with the lead instruments playing faster and harder. "The Hit," a more complex piece than the rest, starts out with Matt Wilson carousing on his drums under extended trumpet, violin and piano notes. John Schott, for example, dominates "Color" with a twisty guitar solo set against sawing violin and martial drumming. Wilson sometimes blends into the ensemble sound instead of taking a lead role, letting the other players lead the way and take solo turns. Wilson's trumpet also takes the lead on the moody "Night Still" before violin and piano stretch out on a dreamlike vibe against a softly undulating bass and drum rhythm. Then the leader steps to the front with a tight, rhythmic solo over guitar. The title track, "Kaleidoscope," begins with a quiet, lilting theme traced out playfully, first by Schott, Melford and Harris, then with Wilson and Burnham added. The resulting music has a similar feel to the Americana-flavored work of players such as Bill Frisell, Hank Roberts and Jenny Scheinman but with its own unique sense of community and adventure. All of them have shown similarly eclectic interests in the past, and interact well with Wilson's trumpet playing and singing, in varying combinations. Wilson has a top flight group of collaborators here, Charles Burnham on violin, John Schott on guitar, her mentor, Myra Melford on piano, Jerome Harris on bass and Matt Wilson on drums.
That is reflected in the wide range displayed on this aptly-titled CD which draws as much from folk music, classical music, African pop and indie rock as it does from jazz. While the attention of this new wave of jazz artists up until now has been Londonbased, this album shows how this movement is spread across the whole of Britain (and indeed beyond).'Kaleidoscope - New Spirits Known and Unknown' shows that while there is commonality in these artists' approach to music, there is a wide variety of styles - from deep spiritual jazz, electronic experimentalisation, punk-edged funk, uplifting modal righteousness, deep soulful vocals and much more.Trumpeter Sarah Wilson has had several unique experiences throughout the development of her musical career, such as writing music for dance productions and puppet shows. Soul Jazz Records' new album 'Kaleidoscope - New Spirits Known and Unknown' brings together many of the ground-breaking artists involved in the new jazz scene that has developed in the UK over the last few years.Featured artists include Matthew Halsall, Yazmin Lacey, Ill Considered, Tenderlonious, Theon Cross, Emma-Jean Thackray and many, many more in this ground-breaking release.As well as sharing a pioneering spirit in these new artists' approach to frontier-crossing musical boundaries, a further theme of this album is that many also share a determination to independent practices - and most of these artists' recordings featured here are either self-published or released on independent labels.
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