Jaume Llombart has been interested for years in unconventional languages ​​and in ways of composing linked to the field of avant-garde jazz.

Their current sextet is a good example: a band that responds to the concerns of its leader and at the same time tries to get out of pre-established forms to seek a more spontaneous and creative approach to the music itself. A mix of influences, rooted in jazz and classical music.

Llombart explores, with pieces of his own authorship and arrangements of well-known jazz melodies and other styles, the possibilities that this group offers him.

Jaume Llombart, guitar and composition
Pau Domènech, bass clarinet
Miguel Villar «Pintxo», alto and tenor saxophones
Alfred Artigas, guitar
Marc Cuevas, double bass
Joe Smith, drums

An unusual instrumentation delivers a group sound in which the usual hierarchies of “lead” and “rhythm” are neatly overtuned. The two guitarists exchange places and roles, while the horns alternate ostinato accompaniment with strikingly effective solo excursions.

Llombart’s musical world seems to stretch from the bop-into-cool of the title track to the fringes of rock, though it’s drummer Joe Smith who claims the credit on the set’s only noisy shredder, the fine Current Electric. For the most part, the mood is quite sombre and thoughtful. The familiar Miles Davis line sounds almost mournful in this arrangement and even Gershwin’s Liza has an elegiac twist. There’s more boppy stuff on Motivotion, which is credited to the leader but could easily pass as something from Blue Note archive, but it’s the more atmospheric material which stands out and the broken-figuration of Bajada is just exquisite.

(Brian Morton – JazzJournal-UK)