1. Moscow Night Train
2. Igor's U-turns
3. (Stek)-Paranoid
4. The Tone, the Whole Tone and Nothing but the Tone
5. Brother Nick
6. Calypso Collapso
7. The Ballad of the Heavyweight Champions
8. So You Claim
9. Sunday
10. Starlight Barking
Mads Kjolby - Electric and acoustic guitars
Steve Kershaw - Double bass
Petter Svard - Drums, percussion
My
review of Songs from the Black Earth, which included two
of the three members of Stekpanna, noted how exciting they could be
when heard live. I expressed the hope that their next album would
be recorded live but this is a studio album, taped at On Location
Studios in Copenhagen. Perhaps this accounts for some of the disappointment
I feel with this CD - Stekpanna's first as a trio since their 1997
debut Standin' Tall.
A trio of guitar, bass and drums has built-in limitations which somehow
don't affect other three-piece line-ups like the traditional piano
trio. Too often this CD seems to feature guitarist Mads Kjolby backed
by the bass and drums, instead of presenting the trio as an integrated
group. Mads is a fine guitarist but his dominance of the album tends
to turn the bass and drums into mere accompanists. Bassist Steve Kershaw
is frequently relegated to playing ostinato figures, while drummer
Petter Svard seems content to establish a rhythm which he continues
without much variation. For example, his chugging rhythm on Moscow
Night Train could do with more variation. Even his few drum solos
display little imagination. One suspects that the trio could do so
much more by involving the bass and drums more closely - perhaps by
using the possibilities of counterpoint between guitar and bass, or
by sharing out the solo responsibilities more evenly.
At any rate, the tunes contain many attractive melodies - the sort
of thing that might be heard from Pat Metheny's groups, although Kjolby's
guitar sounds less seductive than Metheny's. The trio shares composing
credits between them, with one non-original: an unexpected but successful
run at Black Sabbath's Paranoid. This has a gutsy feel which
is absent from some other tracks, even though Kershaw's robust bass
adds a welcome depth to most numbers.
Another sinewy track is Calypso Collapso, which combines a
hustling Latin rhythm with a convoluted melody line. This contrasts
with some of the other pieces, which consist of the guitar stating
the theme, doing a solo, and then restating the theme: leaving little
for his colleagues to do. The title-track also has a stimulating funky
beat.
I enjoyed Stekpanna's previous album because, although the guitarist
was absent, the CD included two guests who varied the sound and the
mood with their contributions on saxes and piano. Sadly, this new
album contains too little contrast to hold the listener's attention,
despite the undoubted talents of the group's members.
Tony Augarde
CD Reviews
Slam SLAMCD 282
