Listen to the music of today / #1 Jaga Jazzist
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Category: Progressive Music Lounges
Forum Name: Prog Recommendations/Featured albums
Forum Description: Make or seek recommendations and discuss specific prog albums
URL: http://www.progarchives.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=72843
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Topic: Listen to the music of today / #1 Jaga Jazzist
Posted By: harmonium.ro
Subject: Listen to the music of today / #1 Jaga Jazzist
Date Posted: November 02 2010 at 10:16
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It seems to me that there is a certain encouraging amount of interest for new music and albums of 2010 on PA, but people don't follow recommendations unless they come with "all inclusive". I have decided to start a series of recommendation threads for 2010 albums, in which I promote albums that can be fully streamed and for FREE on the internet, thus making the sampling as easy and accessible as possible for those interested. There's no excuse for not checking these releases out now! I'll start with One-Armed Bandit by Jaga Jazzist, my favourite progressive album of 2010. You can listen to this great album in full http://www.youtube.com/user/OuroborosLoop#p/c/34364B33C6BE05F3/0/NPC8O9KFgjs - HERE , as a YouTube playlist (meaning that the tracks will automatically load one after each other, and in the right order from the album tracklist). |
Replies:
Posted By: harmonium.ro
Date Posted: November 02 2010 at 10:21
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../album.asp?id=27091">
Studio Album, 20104.09 | 19 ratings ../album.asp?id=27091#buymusic - BUY
../album.asp?id=27091 - Jazz Rock/Fusion Review by
../Collaborators.asp?id=22848 - The Sleepwalker
One-Armed Bandit is the most recent album by the Norse group Jaga Jazzist. The group
creates an unique sound, which I had never heard before I found these guys. The sound is very
modern, blending electronics into jazz and creating a mood driven by ambience, catchy and
uplifting melodies and a very rich and warm feel. After the short introduction to the album, the title track burst loose with an uplifting clavinet driven melody. The piece proves to be one of the highlights of the albums, with a very notable, epic reprise of the main theme after the middle part. The group says the album to be (partly) inspired by fruit machines, hence the many a ascending melodies that can be noticed a lot in the title track. A thick drum fill takes the listener to "Bananfluer Overalt", which means fruit fly translated to English. The song feels more laid back than the previous track, being less uplifting and dynamic but rather a mellow, more ambient piece. Still, there are some very fine melodies to be heard. Same goes for the lengthy "Tocatto", that slowly builds towards its climax but never get over the top; "Music! Dance! Drama!" which I might call my favorite track of the album; and the album closer "Touch Of Evil". "220V/Spektral" is the only track on the album of which I have mixed feelings. It sounds good, but at the same time is feels a bit messy and perhaps out of place looking at the other songs. The two remaining songs, "Prognissekongen" and "Book Of Glass" both open in a way that could go anywhere, but fortunately they prove to be great tracks both sharing the dynamic feel of the title track. One-Armed Bandit is a very molodic, uplifting and therefore likeable album. I must say that I not often feel like listening the entire album in one spin, perhaps because it's not all too diverse. Nevertheless, nearly all individual tracks are great and very enjoyable. The album features some very dynamic and energetic moments, like for instance the title track. A side note, when you find yourself liking the album and you have the chance to see these guys live, don't hesitate.
../album.asp?id=27091">
Studio Album, 20104.09 | 19 ratings ../album.asp?id=27091#buymusic - BUY
../album.asp?id=27091 - Jazz Rock/Fusion Review by
../Collaborators.asp?id=23504 - Marty McFly
Yeah, melodies, that's what is going on here, jazzy melodies that are rewarding experience.
It should be taken as fact that they are probably good for tripping (fortunately, I don't do this
kind of things - yes, I mean this "tripping"). Except this, let's state big yes - it crosses the line sometimes and explores Psychedelic (neo psych) regions, but also another, more important thing - yes, it's electronic a lot and some of you maybe know how much I hate electronic sounds in Prog. I hate them. But here, it works, it's useful and couldn't be better with anything else (most possibly). Even not completely. This flavor of electronic sound may be too much for you and I've just listened recommendations and went for this album, that's it, without proper preparation before listening it. I'll probably leave it on 4(-), as first "half" is quite good and I like it a lot, but second one is, well, weaker but still, this album deserves attention. |
Posted By: harmonium.ro
Date Posted: November 02 2010 at 10:42
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Two more reviews: Review by ../Collaborators.asp?id=25551 - snobb SPECIAL COLLABORATOR ZART & JR/F Team
../Collaborators.asp?id=25551">
New Jaga Jazzist album was released just in the middle of unusually snowy winter, not only
there, in North of Europe, but it looked half of the world was under the snow! But this
Norwegian band's music is strangely sunny and warm (as usual,by the way)!Small orchestra of jazz and electronics musicians just matured and polished their product a bit more. Excellent melodies bring you somewhere on warm seaside, but are never too cheesy. The music sounds very light and easy accessible, but has inside complex jazzy structure, and still never cross the borderline with pop. Even if not too much different from previous works, the album sounds fresh and pleasant. Possibly ,it's that kind of progressive nu.jazz which easily will attract new listeners to modern jazz fusion world. I personally prefer a bit more "serious" sound in nu.jazz, with more acoustics, more tension, possible - more exclusive sound. But this Jaga Jazzist album is excellent entry to anyone wishing to start exploring nu.jazz world. Review by ../Collaborators.asp?id=390 - Rune2000 PROG REVIEWER
../Collaborators.asp?id=390">
It's been a while since the last Jaga Jazzist release, especially
considering the highly active first 10 years of their career. Following
the release of What We Must the members of the took some time
off to collaborate with other artists while Mathias Eick and Lars
Horntveth released solo albums of their own.It seems to me that the members of the band weren't all that content with the stripped down style that their music was going towards and decided to, once again, spice things up with the sounds of electronica blended into the mix. The result was One-Armed Bandit, an album that might not be as Post-Rock oriented as What We Must nor as electronica-heavy as The Stix. Instead it marked a definite comeback to the style that Jaga Jazzist showed off on Magazine EP and especially on A Livingroom Hush. But make no mistake, Jaga Jazzist isn't the same band they were a decade ago meaning that they come off a bit more mature and conventional in their delivery this time around. To me, One-Armed Bandit is easily the best recording that this band has made since A Livingroom Hush. In a way, this was the style that I was expecting Jaga Jazzist to move towards in the beginning of the previous decade and it's nice to see that they finally found their way back! The only real drawback here is the experimental aspect of the sound that seems to have been conveniently exchanged for beautiful melodies that lack a real punch. With the exception of the wild ride displayed on 220 V / Spektral this is basically a safe release that is sure to hit it off with the already established fan base while making a few new followers along the way. One-Armed Bandit is a great comeback from Jaga Jazzist that really makes me feel enthusiastic about the future development of their style. Hopefully they'll get even more creative with their next release and show once again that Jaga Jazzist is a serious player in the development of jazz music! ***** star songs: 220 V / Spektral (7:03) **** star songs: The Thing Introduces... (0:23) One-Armed Bandit (7:07) Bananfluer Overalt (6:16) Toccata (9:10) Prognissekongen (4:33) Book Of Glass (6:49) Music! Dance! Drama! (5:31) Touch Of Evil (6:40) |
Posted By: The Neck Romancer
Date Posted: November 02 2010 at 15:03
| That one is probably my favorite jazz rock/fusion album of this year. |
Posted By: Triceratopsoil
Date Posted: November 02 2010 at 19:05
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Starhammer wrote:Posted By: harmonium.ro
Date Posted: November 02 2010 at 19:11
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This one is probably my favourite progressive album of the year. Guys, why not drop a rating or even a review?  |
Posted By: The Neck Romancer
Date Posted: November 03 2010 at 15:38
| English is not my first language, but writing one shouldn't hurt, eh? |
Posted By: avestin
Date Posted: November 03 2010 at 16:50
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A solid release, great tunes here, with stellar playing, a highlight of this year's releases. ------------- http://hangingsounds.blogspot.com/" rel="nofollow - Hanging Sounds http://www.progarchives.com/ProgRockShopping.asp" rel="nofollow - PA Index of prog music vendors |
Posted By: harmonium.ro
Date Posted: November 03 2010 at 17:04
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Marco, that would be great. A review will count 5 times the weight of a simple rating. Assaf, I totally agree. Also, what a great live band!  |
Posted By: harmonium.ro
Date Posted: November 03 2010 at 17:14
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Aaah, I just went to the homepage and noticed this:
../album.asp?id=27091">
Studio Album, 20104.08 | 21 ratings ../album.asp?id=27091#buymusic - BUY
../album.asp?id=27091 -  Jazz Rock/Fusion
Review by ../Collaborators.asp?id=29321 - Starhammer
My favorite jazz rock/fusion album of the year for a reason.Combining electronic music, indie, jazz, Zappa-esque fusion and the post-rock spirit ever present in Jaga Jazzist's music, 'One-Armed Bandit' is a very catchy album, one of those records you'll play in its entirety every single day for about a couple of months and then store it on your shelf until you feel you're in the mood to remember the great music you've heard. 'One-Armed Bandit' is a lot more proggier (and groovier, even though that's a rare combination) than the previous Jaga albums. It has lost a bit of the purer jazz spirit though; the synths are very proeminent and give this album a very distinctive sound. Pros: original music, amazing horn section, clear production, "Prognissekongen" (the best song in the album). Cons: last 3 songs aren't as good as the others; some compositions are a bit too repetitive and could have been shorter, for example the title track and "Toccata." 4 well-earned stars, an excellent addition to any fusion/electronic music fan.  |
Posted By: TheGazzardian
Date Posted: November 03 2010 at 18:33
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Listened to it... Liked it... Probably gonna buy it.
 (soon anyways xD) |
Posted By: harmonium.ro
Date Posted: November 03 2010 at 18:36
^ Finally, my idea is showing results!  
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Posted By: snobb
Date Posted: November 03 2010 at 18:46
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Great idea, promising results
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Posted By: harmonium.ro
Date Posted: November 12 2010 at 20:09
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Bump. Here's my favourite track of the album: |
Posted By: avestin
Date Posted: November 12 2010 at 20:24
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Here's a nice video of their performance ------------- http://hangingsounds.blogspot.com/" rel="nofollow - Hanging Sounds http://www.progarchives.com/ProgRockShopping.asp" rel="nofollow - PA Index of prog music vendors |
Posted By: Cesar Inca
Date Posted: November 12 2010 at 21:28
| Part of my personal Top 5 for 2010, really. |
Posted By: Bonnek
Date Posted: November 15 2010 at 09:10
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Great idea for a thread (or 5,6,7) So far I had only heard "A Livingroom Hush" which I found totally disappointing. This one sounds pretty neat though, one I certainly need to hear a few times before making my 2010 list. |
Posted By: harmonium.ro
Date Posted: November 15 2010 at 11:11
I like their previous albums and find them OK, but considering I'm a fan I'm not surprised that at least some of their older albums don't do much for other people. Especially their glitch/electronca period. However, the leap in style and quality displayed (IMO) on this album is outstanding. 
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Posted By: harmonium.ro
Date Posted: December 20 2010 at 07:26
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Bump! I have a few continuations ready, stay alert!
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Posted By: topographicbroadways
Date Posted: December 20 2010 at 09:19
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great stuff i hadn't checked out anything released this year and this would be a fantastic addition to my fusion collection i will definitely stay alert for new stuff next year because clearly i've missed some great stuff -------------  
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Posted By: Padraic
Date Posted: December 21 2010 at 11:16
| Just downloaded this yesterday and listened to it in the car on the way into work. Very enjoyable, very strong release from them. Should make a lot of people's top lists this year. I've too many other albums to rate so I can't tell how this will stack up, but overall a great effort. |
Posted By: harmonium.ro
Date Posted: December 21 2010 at 11:35
Good to hear that, Pat. Maybe you can give James a kick, too; he has "better things to do" than to check this album, even though he says he intents to 
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Posted By: lucas
Date Posted: December 21 2010 at 13:17
 ------------- "Magma was the very first gothic rock band" (Didier Lockwood) |
Posted By: harmonium.ro
Date Posted: December 30 2010 at 06:45
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Excellent new review, but with a rating that I would have rounded up instead of down Review by ../Collaborators.asp?id=25702" rel="nofollow - Bonnek COLLABORATOR Prog Metal Team
../Collaborators.asp?id=25702" rel="nofollow">
After my disappointment with A Livingroom Hush I hadn't planned to revisit further Jaga
Jazzist albums, but their 2003 corporation with Motorpsycho and the quality of the songs that I
streamed from this album had fired my interest again.One-Armed Bandit is a great example that bright, accessible and harmonious music can still be fresh and interesting. Without resorting to pop sentimentalism, the band has crafted some delicate poppy jazz instrumentals here. There's often a modern electronic twist to the sound which provides for an original sound. The spirit of Philip Glass is present on plenty of occasions, most notably on Toccata, an inspired and well performed composition. It's one of my many favorites together with the dead-catchy title track, the dreamy Banafluer Overalt and the electronic bit Music! Dance! Drama!. A good decade ago, Sweden was a melting pot of Prog creativity, but now it looks as if Norway has taken the lead, not only in metal but also in jazz. One-Armed Bandit is one from many strong Norwegian 2010 releases. 3.5 stars |
Posted By: harmonium.ro
Date Posted: December 30 2010 at 06:46
I can not find your rating for this album Lucas, where is it?  |