Jaga Jazzist

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JAGA JAZZIST from the ever musically abundant Norwegian scene of talented musicians are a fun band to listen to and also can be a good music to relax and chill out to (as well as being cool music).

Two albums I think are very good are A Livingroom Hush and What We Must.

 Here is Cham's bio for them here in PA:
In 1994 a couple of kids from Norway all around the age of 14 decided to make an album combining their wide range of influences, but the main one being jazz and electronic music, they made in 1996 their first album "Grete Stitz". It wasn't that much of a ruckus, but they where slowly on their way to perfecting their own sound.

It was in 2001 with their album, "A Livingroom Hush" , that the 10 piece instrumental band named Jaga Jazzist finally was in the spotlight. It was also when they became known all around the world with their unique sound and toured out of their own country for the first time witch gave them a lot of recognition from all over the world as well as the raving reviews they got from the album. In 2002 "A Livingroom Hush" was dubbed jazz album of the year.

In 2003 they released their follow up, "The Stix", witch saw the band experimenting more with their electronic side without the help of remixers. It also showed the band in a more rock direction than the previous one.

After all of the touring for The Stix was over, they went again into the studio to start recording their latest album, "What We Must", but after that they went and recorded the demo "Spydenberg Sessions" in witch their signature sound came evident; combining genres, artists and bands from all over the map that by reading their list of influences you wont believe it could be possible. After the band made a tour in the US and Canada showing their new material, they went on to record their latest album "What We Must". This album showed their post-rock influences more clearly than their previous two albums.

Jaga Jazzist is a strange band in it sense of mixing all their influences to make their own sound. They have jazz, electronica, progressive rock, shoegazer, psychedelic, hip-hop, alternative rock, experimental artists, post-rock and more all under their own umbrella of sound. Curious to know what they would sound like? See for yourself.

: : : Chamberry : : :

Read more and listen to them here:
http://www.jagajazzist.com/v2/news.php
http://www.myspace.com/jagajazzististhesound

JAGA JAZZIST "What We Must" reviews(ratings with reviews of more than 200 characters)
Collaborators Reviews

JAGA JAZZIST — What We Must
Review by chamberry (Ruben Dario) 
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Psychedelic Prog & Post RockTeams 
 Jaga Jazzist has somewhat matured over the years. Their debut albums was very hectic, playful, diverse and innovative (at least for me) with their combination of electronica and jazz rock with several other influences thrown in the mix. In "What We Must" we see them a taking a slower, more chilled out approach to their music and now they've added another influence to the mix, post-rock.

The differences can be clearly seen even in the opener song, "All I know Is Tonight", with its rather lazy (in a good way) horns and restrained sound. The change in atmosphere is also quite evident in this release. While the feel of their debut was sunny, playful like summer days, this one sounds more like walking around late at night in cold weather. The change in atmosphere still won't change that Jaga Jazzist sound that fans already know and like. "Oslo Skyline" has to be my favorite song on the album. Aside from being the most "post-rock" song on the album, the feel of the hole song and the intensity of the horns in the climax at the end makes this one of my top favorite songs of 2005. The rest of the songs never reach the intensity of "Oslo Skyline" and they tend to be more airy and lightweight. And those two previous adjectives are perfect describing the heavenly "Swedenborgske Rom" in which they replace their horns for their own vocals in the beginning of the song, a very passive and delicate atmospheres in the middle and in the end a very heartfelt playing by these wonderful guys.

What We Must is the more melodic and emotional album from Jaga Jazzist. It may be caffeine free, but it's still a wonderful album and they're still true to their sound (whatever that may be). I'll recommend this album to fans of post-rock since the delicate and electronic atmosphere this album has will appeal these fans more than any other. 
Posted Sunday, July 08, 2007, 15:40 EST | Permanent link

JAGA JAZZIST "A Livingroom Hush" reviews(ratings with reviews of more than 200 characters)
Collaborators Reviews

JAGA JAZZIST — A Livingroom Hush
Review by chamberry (Ruben Dario) 
SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Psychedelic Prog & Post RockTeams 
 What a refreshing sound!

Jaga Jazzist are a ten piece collective from Norway that mix jazz rock with electronica. Yes, you heard right. It might sound a little strange in words, but when the music starts playing mouths stop talking and ears start listening, and what a great sound it is! 

It grabs you from the very first seconds of the opener "Animal Chin" with its fierce, quirky and complex melody that will make you dance as if you were having an epileptic attack. The rest of the songs don't get as energetic or aggressive than the first one (except "Midget"), but this isn't really a problem. The album is pretty varied within the context of their sound. It has very nice electronica beats, atmospheres and effects, a decent variety of wind instruments and different moods and styles. The album also has a very modern feel to it too, but not in a futuristic way. The songs are rather short. Most of them being at the 5 minute mark, but every song shines in it's own special way and all of the songs have a breezy feel to them often reminding me of Puerto Rican summers at the beach. It's actually a bit funny since they are from Norway which isn't really the atmosphere one might expect Scandinavian bands making, but they actually do it very well.

This a very interesting band that should appeal to fans of jazz, electronica and even every person that can get their hands into their sound will enjoy it too. I'm not a serious jazz fan nor a serious electronica fan and I greatly enjoy it. Their sound is fun, engaging and the melodies are catchy and memorable. It's also very accessible and great all the way through. The closest band I can compare them to is TNT era Tortoise if they were more electronic, energetic and jazzier, but don't let that comparison side-track you. You'll have to listen to them to really know what they sound like.

Check this guys out and see what the big fuzz going on in Norway is all about. 
Posted Thursday, February 01, 2007, 20:25 EST | Permanent link
Guests Reviews

JAGA JAZZIST — A Livingroom Hush
Review by liberalstan 
 Here we have it... jazz, electronica, and a little bit of post-rock in one giant beautiful mix! While their post-rock influence shows through on their later albums, the aesthetic is still present on this album.

The electronica aspect of their music is especially impressive since Jaga utlizes a lot of drum beats previously only played by drum machines. Since they are played by a human, however, it increases the "wow" aspect of listening to such technically impressive percussion.

The instrumentation is pretty traditional for jazz, with a lot of horns, sax, bass clarinet, keys, and guitar... while some of the instrumentalists are not exactly at the top of their game, they don't make any mistakes. The solos, while not absolutely mind-blowing, are very musical and intelligently done. They manage to impress without going too far out of this realm.

The reason I rate this as a masterpiece is not because it is absolutely impressive, but because it's NEW. It's something that hasn't really been done before... a mix of jazz, electronica, and post-rock? The closest thing is Tortoise but they're less straight jazz and more atmospheric music with some latin beats. This has a solid jazz background that's refreshing to hear in such modern music. 
Posted Thursday, February 01, 2007, 21:58 EST | Permanent link

JAGA JAZZIST — A Livingroom Hush
Review by laplace (Hyphen Abuse) 
 Here's a really appealing and smooth piece of jazztronica, carefully split into tunes with enough sense to end when they've cycled through their variations. Jazz has scared this reviewer away before, in two notable ways: 1) theme/improv/theme maybe bread and butter to some but if you're like me and prefer more tightly composed music, you might find it a shame that so many jazz tunes adhere to the rule, and 2) some fusion-style songs don't have the decency to end, instead extending towards the virtuoso noodle horizon. Jaga Jazzist neatly avoid both of these pitfalls with a sensitive, ensembled approach to writing - when there is a solo, it doesn't steal centre stage for minutes on end because, as the pace is kept mostly subdued, there's no need for any of the musicians to give a masterclass in improv performance because it simply wouldn't fit; each instrument's role counterpoints another and all slot in directly, to the song's progression and benefit. This is also why the album has such a relaxing corona to it even though there's so much going on at once.

The more modern elements that Jaga introduce bestow "A Livingroom Hush" with a general chance at pleasing the ears of a casual listener (and in this case, the casual listener is me because I haven't the taste for jazz!) - drum patterns usually associated with drum and bass or trip-hop often surface in this selection of songs and there's a definite "looping" feel throughout. This magic underlines the anachronistic inclusion of double-bass, tuned percussion and clarinet parts and I find that charming. The (often acidic) jazz elements still provide the basis for each song and you'll find that the role of the keyboards, along with the smooth, often clustery and augmented chord progressions work in a way that would never be acceptable for straightforward pop music. I have often wondered if the music would be further improved by wordless backing vocals - and you can catch me la-la-la-ing along to the memorable melodies in places - but perhaps this desire comes from my love of zeuhl and might not be in the band's best interest...

You may worry that, being so immediately accessible, you may grow out of Jaga Jazzist's music after a few spins, but do remember that these songs are complex and thoughtful beneath their catchy surfaces. You'll initially come to love their superficial sound, and once you've delved deeper you'll appreciate the band for their subtleties. Do try to acquire a Jazzist album just to bring yourself up to speed with this impressive new jazz approach - hopefully it'll be much more enduring than any simple acid jazz effort. 
Posted Tuesday, September 04, 2007, 11:10 EST | Permanent link

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avestin Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator Joined: September 18 2005 Status: Offline Points: 12625	Topic: Jaga Jazzist Posted: November 21 2007 at 23:02
	JAGA JAZZIST from the ever musically abundant Norwegian scene of talented musicians are a fun band to listen to and also can be a good music to relax and chill out to (as well as being cool music). Two albums I think are very good are A Livingroom Hush and What We Must. Here is Cham's bio for them here in PA: In 1994 a couple of kids from Norway all around the age of 14 decided to make an album combining their wide range of influences, but the main one being jazz and electronic music, they made in 1996 their first album "Grete Stitz". It wasn't that much of a ruckus, but they where slowly on their way to perfecting their own sound. It was in 2001 with their album, "A Livingroom Hush" , that the 10 piece instrumental band named Jaga Jazzist finally was in the spotlight. It was also when they became known all around the world with their unique sound and toured out of their own country for the first time witch gave them a lot of recognition from all over the world as well as the raving reviews they got from the album. In 2002 "A Livingroom Hush" was dubbed jazz album of the year. In 2003 they released their follow up, "The Stix", witch saw the band experimenting more with their electronic side without the help of remixers. It also showed the band in a more rock direction than the previous one. After all of the touring for The Stix was over, they went again into the studio to start recording their latest album, "What We Must", but after that they went and recorded the demo "Spydenberg Sessions" in witch their signature sound came evident; combining genres, artists and bands from all over the map that by reading their list of influences you wont believe it could be possible. After the band made a tour in the US and Canada showing their new material, they went on to record their latest album "What We Must". This album showed their post-rock influences more clearly than their previous two albums. Jaga Jazzist is a strange band in it sense of mixing all their influences to make their own sound. They have jazz, electronica, progressive rock, shoegazer, psychedelic, hip-hop, alternative rock, experimental artists, post-rock and more all under their own umbrella of sound. Curious to know what they would sound like? See for yourself. : : : Chamberry : : : Read more and listen to them here: http://www.jagajazzist.com/v2/news.php http://www.myspace.com/jagajazzististhesound JAGA JAZZIST "What We Must" reviews (ratings with reviews of more than 200 characters) Collaborators Reviews JAGA JAZZIST — What We Must Review by chamberry (Ruben Dario) SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Psychedelic Prog & Post RockTeams Jaga Jazzist has somewhat matured over the years. Their debut albums was very hectic, playful, diverse and innovative (at least for me) with their combination of electronica and jazz rock with several other influences thrown in the mix. In "What We Must" we see them a taking a slower, more chilled out approach to their music and now they've added another influence to the mix, post-rock. The differences can be clearly seen even in the opener song, "All I know Is Tonight", with its rather lazy (in a good way) horns and restrained sound. The change in atmosphere is also quite evident in this release. While the feel of their debut was sunny, playful like summer days, this one sounds more like walking around late at night in cold weather. The change in atmosphere still won't change that Jaga Jazzist sound that fans already know and like. "Oslo Skyline" has to be my favorite song on the album. Aside from being the most "post-rock" song on the album, the feel of the hole song and the intensity of the horns in the climax at the end makes this one of my top favorite songs of 2005. The rest of the songs never reach the intensity of "Oslo Skyline" and they tend to be more airy and lightweight. And those two previous adjectives are perfect describing the heavenly "Swedenborgske Rom" in which they replace their horns for their own vocals in the beginning of the song, a very passive and delicate atmospheres in the middle and in the end a very heartfelt playing by these wonderful guys. What We Must is the more melodic and emotional album from Jaga Jazzist. It may be caffeine free, but it's still a wonderful album and they're still true to their sound (whatever that may be). I'll recommend this album to fans of post-rock since the delicate and electronic atmosphere this album has will appeal these fans more than any other. Posted Sunday, July 08, 2007, 15:40 EST \| Permanent link JAGA JAZZIST "A Livingroom Hush" reviews (ratings with reviews of more than 200 characters) Collaborators Reviews JAGA JAZZIST — A Livingroom Hush Review by chamberry (Ruben Dario) SPECIAL COLLABORATOR Psychedelic Prog & Post RockTeams What a refreshing sound! Jaga Jazzist are a ten piece collective from Norway that mix jazz rock with electronica. Yes, you heard right. It might sound a little strange in words, but when the music starts playing mouths stop talking and ears start listening, and what a great sound it is! It grabs you from the very first seconds of the opener "Animal Chin" with its fierce, quirky and complex melody that will make you dance as if you were having an epileptic attack. The rest of the songs don't get as energetic or aggressive than the first one (except "Midget"), but this isn't really a problem. The album is pretty varied within the context of their sound. It has very nice electronica beats, atmospheres and effects, a decent variety of wind instruments and different moods and styles. The album also has a very modern feel to it too, but not in a futuristic way. The songs are rather short. Most of them being at the 5 minute mark, but every song shines in it's own special way and all of the songs have a breezy feel to them often reminding me of Puerto Rican summers at the beach. It's actually a bit funny since they are from Norway which isn't really the atmosphere one might expect Scandinavian bands making, but they actually do it very well. This a very interesting band that should appeal to fans of jazz, electronica and even every person that can get their hands into their sound will enjoy it too. I'm not a serious jazz fan nor a serious electronica fan and I greatly enjoy it. Their sound is fun, engaging and the melodies are catchy and memorable. It's also very accessible and great all the way through. The closest band I can compare them to is TNT era Tortoise if they were more electronic, energetic and jazzier, but don't let that comparison side-track you. You'll have to listen to them to really know what they sound like. Check this guys out and see what the big fuzz going on in Norway is all about. Posted Thursday, February 01, 2007, 20:25 EST \| Permanent link Guests Reviews JAGA JAZZIST — A Livingroom Hush Review by liberalstan Here we have it... jazz, electronica, and a little bit of post-rock in one giant beautiful mix! While their post-rock influence shows through on their later albums, the aesthetic is still present on this album. The electronica aspect of their music is especially impressive since Jaga utlizes a lot of drum beats previously only played by drum machines. Since they are played by a human, however, it increases the "wow" aspect of listening to such technically impressive percussion. The instrumentation is pretty traditional for jazz, with a lot of horns, sax, bass clarinet, keys, and guitar... while some of the instrumentalists are not exactly at the top of their game, they don't make any mistakes. The solos, while not absolutely mind-blowing, are very musical and intelligently done. They manage to impress without going too far out of this realm. The reason I rate this as a masterpiece is not because it is absolutely impressive, but because it's NEW. It's something that hasn't really been done before... a mix of jazz, electronica, and post-rock? The closest thing is Tortoise but they're less straight jazz and more atmospheric music with some latin beats. This has a solid jazz background that's refreshing to hear in such modern music. Posted Thursday, February 01, 2007, 21:58 EST \| Permanent link JAGA JAZZIST — A Livingroom Hush Review by laplace (Hyphen Abuse) Here's a really appealing and smooth piece of jazztronica, carefully split into tunes with enough sense to end when they've cycled through their variations. Jazz has scared this reviewer away before, in two notable ways: 1) theme/improv/theme maybe bread and butter to some but if you're like me and prefer more tightly composed music, you might find it a shame that so many jazz tunes adhere to the rule, and 2) some fusion-style songs don't have the decency to end, instead extending towards the virtuoso noodle horizon. Jaga Jazzist neatly avoid both of these pitfalls with a sensitive, ensembled approach to writing - when there is a solo, it doesn't steal centre stage for minutes on end because, as the pace is kept mostly subdued, there's no need for any of the musicians to give a masterclass in improv performance because it simply wouldn't fit; each instrument's role counterpoints another and all slot in directly, to the song's progression and benefit. This is also why the album has such a relaxing corona to it even though there's so much going on at once. The more modern elements that Jaga introduce bestow "A Livingroom Hush" with a general chance at pleasing the ears of a casual listener (and in this case, the casual listener is me because I haven't the taste for jazz!) - drum patterns usually associated with drum and bass or trip-hop often surface in this selection of songs and there's a definite "looping" feel throughout. This magic underlines the anachronistic inclusion of double-bass, tuned percussion and clarinet parts and I find that charming. The (often acidic) jazz elements still provide the basis for each song and you'll find that the role of the keyboards, along with the smooth, often clustery and augmented chord progressions work in a way that would never be acceptable for straightforward pop music. I have often wondered if the music would be further improved by wordless backing vocals - and you can catch me la-la-la-ing along to the memorable melodies in places - but perhaps this desire comes from my love of zeuhl and might not be in the band's best interest... You may worry that, being so immediately accessible, you may grow out of Jaga Jazzist's music after a few spins, but do remember that these songs are complex and thoughtful beneath their catchy surfaces. You'll initially come to love their superficial sound, and once you've delved deeper you'll appreciate the band for their subtleties. Do try to acquire a Jazzist album just to bring yourself up to speed with this impressive new jazz approach - hopefully it'll be much more enduring than any simple acid jazz effort. Posted Tuesday, September 04, 2007, 11:10 EST \| Permanent link
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chamberry Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator Joined: October 24 2005 Location: Puerto Rico Status: Offline Points: 9008	Posted: November 22 2007 at 14:06
	I was thinking in making one of these... I'm a big fan of Jaga Jazzist! The atmosphere and musicianship is superb and I can't get enough of it. The music is very lush and well orchestrated specially on A Livingroom Hush. The Stix is also quite similar to their debut album in sound, but even more lush. What We Must is their mellowest album. It's very close to Post-Rock grounds specially on the song Oslo Skyline with crescendos and all. The brass section is also very laidback which gives the album a very chilled atmosphere. All albums are highly recommended! And for those who haven't seen them and want some samples, here are some music videos from the band: Animal Chin All I Know Is Tonight Oslo Skyline (my fave one) Day


Prog-jester Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Prog Reviewer Joined: June 05 2005 Location: Love Beach Status: Offline Points: 5772	Posted: November 22 2007 at 15:17
	Gotta check some videos I have "In th Fishtank" with MOTORPSYCHO/JAGAJAZZIST HORNS album from this seria, and the album is bl00dy stunning! Especially "Theme de Yo-Yo" and closing epic, almost Post-Rocky as well How ignorant I am I mean I saw "A Livingroom Hush" CD in Lugansk store in alternative rock section and didn't bother to check it (despite the fact that I've already heard "In the Fishtank" CD by that time). Now I feel like I ought to

avestin Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator Joined: September 18 2005 Status: Offline Points: 12625	Posted: November 23 2007 at 18:23
	Bump - Cool Music Alert - why are you not listening to it yet? http://www.jagajazzist.com/v2/news.php http://www.myspace.com/jagajazzististhesound http://www.progarchives.com/artist.asp?id=2724
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Prog-jester Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Prog Reviewer Joined: June 05 2005 Location: Love Beach Status: Offline Points: 5772	Posted: November 24 2007 at 03:30
	got myself that CD yesterday

chamberry Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator Joined: October 24 2005 Location: Puerto Rico Status: Offline Points: 9008	Posted: November 24 2007 at 14:07
	^^^What do you think of them?


Prog-jester Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Prog Reviewer Joined: June 05 2005 Location: Love Beach Status: Offline Points: 5772	Posted: November 24 2007 at 15:33
	Haven't checked precisely yet

Prog-jester Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Prog Reviewer Joined: June 05 2005 Location: Love Beach Status: Offline Points: 5772	Posted: November 25 2007 at 06:18
	OK, I just gave it a spin. It's not like I'm disappointed but it's not the kind of music I'd wholeheartedly enjoy . I guess I'll leave a MP3 copy for myself and return CD to the store (or change it into another one)

GoldenSpiral Members Profile Send Private Message Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Reviewer page Special Collaborator Honorary Collaborator Joined: May 27 2005 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 3839	Posted: November 25 2007 at 12:15
	Frankly, I prefer 'What We Must' to 'A Livingroom Hush', but they are both excellent albums from an excellent band!