(EM)(WOLLNY SCHAEFER KRUSE ) — Wasted & Wanted (review)

(EM)(WOLLNY SCHAEFER KRUSE ) — Wasted & Wanted album cover Album · 2012 · Nu Jazz Buy this album from MMA partners
4/5 ·
snobb
It took ten years for the young German female-bassist Eva Kruse to grow old enough so that her band could have their first "adult" release. Started in 2002 as the Eva Kruse trio, they became [em] soon enough, and in 2005 released their debut in the "Young German Jazz" series (on the German ACT label). Eva studied acoustic bass and improvisation in the Berlin University with a half-a-year practice in Swedish Göteborg, so it is not surprising that her trio was seriously influenced by the Swedish cult band of that time - EST.

[em]'s first three studio albums, and one live release, were all released in the "Young German Jazz" series and step by step they improved their sound and became a competent and even an adventurous European contemporary jazz group. "[em]Live", released in September 2010, was their most mature recording and it became obvious that they had finished their schooling.

"Wasted And Wanted" has arrived two years later and there are some changes around it. First of all there is no more "Young German Jazz" tag presented on the cover of this ACT release, that means that their label sees that they are ready to be presented in the "adult league". Then, it is also the first album released not just by [em], but by "Michael Wollny's em", which obviously shows the change in the project's leader. Finally third - they almost left the safe and fashionable (but too often boring) territory of modern European contemporary jazz (or early EST) and stepped up to the bit more risque lands of nu jazz (or later EST).

Their newly formalized leader said "they wanted to have some punk in their jazz". Don't be afraid - there are no Rammstein playing as supporting band on this album. German punk was never the same as London or New York, and associates more with glam-queen Nina Hagen (even she sings jazz the last few years). So expect just very modern nu jazz - not Nordic (but quite close to it) or Polish, but of the German kind. That means you will hear very precise compositions, cool, slightly melancholic, airy (yes, they learned from EST and other Nordic artists a lot), but based on the funeral march from the Symphony no 5. by Gustav Mahler, compositions of German classical composer Franz Schubert, Luciano Berio’s “Wasserklavier” or ... Kraftwerk's “Das Modell"!

This album already received very positive British press. Besides the single CD, there exists a Limited Edition version with four-track bonus CD (recorded Live at JazzFest Berlin 2011). This is not a revolutionary release, but this album represents modern European nu jazz at its best.

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