Bonded over a mutual love for Motown, Soul, Afrobeat and improvisation, Denmark's renowned outlet for jazz, April Records, proudly presents the sophomore release from 'A Plane To Catch'. Following a busy summer of festival performances across Denmark and extensive national radio play, 'Soul Piece'. Founded in the stillness of 2020 when a group of tight-knit up and coming musicians were robbed of their livelihood and greatest joy - live performance - the group came together in a graffiti smudged artist's space in an old industrial facility in Copenhagen's outskirts and created a space for themselves to improvise in a funky, groove based setting. A followup to their 2023 debut 'Moko Jumbie' which explored the rich culture of West African music popularised by Mulatu Asastke and Fela Kuti, as the name suggests, 'Soul Piece' leans further into the tropes, grooves and idioms of Western 60's Soul and Funk. Recorded live over two days at the Royal Danish Academy of Music, the album's raw, warm production captures the energy, intimacy and excitement of a live performance, transporting the listener right in the centre of a pulsating dancefloor. Each song is rooted in groove and exemplary band musicianship, and made up of every stylistic feature one might crave from the genre: crunchy rhodes tones, percussive clavinets, thick organ textures, grooving tambourines, searing guitar solos, deep pocket drum grooves, infectious basslines, punchy horn backings and James Brown-esque stabs. Self described as the 'young lions' of the Danish jazz scene, each member of the six piece is an active contributor to the country's diverse musical output; Nørregaard, Langebæk & Besiakov can be heard performing regularly in the Fela Kuti saluting Black Money Orchestra and Bæst, Eskildsen with the Addis Ababa Band, and Thofte & Toftemark each leading their own projects in contemporary hard-hop to name but a few of their many ventures.
