I’ve enjoyed much music lately from the German Mons label. This striking debut release from the German vocalist and composer Franziska Loos (who sings in excellent English throughout) is another cracker from the label.
While love and longing certainly feature in Loos’s book, any traditional “moon and June” material is strictly off her radar. As Loos puts it, “I know the lyrics are a bit on the nose”. Donald Trump would doubtless agree, should he ever hear Sad Excuse, Loos’s pointed put-down of him.
The strong social awareness which often fires the lyrics here – sample the title track – might lead one to expect a rap album. But while Loos could easily handle the staccato rhythms of that genre – check the opening of Insecure High Achiever or the speed and clarity of her enunciation on This Time – the artistry of this sassy and intelligent singer runs both deeper and wider.
Complemented by the sort of first-class octet that can have the impact of a big band, she draws on her characterful and potent voice and dynamic range to deliver a spot-on session of contemporary vocal jazz: hear her soaring coda to Achiever or the mix of phrasing on the now punchy, now meditative In The End.
The hip, rhythmically striking arrangements are chiefly attributed to alto saxophonist Vincent Dombrowski – who takes a searing solo on Sad Excuse – and very good they are. Substituting vibes for piano in the octet mix was a productive idea, complementing the bottom-rich power of the band (sample the opening Rush) and in truth, there’s not a moment here which doesn’t evince the most caring attention to matters of sound-colour and overall dynamics. Like several other commentators, I can’t help but think that, on this evidence, Franziska Loos and her colleagues would go down a storm at any major festival.
Discography
Rush; Sad Excuse; Wondering; This Time; In The End; Generation Anything; Introducing; Insecure High Achiever (39.01)
Loos (v); Christopher Olesch (vib); Calvin Lennig (elb); Lukas Schwegmann (d); Vincent Dombrowski (as); Jens Buschenlange (t); Ruven Weithoener (t); Ken Dombrowski (tb); Yannick Glettenberg (bar, bcl). Germany, c 2021.
Mons LC 06458
