It Could Have Been a Lot Worse

IB Expo 06 started gradually this year. Luca was the first to arrive since he had gigs with sax player Carlo Actis Dato and Enzo Rocco duo, making the duo a trio. The first concert was arranged by Jazz i Malmo at Jeriko, the second at Mejeriet in Lund. The Malmo gig was a hoot! You may recall that Frank Zappa asked the highly relevant question "Does Humor Belong in Music". Had Mr. Zappa heard this trio, he needn't have asked. Now, if these three guys weren't great musicians, the whole thing would have been incredibly embarrasing, but since they are the canine's testicles everyone was truly impressed while laughing. Thanks for coming to Malmo Luca!

The next arrival was master drummer/electronica wiz Pat Mastelotto. I had a wonderful talk with the man despite him being knackered following a long flight and losing his bag. Sadly, I couldn't attend his workshop on Sunday, neither be at the first two days of IB Expo due to a heavy workload and my girlfriend coming down with a bad migraine.

Luckily, Mats sent me some pictures I would like to share with you, so here goes:

Here's Markus Reuter leading the troops












Pat and Kjell solving a conundrum under Klas' supervision




And here's Franco bowing his legendary IKEA bass



There's more to come...

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To me, Tim Berne is one of the most interesting composers within the field of contemporary jazz. Working within long structures with tightly woven themes while leaving space for challenging improvisations, Berne has never disappointed me. "It Could Have Been A Lot Worse" is the first track on the Nice View album by his band Chaos Totale (featuring my very favourite contemporary jazz composer Django Bates). This CD has been out of print for a number of years, but is now back in print on the highly recommeded Winter & Winter label. Get it!