Various Artists – Revive Music presents Supreme Sonacy Vol.1

It’s been some time since a new release by Blue Note Records came to my attention although i of course cherish the fantasic back-catalogue of the label, the iconic artworks and it’s overall style and unique, visionary approach to releasing music. But most of the monolithic releases are from a very distant past and apart from re-releasing the classics, Blue Note only did little in terms of singing and developing new artists. Many of the new signings also lacked the vision and the talent of their older (and partly already gone) labelmates, and so Blue Note became a caretaker of their past with only little efforts concerning the present. I elaborated on this topic at length in an article for austrian online magazine Evolver in 2001, you can read the whole article here. But now let’s move to the present, ahem, and discuss “Supreme Sonacy Vol.1” – where Blue Note uses it’s tremendous influence in supporting Revive Music, a live music agency, with their first installment of compiling works of their artists and this is not only a nice move but also makes perfectly sense. “Supreme Sonacy” features a wild ride into various forms of modern jazz, an entertaining and intriguing excursion into different approaches and influences. Some interludes, spoken word comments and the like create a club-like atmosphere, complete with smoke, heat, suspense, surprise and all in all a wonderful showcase of musical craftmanship, dedication and passion for jazz and music in general. Due to the eclectic nature of the compilation, it may not be a record you would leave playing while you do the dishes, dust the carpets or engage in brain surgery – it’s best consumed as a main feature, maybe along some fine wine with friends – something we all can enjoy…

 

yours sincerely,

Mikka