10. Avishai Cohen Trio & EnsembleAt Home
I just love what this guy does. He has put a great deal of intelligence into his ensemble. He’s the bass player. This just puts me in that mood. I remember each time I go to America, it is quite inspiring for me. I see the artistry, the technical flawlessness that is usually displayed by most of the artists there. They are always on top of their game. And when I heard this, it just reminded me of how some people just work tirelessly at perfecting the technical peak they can get to. And you know, you can hear it. Playing with time, playing with time signatures, playing with motifs, the shift of the motifs, the motif repeats itself, then they shift it a little bit off the beat and then the second time around they move it…
There’s an underground in every part of the world, there’s an underground scene that you never get to hear about because it is not in mainstream media. But someone will say: "Hey, what are you doing tonight? Let me take you some place, man." And then they take you to these guys, who play to the wee hours of the morning and people who come know that they are coming to listen to some serious dudes, who are going to throw down some serious music. And when you get there, everybody is unassuming, everyone is really cool, chilled out, and then when the guys sit down and play and they belt it out, you are like, woo! These guys should be in the Blue Note, not in this unknown place. No.
That’s what this does to me, when I listen to Avishai. From the first time I heard them play, to now. He has become quite a name within the jazz circuit, and I think he is also the programmer and director of a jazz festival in Israel [the Red Sea Jazz Festival], so more and more he is not in the underground at all, he is quite out there and they are doing very well.
I like it very much. So I recommend the whole album. This is the kind of album that on a Saturday night, if you don’t go anywhere, just bring out Avishai Cohen and sit down and have dinner with someone special. It doesn’t have to be someone you are in a relationship with, maybe a friend you grew up with that you haven’t seen for a long time, who you used to go to jazz concerts with, or things like that. Have him or her round for dinner and while you cook, or if you are ordering, whatever and say, "I have surprise music lined up for dinner tonight." When you finish eating, then begin to analyse… [sings melody] The whole album is a delight.
