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REVIEWS of 'CLOSE-UP'
Kevin Le Gendre
JULIAN SIEGEL 'CLOSE-UP'
'Siegel is a multi-instrumentalist with a twist.He plays loads of reeds instruments (I'm partial to his bass clarinet and tenor sax) and also a mean double bass; I once saw him do an excellent gig with Stan Sulzmann at a festival in Finland, the day after he'd whipped up a jazz-rockish storm with Partisans.What I saw over that weekend was that Siegel has musicality more than multi-instrumentalism in his favour. Beyond the cut and thrust dynamics of his tenor playing, the swirling shapes of his soprano or the aquatic breathing of his bass clarinet, it's the strength of Siegel's voice as a conceptualist and composer that really makes Close-Up work. Interfacing between the worlds of straightahead, free improv and dance grooves (the junglistic In The Afterglow), Siegel posits his sonic world with a coherence and strength of character that reflects the lucidity of a man who knows exactly who he is. No matter what he plays. ' ****
Birmingham Post, November 16, 2002 Jazz CD of the week Five stars *****
Birmingham Post December 12, 2002 Jazz and World CDs of the Year
Julian Siegel - Close Up (Sound)
The format may be old - the straight (mainly) acoustic quartet of Saxophone, piano, bass and drums - and the style may be conventional - straight-ahead modern jazz - but the music which bursts from this disc makes the tried and trusted instrumentation and tradition sing anew -that's the most difficult challenge of all, and it's one that this saxophonist has risen to and more than met. The band helps: Liam Noble on piano, Jeremy Brown on bass and Gary Husband on drums. Noble goes for spikey, Monkish rhythms and crunchy chords, Brown plays the straight man, making everyone else sound better rather than drawing attention to himself, and Husband, making a welcome return to the drums after his attention-grabbing sessions on piano, pushes the other three constantly with his urgency and hugely exciting solos. Siegel himself switches from tenor to soprano mid-song, and also gives his bass clarinet an outing. On all of them he mixes different influences - Parker's bebop, Coltrane's sheets of sound, Wayne Shorter's gruff minimalism and Getz's lyricism -into a cohesive and personal voice. His compositions have a Shorterish concision, too. There are times on this disc when I thought of the great Coltrane quartet recordings, but not because any of the players sound like their predecessors. It's because they all sound like themselves but contribute to a common and unified musical creation where everything falls into place, and which has a great spiritual as well as intellectual depth. There's no room for a track by track listing of the delights to be found here - suffice to say it's an exceptionally fine disc. *****
CD REVIEWS Julian Siegel - 'Close - Up' reviewed by Nick Lea
Julian Siegel (ts, ss, bcl); Liam Noble (p, kybs); Jeremy Brown (b); Gary Husband (d) Recorded 01/02
This is a strong, provocative and thoughtful set from saxophonist Siegel, and shows not just how far his music has come but also hints at what lies ahead. Julian takes a tough and committed line with his compositions and delivers an intense and structured album that that not only bears up to repeated listening, but actually reveals more with each new airing. The opening 'City Of Dreams' gives a fair indication of what is to follow, with its declamatory theme stated on tenor giving way to probing solos from Liam Noble and Siegel's swirling soprano lines. 'Room 518' establishes itself through Jeremy Brown's solid bass groove and spiralling theme (again on tenor) building to a solo of impassioned cries, driven on by bass and drums to be released by Noble's prompting to a more straight ahead swing feel, whilst on 'Mice In The Maze' finds Brown and Husband setting a rhythmic pattern that could almost be carved out of granite, for the two principal soloists to push against. Siegel brings out the bass clarinet another original 'Hero To New UFO' which allows him to explore the sonorities of this wonderfully expressive instrument, without the need for Dolpheyesque intervallic leaps which besets so many exponents of the horn. We hear Julian's more tender side on two wonderful ballads, 'Shining Light' (with its lovely solo from Jez Brown) and 'Young And Foolish' which allow us to sample the saxophonist full and rich sound on the tenor. Throughout the support of the rhythm section is tantamount to the success of the album. Liam Noble goes from strength to strength and is never less than impressive on piano, and brings out the keyboards for 'In The Afterglow' which introduces a nice contrast (which is not overplayed). Jeremy Brown on bass and drummer Gary Husband form a strong cohesive unit, and it is this very interplay between all four musicians that make this album such a joy. Should you need further convincing, check out 'Sandpit' which piles on the pressure to breaking point, only to find a natural release at the end of an exciting journey.
'Close-Up' reviewed by Chris Parker
The saxophonist Julian Siegel has not, until now, made any recordings under his own name, although he has attracted much favourable critical notice both with his big-band work and his group Partisans, co-led with guitarist Phil Robson. Close-up (SOUNDCD 1001) proves well worth the wait, showcasing as it does one of the UK scene's most individual saxophone sounds propelled by one of the finest contemporary rhythm sections-pianist Liam Noble, bassist Jeremy Brown and drummer Gary Husband. Containing a judicious mix of relatively straightahead jazz and the odd funkier dance rhythm, the album is at once accessible enough to make an immediate impact with its airy, attractive originals and complex enough to reward repeated listenings to its occasionally tricksy undulating themes and subtly varying textures and moods. The interplay between Siegel and Noble's sparkling, witty piano is one of the recording's great strengths, but the quartet's hair-trigger mutual responsiveness is what renders Close-up such a triumphantly successful debut from one of Britain's fastest-rising saxophone stars.