JazzKLUB / Otomo Yoshihide Special Big Band / The extreme frolics of Japanese jazz - NOSPR

This is the largest and one of the most amazing ensembles ever formed by the Japanese giant of the avant-garde. Active since 2013, the Special Big Band is a gang of avant-garde ultras in a ludic incarnation. The group breaks all the existing, though unwritten, rules, shamelessly merging the winds’ extreme frolics with danceable rhythms, brazen guitar blocks with sugary tunes, as well as sophisticated jazz arrangements with piercing noise. Add to this mixture such gems of repertoire as pieces by Astor Piazzola and Charlie Haden. Yoshihide’s band proves that the avant-garde can be entertaining and entertainment can retain the propensity for discovery that is so characteristic for the avant-garde. An absolute must-see, particularly since the leader announced this autumn’s concerts to be the band’s last tour. 

Tomasz Gregorczyk