Jaga Jazzist and the Britten Sinfonia make a natural pairing, with the orchestra following the ensemble’s lead in music that is part improvised but fully coherent. This is a natural follow on from the Norwegian band’s ‘One Armed Bandit’ album, and although much of the source material is taken from that record, it is reimagined and reinvented in vivid colours and bright new arrangements. Perhaps predictably the opening title track responds really well to a quasi-orchestral arrangement, while ‘Toccata’ gets busy with some virtuoso interplay. ‘For All You Happy People’ makes the most of the Britten Sinfonia violins, who play their hearts out on it. The styles veer close to prog rock, to jazz, to psychedelic, but cleverly stop short of each of those, and the dialogue between the group and orchestra is electric, with motifs bouncing between the two. It all makes for a natural extension to ‘One Armed Bandit’, and a great conversation piece too for those who were there to witness the musical chemistry.
5 out of 5
Reviewed By Ben Hogwood
