Mikko Innanen & Innkvisitio
The album Clustrophyintroduces us to a new incarnation of Mikko Innanen & Innkvisitio, a group led by the highly talented, free-minded and increasingly well-known Finnish saxophonist Mikko Innanen.
Whereas the group´s first recording, Paa-da-pap (TUM CD 019 – released in May 2007), featured a quartet of Finns, Clustrophy (TUM CD 025 – released in October 2010), showcases a five-piece band with a truly pan-European threesome of saxophonists: Mikko Innanen from Finland, Fredrik Ljungkvist from Sweden and Daniel Erdmann from Germany.
In the past decade, Mikko Innanen has become an undisputed leader on the Nordic jazz scene. His studies at the Jazz Department of the Sibelius Academy in Helsinki and at the Rhythmic Music Conservatory in Copenhagen led to many of the musical collaborations that have continued to this day, including Delirium, Kalle Kalima & K-18, PLOP and Triot, but more recently he has also spent an increasing amount of time in New York City. In addition to Innkvisitio, Innanen now leads a trio with bassist Joe Fonda and drummer Lou Grassi, both seminal figures on the ever-buzzing New York jazz scene, and has also made a yet-to-be-released recording with bassist William Parker and drummer Andrew Cyrille.
Fredrik Ljungkvist has, in addition to leading groups of his own, participated in over 40 recordings and collaborated with several influential musicians, including Marc Ducret, Mats Gustafsson and Bobo Stenson. He is currently a member of Ken Vandermark's Territory Band and of Atomic with Magnus Broo, Håvard Wiik, Ingebrigt Håker Flaten and Paal Nilssen-Love.
Daniel Erdmann is best known as a founder of the group Das Kapital, whose 2008 release Plays Hanns Eisler was met with considerable critical success. In addition to several other notable releases of his own in the past 10 years, Erdmann has performed with John Betsch, Axel Dörner, Rudi Mahall, Linda Sharrock and Aki Takase, to name but a few.
Also included in Innkvisitio's new line-up are two of its founding members, drummer Joonas Riippa, the talented collaborator of Innanen in the free jazz combo PLOP and other projects, and keyboardist Seppo Kantonen, whom Innanen describes as someone who "can dig out an unlimited array of surprising sounds" from his synthesizer. Together, Innanen, Riippa and Kantonen have formed the nucleus of Innkvisitio from the outset. The three musicians have become increasingly close in the past several years by also playing together in various duo and trio encounters in addition to Innkvisitio. Proof of this can be heard already on the album-opener "Earth´s Second Moon", where Riippa´s drumming and Kantonen´s cosmic electronics provide the perfect bedrock for the three saxophonists to do their thing.
The second and the third (if the group is performing as a quintet) saxophone chairs are now filled by a rotating cast that, in addition to Ljungkvist and Erdmann, also includes Liudas Mockunas from Lithuania. The participation of these alternating saxophonists in Innkvisitio introduces additional freshness to the proceedings as they each bring their individual styles to the group´s music.
Clustrophyis firmly rooted in the history of modern jazz, yet at the same time it is boldly forward-looking - or "retro-futuristic", as Innanen himself calls it. The listener might hear echoes of Monk, Mingus and Sun Ra, but right from the start it becomes obvious that Mikko Innanen & Innkvisitio consciously seek musical areas new and uncharted. Or as Down Beat magazine put it in a concert review: "Think Ornette Coleman in a honky tonk, updated and glazed with dry Finnish wit."
International press release used by permission of TUM Records
Liner notes, musicians’ biographies, recording data, art work, press photos and press release available on:
www.tumrecords.com
Since 2004, Mikko Innanen & Innkvisitio has toured in Finland, Estonia, Lithuania, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Germany and France, performing at such prestigious festivals as Moers Festival (GER), Nattjazz, Bergen (NOR), Reims Jazz Festival (FR), Europa Jazz, Le Mans (FR), Copenhagen Jazz Festival (DK), Umeå Jazz Festival (SWE), Rencontres D'Jazz, Nevers (FR), JazzyColors, Paris (FR), Jazzèbre – Perpignan (FR), Tampere Jazz Happening (FIN), Vossa Jazz (NOR), Rochester Jazz Festival (USA), Ottawa Jazz Festival (CAN), Vancouver International Jazz Festival (CAN), Debrecen Jazz Days (HUN), Flow Festival (FIN).
The line up of Innkvisitio allways includes the nucleus of Mikko Innanen, Seppo Kantonen and Joonas Riippa. The band performs as a quartet or a quintet.
Mikko Innanen > alto, soprano and baritone saxophone, compositions (FIN)
Daniel Erdmann > soprano, tenor and baritone saxophone (GER)
Fredrik Ljungkvist > tenor saxophone, clarinet (SWE)
Liudas Mockunas > tenor and baritone saxophone, clarinet (LIT)
Seppo Kantonen > keyboards (FIN)
Joonas Riippa > drums (FIN)
booking
Vapaat äänet – Charles Gil