For his second album as a leader, Silvan Joray features bassist Nadav Erlich and drummer Jeff Ballard. The record is certainly an adventure as different moods are explored throughout the 11 tracks.
On the first track of the record, Kokodrillo – my first impression was how “New York” it felt from the start. Silvan Joray’s guitar tone and rhythmic attack is precise, clean and is kind of somewhere in between Adam Rogers and Ben Monder. The playing is top notch throughout the track and Jeff Ballard’s drum solo is a treat. Silvan Joray’s solo also develops smoothly and leads well into Jeff’s drum solo.
Kaeppeleview brings things down with a lighter feel, gentler and serene. We get to hear Nadav Erlich’s lyrical bass solo and Silvan thoughtfully comps before coming out into his solo. The interplay between Jeff Ballard’s drumming and Silvan’s lead is fun to listen to especially since he is not afraid to leave some space sometimes allowing the drums to come into the foreground. There are hints of Pat Metheny’s precise time and lyrical legato in Silvan’s playing too.
Updraft, the title track on the record is uptempo but without being loud. This is probably one of my favorite approaches to playing jazz – that intensity that you still feel even at softer dynamics. The head for the song is a melodic tongue twister of sorts. Silvan however makes it sound effortless. The guitar solo is swinging and the band interacts tastefully throughout. The bass solo on this track is equally interesting with the rhythmic twists that Nadav employs. Coming back in, before we hear the head, a trading section between guitar and drums appears, with many nice moments.
On Morning Breeze, a more mysterious feeling is created with scrapes on the drums as an introduction or perhaps interlude before the next piece.
Very Sweet Stuff, But Nice! features exactly what the title says bringing in a ballad into the equation. We have guitar and drum solos that further expand on the theme setting a memorable mood for the almost midpoint of the album.
Subterfuge (one of two jazz standards on the record, this one being a piece by Andrew Hill) goes on to take things the more busier side with an ostinato feeling and is this modal perhaps? There’s a lot of nice chordal movements in the guitar before the rhythmic bass solo that happens later while the guitar still plays lightly underneath.
The Liar is evokes some Pat Martino kind of feeling with the riffing melody that is answered by the chords. Silvan’s solo has a lot going on from the bebop twists, developing motives to the longer phrases that lead into some nice chordal ideas. He really stretches on this solo before the drum solo comes in…. and finally the head out.
Kurtish is probably a tribute or inspired by Kurt Rosenwinkel I guess? The melody partly sound Monk-inspired as well, which makes sense since Kurt does play a fair bit of Monk. This time we get to hear a bass solo first before Silvan plays chordal stabs that lead into his solo. The vibe is pretty much maintained until we hear the head again.
Something Ahead is again great trio playing that continues the energy of the record.
Evening Breeze is the second interlude on the record before the next track moves into the space. Again we hear some textural drum work but this time with the guitar being more prominent.
At Long Last Love by Cole Porter is a delightful close to the album with a lighthearted groove that allows Silvan to shine bright. I particularly enjoyed his tapping work on the song towards the end. A fitting close to the album indeed!
All in all, the album is a wonderful record by a guitarist with clearly a bright future ahead of him. Already a winner of many awards in different competitions, Silvan looks like he will make a lot more amazing music in the many years to come. Have a listen to this and follow his creative career.
Rating: 4/5
Find out about Silvan Joray’s work and upcoming performances on his website: https://www.silvanjoray.com/
I received a complimentary copy of this album courtesy of Liam of Jazzfuel. Thank you for the CD.
About Silvan Joray:
Silvan Joray is currently based in New York City. He has gained recognition in the jazz community, having won special prizes at the UNISA International Strings Competition in South Africa 2022 and the Smietana Jazz Guitar Competition 2019 in Poland. He has performed at prestigious jazz festivals including the Krakow Summer Jazz Festival, Offbeat Jazzfestival Basel, and International Jazz Festival Bern, and has toured in Germany, Norway, Poland, Spain, and Israel.
Silvan will be touring throughout the year – please see his website for details: www.silvanjoray.com
Ubuntu Music, a division of Ubuntu Management Group, is a progressive recorded music label that is committed to bringing quality, accessible jazz and related music genres to increasingly wider audiences. Their approach includes collaborative efforts with an array of performing artists who have a passion for jazz and who possess unique and diversified talents.
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