Emily Saunders ESB - London Jazz Festival

Emily Saunders - Voice

Steve Pringle - Keys

We got a generous slice of Emily Saunders' imminent album release at the EFG London Jazz Festival this year. Playing before a mixed crowd of jazz lovers and first timers at 229 The Venue (20/11/2014) she had something for everyone from Brazilian dance rhythms to edgy lyrical counterpoints. The album in question, Outsiders Insiders, had just arrived from the printers but the official release date will be in 2015.

A full ten musicians feature on the album itself but here at 229 the numbers were cut in half. Alongside Emily Saunders (voice) were Steve Pringle (keys), Paul Michael (bass), Shanti Jayasinha (trumpet) and George Hart (drums). The album line up boasts a fine array of musicians too including Byron Wallen, Trevor Mires, Bruno Heinen, Dave Whitford, Jon Scott, Fabio de Oliveira and a favourite of Art of Jazz, Asaf Sirkis.

Paul Michael
Bass

A quick stride into the title track of the new album, Outsider Insiders, was the only disappointment of the night. The lyrics are the strength of this tune and like in many live performances it is the words and their meaning which can be lost in the canter of performance. Take this as a compliment to the album's clarity and Saunder's writing rather than anything less savoury.

George Hart
Drums

Drummer George Hart and bassist Paul Michael laid the bait for You caught me which was haunting and tantalisingly strung out. If this was a waiting game then it was Emily Saunders who laid the bait and us who fell into her trap. It was breathy and spoke of hot sands and empty worlds.

Again there was a breathlessness in the sultry Reflections. If I were to get lost in the distant memories that this song evokes then it would be with Steve Pringle. His gentleness and subtlety on keyboard were a pleasure to hear. It is the first time I have seen Pringle step out from behind the camera and it was an enjoyable challenge to contain his bouffant in the sketchbook.

Shanti Jayasinha - Trumpet

Without being too sycophantic, Shanti Jayasinha is a man who lives up to his reputation. Alongside Saunders on Summer Days they gave one of those elevated performances that is reminiscent of a singer like Mark Murphy, where the voice matches the altitude of the imagination. I haven't drawn him since my early days when I sketched him in a Kelvin Christiane quintet at Café Posk. What I didn't realise that night, but now seems irrefutable to me, is that his rhythm is of the infectious kind. It is in the sway of the shoulders and the richness of sound.

'Residing' brought Shanti Jayasinha to his pulsing best, he was forceful in solo and ensemble. It was a groove reinforced by George Hart on drums, his head rolled, a smile crossed the face and sporadically there was a bunny hop that flipped him up off his stool. This stood proud as a live performance, Emily Saunders had a tenacity and a strength of line. This night she captured a tension between the upbeat call of the carnival and thoughtful lyrics that plant a seed in the mind. Sometimes they flowered into romantic ideals and occasionally they grew into thorns of the sinister kind.

AL.

Alexia Coley - Hot to touch

Alex Coley

Pearce Ranger - Bass

The charismatic London singer Alexia Coley gave us a delicious slice of her latest album at 229 The Venue last week (29/10/2014) but this was a feast for the eyes as much as the ears. Her debut, Keep The Faith, was released last month on Jalapeno Records and is set to springboard Coley beyond her current capital wide popularity.

Sam Montero - Keys

Underground in Great Portland Street the red pools of light ringed the stage while all eyes rested on the dynamic force that took centre stage. It was a role reversal on Robert Palmer's 'Addicted to Love' as Alexia Coley was anything but the window dressing. The male tottie behind sported their black tie and white shirts in Palmeresque chic. There was more role reversing  with early tune 'Jekyll and Hyde', making an impression, as did Sam Montero on keys.

Milton Mermikide - Guitar

She was punchy, soulful. She was rock n roll, but always there was control. With more than a hint of spell in Alexia Coley's big brown eyes she gave us a musical wink with the tune 'I Like a Drink'. She was strong and unpretentious, an attribute that will endear her to modern audiences tired of over-manufactured tat, particularly as we approach Christmas

James Miller - Trumpet

Toward the end of her short set there was a little more meat on the instrumental bone with the brass giving us something to chew on. Her current single ''Driving me Wild' was the highlight of the night, with the saxophone of Jon Gillies, trumpet from James Miller and drummer Michael Cairns adding that extra punch.

Michael Cairns - drums

The short set worked against Alexia Coley, and the crowd gathered before her wanted more.

I write this without barbed undertones. We wanted to hear more from the excellent musicians that played in the shadows. They were shackled by time constraints, that also made it hard to feel close to Coley. Her power on this night was epitomised by her glowing red demeanour that screamed 'Too hot to touch'. We pined and coveted in equal measure.

AL.

Jon Gillies - Sax