Born in 1976, Tri-City bassist and composer Wojtek Mazolewski is widely recognised for his massive contribution to the recent resurgence in Polish jazz music.

“Mazolewski has redefined the jazz form, given it a modern shape and introduced the listener to more established forms of jazz music. He has tamed jazz and made it accessible to the charts, television screens and to the opinions of the popular press. ”
– Gazeta Wyborcza

Notable collaborations have been with with Pete Wareham, Dennis Gonzales, Tim Berne, Tomasz Stańko, John Zorn, Peter Kowalda, Tymon Tymański, Jerzy Mazzoll, Olo Walicki, Andrzej Smolik, Mikołaj Trzaska, Marcin Masecki, Wojtek Waglewski, Lech Janerka and Fisz Emade. He has composed for film and theatre and he presents a program on Polish Radio and broadcast worldwide, significantly raising the profile of Polish jazz in Europe, South America and Japan.

In 2007, he released Punk Freud (Universal Music) a breakthrough in the reception of jazz music in Poland, whose echoes resound to this day. Then, in 2008, he released, the album Mushrooming, a modern interpretation of the theme of the classic Polish jazz album, Winobranie by Zbigniew Namysłowski. He started working with top Polish hip hop artists, Fisz Emade, and released Bassisters Orchestra.

In 2009, Pink Freud evolved into and Wojtek Mazolewski Quintet, opening a new chapter of his musical biography. Monster of Jazz (2010), Horse and Power (2012), Smells Like Tape Spirit (2012), Wojtek w Czechosłowacji (2012) are albums that have not only been a publishing success, but that have resulted in concert tours in Japan, Mexico, Morocco, Germany, Austria, Belgium, France, Portugal, the United States, Italy, Hungary, Sweden, Slovenia, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Ukraine and Romania.

Mazolewski received the 3rd PR Program award for ‘Monster of Jazz’, he is thrice a winner (Pink Freud) of the prestigious Jazz Forum award in the category of the best electric band, and has received the Jazz Oscar award from the jury of the Melomania Association.

Since the initial release of Wojtek Mazolewski’s album Polka, his band has performed some 200 concerts in 21 countries, with the quintet inspiring crowds (not exclusively jazz audiences) at some of the biggest music festivals: “It has been a while since a Polish jazz band stirred such positive emotions and attracted such large crowds”, wrote JazzSoul (Poland).

The English portal Wax Poetics noted, “If you know what’s what, you’ll agree that anytime an artist tackles The Art Ensemble of Chicago’s rare groove masterpiece ‘Theme de Voyo’, it’s worth a listen. If that artist is bassist Wojtek Mazolewski and it’s part of his continuing effort to revive the bountiful ’60s and ’70s Polish jazz scene, well, that goes double”. Lonely Table (UK) appreciated the structure of the record: “What makes an album great is the narrative that’s constructed as you listen to it – the ups, the downs and the in-betweens that create the overall flow. What makes an album even greater is the way in which the narrative nurtures diversity, yet fits together as a whole. Polka is one of these greater albums”.

The music of the Wojtek Mazolewski Quintet has climbed the Polish Radio charts and has been featured by BBC Radio DJ Gilles Peterson (‘Theme de Yoyo’ was one of his 50 best records of 2017). Polka went gold in six months and platinum in three years, and the band has been featured on both Polish and international mainstream television. The follow-up vinyl single, London, was released in the UK in 2017 on Lanquidity Records. Now, for the first time, the music from Polka, Theme de Yoyo and London – the focus of the band’s live repertoire for the past few years – appears on this worldwide deluxe edition.

Wojtek Mazolewski vigorously combines tradition and modernity, the analog sound of his quintet harking back to the jazz masters, yet infused with electronica and other contemporary influences. Echoes of Miles Davis, Eric Dolphy, Led Zeppelin, Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Nirvana and Aphex Twin are, therefore, all interwoven. Explosive and eclectic concerts are the trademark of Mazolewski’s music, so the power of Polka is thrilling when experienced live, especially with his dream team of Joanna Duda, Marek Pospieszalski, Oskar Torok and Qba Janicki – like listening to history being sonically reworked, with his uniquely contemporary twist.