5th May 2016: ★★★★ reviews from Jazzwise Magazine and The Telegraph for Zhenya Strigalev’s Never Group.

Recent critical acclaim for Zhenya Strigalev’s latest release Never Group:

“A surreal, impressive brew.”
★★★★ Jazzwise Magazine (website)

“A maverick at the heart of modern jazz.”
★★★★ The Telegraph (live review)

“An abstracted theatre of sound and experiment… ranging from 21st century bop to spooked jazz improv via deep-funk.”
Sandy Brown Jazz (full review)

“Mr Harland is the check-point, stamp and go… His snare drum is a crack-shot, the toms fall on the ears like tight tuned hammers, the bass drum blocks a deep-beat, doubles it, even triples the bottom.”
Sandy Brown Jazz (full review)

Russian-born, London-based alto saxophonist Zhenya Strigalev follows up his 2015 Whirlwind sextet release Robin Goodie with his new trio project Never Group. Recorded over two days in Berlin with the rhythm section of electric bassist Tim Lefebvre and drummer Eric Harland – as well as welcoming guests such as keyboardist John Escreet, double bassist Matt Penman and trumpeter Alex Bonney – Strigalev’s desire with this different focus is to fashion the unexpected and the fleeting (alluded to in the project name) both from his own original compositions and the contributions of respected Austrian electronics composer/musician Bruno Liberda (who also appears on this recording).

Building a reputation on both sides of the North Atlantic for his adventurous and impassioned emphasis on improvisation, Never Group is an experience that matches quirky abandon with resolute musicianship and technicality. As Zhenya confirms: “No other rhythm section sounds like Eric and Tim; I like their chemistry together – and I wanted to collaborate with them to record a chordless trio album which gave me more freedom, so I could further expand my musical language.” In an hour-plus abundance of 20 tracks, Strigalev and colleagues elicit bristling spontaneity, from the rasping percussiveness of ‘Bio Active’ to ‘Strange Party‘s’ grungy swagger; from the echoic, electronically-manipulated mystery of Liberda’s ‘Bassgeigengeister’ and ‘Heimwehharfe’ to the raw, boppy mischievousness of ‘Some Thomas’ and playful, grooving ‘Snail’.

Here’s ‘Bio Active’ from Never Group