Jazz Archives

Contemporary Noise Quintet is certainly not what the name implies. They play jazz in the way they think it should be played and that means infusing it with many idioms. But they do this with finesse, unparalleled skill and a great sense of humor. Contemporary Noise Quintet was formed by brothers Kuba Kapsa (piano, melodica, samples, voice) and Bartek Kapsa (drums and percussion). Their first band was called Something Like Elvis. They changed direction with Contemporary Noise Quintet. The band transcends musical genres. Any kind of music can go into the mix, and when it does they mesh it all in seamlessly.

Kuba Kapsa composed the with a vivid sense of imagination. He knows where the lure of composition lies, just as he knows how to give his band the space to reinvent and pollinate the germane.
Several of the tunes begin with a gentle head. The mood change comes in a burst of energy, a seething attack of saxophone, trumpet and piano egged on by the rhythm section. Bartek Kapsa bursts through with the first surge of energy on "Million Faces." The melody glides seamlessly with Kuba Kapsa, Tomek Glazik (tenor saxophone) and Wojteck Jachna (trumpet). The tenor and the trumpet converse, letting their lines sing in harmony before diverging and diving back into a burning cauldron. Bartek's rhythmic pulse stirs a shuffling beat into the mix. The meter is at odds with the form, but it sits in perfectly nevertheless.
The rollicking "P.I.G" is set in motion by Kapsa on the piano. He opens a floodgate of emphatic notes, before pulling back and calming things down. The music now flows mid-tempo, with Glazik and Jachna joining in. The ambit changes soon enough, the groove driven deeper, particularly by the horns, whose tensile phrases jump out and impact deeply.
The quintet finds stimulus in their creative energies. In doing so, the let the rambunctious and the restrained make for mighty fine music.

:::Review by Jerry D'Souza:::

Contemporary Noise Quintet - Pig Inside the Gentleman (2006)

1. Million Faces 8:04
2. Army of the Sun 5:49
3. A Coin Perfectly Spinning 4:21
4. Goodbye Monster 6:14
5. Walking Sun 5:40
6. Even Cats Dream About Flying 5:00
7. Evil Melody 7:32
8. Invisible Train 5:20
9. P.I.G. 5:42
10. Sophie 7:03

Credits
Kuba Kapsa - piano, melodica, samples, voice,
Tomek Glazik - tenor and baritone saxophones, synthesizer,
Wojteck Jachna - trumpet and flugelhorn,
Paweł Urowski - double bass,
Bartek Kapsa - drums and percussion.

Additional musicians
Kamil Pater - guitar,
Marcin Muras - trombone,
Radosław Manthey - double-bass.