The first reviews of KODIAN PLUS – DISENGAGE are dripping in and so it’s another one of HUGO COSTA & PHILIPP ERNSTING’s THE ART OF CRASHING, courtesy of MOORS MAGAZINE and VITAL WEEKLY.
Naturally the releases are still available through our bandcamp store.

“There are a few genres of music that I wouldn’t say that I am a big fan of (anymore!), but of which I can handle a few releases a week. Noise is one such genre, and free jazz, perhaps, another. Whereas noise I could go to a few, with free jazz, I’d like to limit it to one or two a week. Especially when it comes with force such as Kodian Plus delivers. Kodian Trio, without Plus, is a trio of Colin Webster (alto saxophone), Andrew Lisle (drums), and Dirk Serries (electric guitar), with the addition of Charlotte Keeffe (trumpet, flugelhorn) and Marine Verhoeven (piano). It becomes quite the power quintet. In March last year, they made a recording in the Sunny Side Inc. studio in Anderlecht, a forty-two-minute sound explosion. Not always the wild ride you may expect this kind of free jazz to be, as it comes with that tension underneath, such as in the opening of the first piece, ‘Latching Effect’. But a piece such as ‘Caurous’ is full of chaos but is captured with great clarity. You follow what the drums are doing, then play it again and concentrate on the piano or wind instruments. What helps is that all instruments sound as you’d expect them to sound (which one could also see as a disadvantage; no further exploration of the sound qualities was done), making it easier to follow. It is not easy to say if the interaction is great; sure, it surely is in the group’s quieter moments, but in the chaos, the dialogue may be lost a bit. As a non-expert and not the biggest fan of the genre, I’d recommend this one if you want to dip in the water of free jazz.” Vital Weekly – The Netherlands

“Het Kodian Trio bestaat uit Colin Webster op saxofoons, Andrew Lisle op drums en Dirk Serries op elektrische gitaar. Na hun tour door Duitsland in maart 2022 besloten ze in Anderlecht de studio in te duiken, samen met Martina Verhoeven op grand piano en Charlotte Keeffe op flügelhorn en trompet

Dat betekent dat je op het album van dit Kodian Plus met de titel Disengage maar liefst vijf grootmeesters van de hedendaagse improvisatie bij elkaar hoort, allemaal meesters in het verkennen van de grenzen van hun eigen instrument, allemaal superieure groepsspelers, die niet alleen goed kunnen luisteren naar de ander, maar die ook kunnen uitdagen, muzikaal in gesprek gaan, ruzie maken, botsen, en daar altijd weer op een geniale manier uitkomen.

Tel daar ook nog eens een flinke dosis humor bij op, en je kunt klaar gaan zitten voor een uurtje puur muzikaal genot. Dat wil zeggen als je bereid bent al je vooroordelen overboord te gooien en met open oren te luisteren. De chaos lijkt af en toe op de loer te liggen, maar luister even wat beter, en je hoort hoe alles blijkt te kloppen en hoe er altijd een pad gevonden wordt dat naar een volgende route in de muzikale reis leidt.

Ik laat je hier drie fragmenten horen uit de derde van de vier improvisaties op dit magnifieke album, The Five-headed Anomaly, om te laten horen hoe na een vrij simpel begin, waarbij de drummer inzet en de saxofoon volgt, later de zaak een andere wending neemt.om uiteindelijk heel fraai te eindigen. Beluister de fragmenten een aantal keren, dan zul je merken dat je steeds meer details en finesses hoort. Kodian Plus – een samenwerking die we graag nog eens vervolgd zagen.” Moors Magazine – The Netherlands

“De Portugese altsaxofonist Hugo Costa en de al even virtuoze en intelligent spelende drummer Philipp Ernsting vormden een fascinerend duo dat alle mogelijkheden van het samenspelen exploreert, en als je het dan over de altsaxofoon en drums hebt zijn er voldoende illustere voorbeelden te bedenken, maar Costa en Ernsting gaan hun geheel eigen avontuurlijke weg, en het is een genot om hun daarop te kunnen volgen. The Art of Crashing bevat een paar lange en een paar korte improvisaties, waarin opvalt dat de ene keer de drummer melodieus speelt en de andere keer de saxofonist ritmisch met de drums meegaat, wat het samenspel van begin tot eind ongehoord spannend maakt. Dit is niet alleen intelligente improvisatie en samenspel op zeer hoog niveau, er zit ook melancholie in deze muziek, en als vaker bij geïmproviseerde muziek zitten er zoveel details en finesses in dat je dit album vele malen kunt afspelen zonder je ooit te vervelen, want je ontdekt steeds opnieuw kleine accenten en elegante knipogen.
Opnieuw een pareltje in de catalogus van het Belgische label New Wave of Jazz, dit keer van jazz uit Rotterdam. Een absolute aanrader.” Moors Magazine – The Netherlands

Just two more days to go for you to enjoy the free shipping when you pre-order our newest release : KODIAN PLUS – DISENGAGE.

After KODIAN TRIO’s tour in Germany in March 2022, the trio headed into the Sunny Side Inc. studio in Anderlecht (Belgium), with special guests MARTINA VERHOEVEN on grand piano and CHARLOTTE KEEFFE on flugelhorn and trumpet. These two unique musicians have excellent reputations in the field of free improvisation, especially for their distinctive approaches to their respective instruments. And it’s this distinctive approach that is the secret sauce that’s being added to working band KODIAN TRIO.

This beautifully recorded studio album, captured and mixed by the head engineer at Sunnyside Inc. is a unique free jazz release that triggers your listening experience, disrupts the obvious, and boosts the adrenaline.

PRE-ORDER your copy now and save on 100% shipping costs worldwide. Valid through this March 15th, 2023.

UK’s MUSIQUE MACHINE just reviewed our latest release DANDELION by Jackson/Serries/Vanderstraeten.
Read the 3 out of 5 rated review here below. The cd is available from our bandcamp store.

“3 out of 5 rating. Dandelion is a five-track improv release that rewardingly shifts from the darting & playful, onto the lightly seared and moody, through to the manic & rather wacky. The release features the trio of Tom Jackson- Clarinet, Dirk Serries- acoustic guitar, and Kris Vanderstraeten- Percussion/ Drums.
The release comes in the form of a CD release on Antwerpen’s A New Wave Of Jazz- who focuses on the more difficult, abstract, and noise-bound side of the improv/ modern composition genres. The CD comes presented in labels house style grey & white mini gatefold- which features on its outside grey boxes and white texts, and inside a write-up about the trio & the track presented here. This release is Ltd to just 200 copies. Of the trio I was already aware of Mr Serries- since the mid-’80s this Belgian’s career has shifted from the ambient/experimental stylings of his Vidna Obmana project, onto the more improv-focused work of his solo/ collaborative release. I also knew Londoner Tom Jackson, after hearing his intense duelling horn improv release The Other Lies( with saxophonist Collin Webster)- released on New Wave Of Jazz in 2022. I wasn’t familiar with Kris Vanderstraeten work, but after a search, I find out he’s been active in the Belgian free improv scene since the 1970s- with around twenty releases to his name. The five tracks featured here have runtimes between four and eleven minutes a piece. We open with “Carnation Pink” which goes from low-key warbles, creaks, and neck scrambles. Onto a more playful blend of rapid percussive dart ‘n’ fumble, jiving strums, and flighty flute ‘n’ wails. We have the wacky fiddling ‘n’ forking of “Violet Blue” which finds exuberant horn weaves, meeting guitar twangs ‘n’ scrubs, and generally shifting percussive playfulness. In the second half of the record, we have ”Dark Green” which shifts from low-key scrapes, whistles, and dragging hisses. Though to a more lively mix of mischievous honks, guitar pluck ‘n’ saw, and tip-top percussive shifts. Onto a more haunting, and almost ritual refrain. With the album been finished off with the manic slapstick feel of “Bright Yellow” which begins all detailed percussive darts, neck scrubs ‘n’ bays, and tightly constricted horn darts….though later on dips into slightly more forlorn waters, with stretched warbling honks, winding to tip-toping percussion runs, and choppy strums.

Dandelion is another mighty fine example of adventurous, at points manic & seared improv from the folks at A New Wave Of Jazz. With all three players really work wonderfully together to create a selection of unpredictable & searingly vibrant improv.” Musique Machine – UK

Halfway next week KODIAN TRIO (Colin Webster, Andrew Lisle, Dirk Serries) will do four UK dates. Partially to promote the KODIAN PLUS release but also to write another chapter in their ongoing work as a free impro/free jazz trio. A trio that saw daylight when they played a quartet gig at Cafe Oto in 2015. Check out the places/venues and dates and come and say hello.