Polar Bear

When listening to the creative output of the five-piece post-jazz band around mastermind Sebastian Rochford, one can hardly believe that a lot of people have a tendency to consider jazz music as old-fashioned. Since the band's formation and from the release of their debut album "Dim Lit" in 2004 onwards, Polar Bear achieved to revolutionize the Britjazz scene with a sound full of new interpretations of classic jazz styles. The London-based band, whose further keystones are Pete Wareham (tenor and baritone sax), Mark Lockheart (tenor sax), Tom Herbert (double bass) and Leafcutter John (mandolin and electronica), can look back to 6 successful years of performing and making music together. Their second album "Held On The Tips Of Fingers" was nominated for the Mercury Prize in 2005 and moreover appeared in numerous rankings. In addition to that, they have been invited to play at the ATP Festival 2007 by none other than Portishead, who curated the event! Apart from releasing a third, self-titled record in 2008, percussionist Rochford devoted himself to collaborations with important musicians like Brian Eno, David Byrne and Pete Doherty. However, the passionate drummer and head of Polar Bear also spent some time on other projects like Acoustic Ladyland and Basquiat Strings. Nevertheless, despite their considerably high output, Polar Bear were still not tired of creating new songs and already released their fourth longplayer in the beginning of 2010. "Peepers" comprises a unique mixture of long lasting live-experience and matureness, which still doesn't sound outdated but is driven to the top by youthful excitement and energy. The songs, tumbling between quietness and excess, using classical as well as modern elements, have been recorded live and without too much practise in advance - just the way most of Rochford's favorite albums have been recorded. Good reviews by the Guardian and BBC Music followed and as if one release a year isn't enough, Rochford already planned something new. For his newest masterpiece, he used an Lp of "Peepers", sampled suitable parts out of it and created jazzy beats for an UK MC called Jyager. During their cooperation which mainly took place via e-mail, the two masters of their professions triggered an astonishing merger of different genres. Hard and reflected lyrics hitting fiery jazz-beats, peppered-with-break-outs and sounding like they've just been made for these kind of tunes. The rhythms and raps, banned on a 25 minute long Mini-Album called "Common Ground", have already been performed on stage at this years London Jazz Festival and were highly acclaimed by the musical press as well.

Peepers:

- 2005's Held on the Tips of Fingers, you will recall, was shortlisted for the Mercury Prize - and Peepers is every bit as good, talented musicians reworking the rulebook with hearts and minds at play. Louis Pattison, BBC Music

- It [Peepers] has clucky one-note themes over accents like smashing bottles, wistful long-note reveries, car-horn sax choruses turning to free-jazz wails and solemn chants over finger-cymbal pings. John Fordham, The Guardian

Common Ground:

- Putting the sounds together with the drummer's rhythmic and jazz sensibilities produces an effect so avant-garde it is as much Pink Floyd as it is Archie Shepp. Lloyd Bradley, BBC Music


Photo: Steve Gullick


Links

www.polarbearmusic.com

www.myspace.com/sebastianrochford