You would think that an Alto Saxaphonist with roughly twenty years of experience on the modern jazz scene would have pumped out a slew of records to accent such an illustrious career, but SaxClub Vol.1 is Jakob Elvstrom’s first solo record.
Written primarily by Elvstrom and produced by Morten Eriksen, the sax player proves why patience is a virtue. The album is full of vintage sounding tracks that range from a gem of a jazz cover in Shanice's major hit "I Love Your Smile" to the RnB funk of “When We are Together,” with Raz Conway contributing lead vocals.
The Danish native switches the momentum up several times throughout the record, most notably with fellow native, rapper Miss Mukupa, who duets on the expansive “Make It Flow.” “Mokeytown” is a smooth track that levels off while “Put Em Up” introduces reggae elements to the mix. Elsewhere, Elvstrom captures the quiet storm feel on “Lost and not found” and turns up the energy on the gospel tinged “Step It Up.”
SaxClub Vol.1 is a seriously smooth album with a few choice cuts like “Late Night Slammin'” that really touch upon Elvstrom’s ablility to spin funky jazz tunes which really make his saxaphone playing shine. The record includes a radio edit of “Make It Flow” if that is any indication of how serious the artist is in expanding his reach across traditional genres and musical boundaries.
Rukshan Thenuwara – MuzikReviews.com Staff
December 12, 2009
