Ilmiliekki Quartet from Helsinki return with their new self-titled album on We Jazz Records on 11 February 2022. The group, including Verneri Pohjola (trumpet), Tuomo Prättälä (piano), Antti Lötjönen (bass) and Olavi Louhivuori (drums) is a mainstay in the Finnish scene and the band has been steadily developing their sound for nearly two decades now. It could be said that the group's musicians, each also a solo artist of note these days, has grown with and through performing together with this regularly working quartet. Ilmiliekki Quartet's music has a song-like melodic quality, which pairs naturally with their often freeform search for new musical landscapes.
As testament of Ilmiliekki Quartet being a Band with a capital B, the songs on the new album come from each of the four members. As before, the band also takes a borrowed tune in for a loving rendition, this time tackling "Aila" by the Finnish dream pop group Karina. All in all, there's a deep, moody element to the music, yet at the same time, their sound flows with remarkable ease and lightness of touch. This brings out a wide range of color in their music, which is easy to fall in love with.
STAFF COMMENTS
Millie says: One for all the Jazz heads out there, this is lovely ambient track after track of gorgeous music, they've been around for a long time now but continue to find new musical heights. A must if you like Matthew Halsall and Mammal Hands
TRACK LISTING
1. Three Queens (feat. Verneri Pohjola, Tuomo Prättälä, Antti Lötjönen & Olavi Louhivuori)
2. Sgr A* (feat. Verneri Pohjola, Tuomo Prättälä, Antti Lötjönen & Olavi Louhivuori)
3. Aila (feat. Verneri Pohjola, Tuomo Prättälä, Antti Lötjönen & Olavi Louhivuori)
4. Follow The Damn Breadcrumbs (feat. Verneri Pohjola, Tuomo Prättälä, Antti Lötjönen & Olavi Louhivuori)
5. Night Song (feat. Verneri Pohjola, Tuomo Prättälä, Antti Lötjönen & Olavi Louhivuori)
6. Kaleidoscopesque (feat. Verneri Pohjola, Tuomo Prättälä, Antti Lötjönen & Olavi Louhivuori)
