Review: Shake Stew – Ten One Two

Is it brass music? Is it big band? Is it... well, what is it exactly? Ten One Two, the new album from Shake Stew, is a little bit of everything and, above all, a little bit more. Or would you have thought that almost 90 minutes of music could fit all kinds of genres, influences, and inspirations? You'll be amazed.

Ten One Two is the fifth album by Austrian crossover combo Shake Stew. The music is colorful, lively, groovy, with a little jazz and a little funk and all sorts of other things thrown in. Driving beats with free jazz advances in the brass section can be heard (Wood). Ostinato drum percussion figures lay the foundation for melodically layered saxophones (Tristan Junk). Hip-hop drums greet us as a transition (Cafe San Marco). There are Ian Anderson reminiscences in the form of chatty flute tones (Garage), moments reminiscent of Indian influences on pop music (Cabanes Castellon), and passages that make you wonder about the possible effect of music under the influence of mind-expanding substances (Cherry Pie).

The music sounds so colorful and somehow seems acoustically as if it were a recording from the 1970s made with modern means. The reason for the backward-looking vibe is, on the one hand, often the choice of harmonies, on the other hand, the distribution of tasks and articulation of the basic instruments bass, guitar, and drums, and finally the mixing: lots of reverb. Lots of mids. A warm sound as if coming from offstage, yet solidly tangible and present in the here and now in the melody-leading instruments. This is appealing and tempts you to want more.

And there will be more. Because the current album is the first part of Ten One Two. Part 2 is announced for September. Until then, there are seven months to warm up your ears. Highly recommended. (Thomas Semmler, HighResMac)

Lukas Kranzelbinder, double bass, electric bass, guembri, kalimba, log drums, mellotron, tambourine
Yvonne Moriel, alto saxophone, flute, FX
Mario Rom, trumpet
Johannes Schleiermacher, tenor saxophone, flute, FX
Oliver Potratz, electric bass, Fender Bass VI, FX
Nikolaus Dolp, drums, percussion
Herbert Pirker, drums, percussion, log drums, tambourine, shaker
Special Guest:
JJ Whitefield, electric guitar (on Tristan Junk)
Pablo Herrasti-Fajardo, modular synthesizer (on Tiger)

Recorded by Werner Angerer, Pablo Herrasti-Fajardo, Lukas Kranzelbinder
Mixed by Werner Angerer, Lukas Klement, Markus Wallner, Pablo Herrasti-Fajardo, Lukas Kranzelbinder
Mastered by Martin Scheer
Produced by Lukas Kranzelbinder