Laughing Bastards - Fetish (2024) [Hi-Res]

Born of the countless, turbulent, and illegitimate love affairs that jazz had with all the music in the world: Laughing Bastards is the alchemy of the youngest generation from the booming Ghent jazz scene and the experience of an old hand in the field.
The seasoned saxophonist Michel Mast, is a member of the Flat Earth Society, one of the best contemporary European jazz big bands, and has also played with Wofo and X-Legged Sally. Mast can create with a verve and innovative spirit that belies his age, but on this album, he does not bring the avant-garde spirit that he was known for earlier in his career, but rather infuses the music with lyricism. On their new album Fetish, Laughing Bastards prove they are a quintessential Belgian band with an international appeal - soaking up sounds and influences from all over the place while maintaining a tight unity. Combining jazz and chamber music with ideas from pop music and multi-colored strains does not only give their music an iridescent edge, but also keeps the interplay fresh and inspired.
Initially a reeds-guitar-bass trio modeled after the classic Jimmy Giuffre 3, Laughing Bastards has remained truthful to its original spirit. Saxophone player Michel Mast and guitarist Jan-Sebastiaan Degeyter have remained its core, but the band went through several extensions, first welcoming Eline Duerinck (cello) and Marcos Della Rocha (drums, for Unanimal in 2019) and solidifying its present-day line-up with bassist Cyrille Obermüller. Degeyter wrote more than half of the album's compositions. A talented illustrator and designer as well as a versatile guitarist, Degeyter always manages to add a strong visual component to his material. In combination with his knack for pulling exotic influences into the band's overall sound, it leads to a playful, cinematic eccentricity.
Fetish is released jointly by BMC Records and W.E.R.F., opening the long-term cooperation of the two record labels.

Tracklist:
1.01 - Laughing Bastards - Tigraman (4:25)
1.02 - Laughing Bastards - Red Lemon (3:54)
1.03 - Laughing Bastards - Black Spoon (4:30)
1.04 - Laughing Bastards - Sand (4:34)
1.05 - Laughing Bastards - Dosi (5:52)
1.06 - Laughing Bastards - Turquoise (4:30)
1.07 - Laughing Bastards - Fetish (3:45)
1.08 - Laughing Bastards - The Train and the River (5:05)
1.09 - Laughing Bastards - Calliope (4:42)
1.10 - Laughing Bastards - Vashkar (5:24)