Emil De Waal - Fire øjne (2024) [Hi-Res]

Prolific Danish drummer Emil de Waal has come to be known for his unique and personal contributions to a wide variety of musical projects in jazz, pop, rock, and electronica, including Kalaha, Baghdad Dagblad, Maluba Orchestra, and his own quartet to name a few.

Well versed in the art of collaboration, his new record is his first solo undertaking, combining his jazz musicianship with his affinity for the off-kilter and electronically manipulated.

Comprised of seven original compositions, as well as creative reinterpretations of pieces by Charlie Haden, Duke Ellington, and Hans Henrik Ley/Jannik Hastrup, the record is a collection of intimate, interactive duo performances decorated with sounds and textures from the electronic world. The record’s title translates to ‘four eyes’, a double-entendre alluding to the album’s duo approach, under four eyes so to speak, as well as to the fact that de Waal wears glasses.

Making a conscious effort to collaborate with more female instrumentalists as well as musicians de Waal hadn’t played with before, ‘Fire Øjne’ features a wide spectrum of organic instrumental timbres on the prepared piano, clarinet, saxophone, pedal steel guitar, and bass flute. From sung melodies and winding improvisations to spacious, experimental textural approaches, each piece sees de Waal engage in a private conversation with a musician he’s admired.

From the bluesy New Orleans feel of Ellington’s ‘Limbo Jazz’, to the glitchy, menacing, avant-garde groove of ‘Halvfirs Fems’, to the spacious, twinkling, ethereal ‘Diskurs’, the album showcases the staggering breadth of the drummer’s influences and ideas. Programmeddrum beats, vast reverbs, foley recordings of flowing water, and ricocheting delays craft an expansive, surprising and inventive context for improvised music in the 21st Century.

Line up
Emil de Waal | Drums, Electronics, Programming, Sonic Treatments, Flute, Water, Percussion
Frederik Lundin | Bass Flute (Track 1), Baritone Saxophone (Track 9)
Rasmus Oppenhagen Krogh | Electric Guitar (Tracks 1, 8)
Cecilie Strange | Tenor Saxophone (Track 3, 7)
Henriette Groth | Prepared Piano (Track 5) and Clarinet (Track 6)
Susan Alcorn | Pedal Steel Guitar (Track 10)

Tracklist:
1.01 - Emil De Waal - Regnvejrssang (3:37)
1.02 - Emil De Waal - Fire øjne (5:11)
1.03 - Emil De Waal - Så (4:27)
1.04 - Emil De Waal - Logistik (3:05)
1.05 - Emil De Waal - Paradigme (3:18)
1.06 - Emil De Waal - Diskurs (2:29)
1.07 - Emil De Waal - Generøs (4:52)
1.08 - Emil De Waal - Halvfirs fems (3:59)
1.09 - Emil De Waal - Limbo Jazz (3:07)
1.10 - Emil De Waal - Silence (7:22)