The Sidewinders - A Little Busy (2012)

Simple, direct, energetic, catchy, cheekily fun… it’s Hard Bop. Late 2008, Thomas Champagne and Nicholas Yates, already playing together in a Trio, put together this quintet to satisfy their thirst for hardbop. But it’s only in 2011 that the ship really took sail.

« More than anything else, The Sidewinder, is the name of a legendary track by Lee Morgan, meaning that it was a turning point in hard-bop in the early sixties. In the footsteps of Horace Silver, these sixties-style hard-boppers’ keywords are funky grooves and soul feeling. This is the period that Belgium’s The Sidewinders look to with brio; Lee Morgan, but also Hank Mobley, Wayne Shorter and Art Blakey are called to the bar for swing that is modern and energetic. At the heart of the project, trumpeter Michel Paré and sax-player Thomas Champagne are clearly enjoying the experience totally. To keep them on the beat, they needed a rhythm section that can handle the sixties groove: the pianist Eve Beuvens took the challenge, supported by double-bassist Nicholas Yates and drummer Toon Van Dionant. A ‘big jazz’ quintet that will thrill fans of the genre”.

Jean-Pol Schroeder, Maison du Jazz