Eskaubei & Tomek Nowak Quartet - Tego Chciałem (2016)

Eskaubei & Tomek Nowak Quartet

Eskaubei - rap
Tomek Nowak - trumpet, flugelhorn
Kuba Płużek - keyboards
Alan Wykpisz - bass
Mateusz Śliwa - tenor saxophone
Filip Mozul - drums



Tego Chciałem

FOR TUNE 0117

By Adam Baruch

This is the second album by Polish Rap and Jazz ensemble which finds rapper Bartłomiej Skubisz (a.k.a. Eskaubei) combining forces with a Jazz quartet led by trumpeter Tomek Nowak, which also includes pianist Kuba Płużek, bassist Alan Wykpisz and drummer Filip Mozul. This time they are also supported by DJ Wojciech Długosz (a.k.a. Mr. Krime) who performs turntablism, saxophonist Mateusz Śliwa and vocalist Patrycja Zarychta. A couple of guest musicians appear on one track. Together the ensemble performs ten original songs, seven of which were composed by Nowak, two by Płużek and one by Mozul (an instrumental intro). Skubisz wrote the lyrics to all nine songs and was helped out by the guest on one of them.

This album continues the direction set by its predecessor, which combines Funky Groovy Jazz tunes with Rap. In contrast to most attempts of such amalgamation, in which the musical content is rather limited and mostly very sketchy not to say primitive, this album offers a series of excellent full fledged compositions, which easily hold their own ground musically. This is even more emphasized on this album with the addition of Śliwa and expanding the quartet into a quintet on about half of the tunes. The Rap elements, although occupying a separate plane, are fully integrated within the musical structures. The turntablism, courtesy of Mr. Krime, who is prominently featured on the album, brings this album up to date with updated sound trends

The instrumental work by the quartet/quintet is excellent from start to finish. Nowak plays superb soulful/funky phrases, Śliwa adds strength creating a brass section feel and soul when he plays solo, Płużek plays absolutely wicked keyboards, using a plethora of sounds and groovy touches, Wykpisz, who is a wonderful Jazz bassist, turns here into a wizard of Funk and Groove and finally Mozul takes care of the rhythmic continuum, steady as a rock and devilishly inventive; in short a dream team!

The Rap, which in fact is more a form than contents, turns out to be a recitation of Poetry, which deals with a wide range of subject matter, which Skubisz and his generation are facing in this strange and cruel world, which is consistently becoming less human. The lyrics are often bitter and frustrating, but from time to time also touch upon dreams and hope. They are a great example how one can express protest and anger without using even one four (or in Polish five) letter word.

Overall this is another great album by Skubisz and his cohorts, proving that their debut effort was not just a lucky coincidence. The Rap and Jazz concept is again proven to be valid and creatively sound and the execution is once more just right on the money. Hopefully the Artists involved in this project will develop the idiom further in their future recordings, and in the meantime we are happy to enjoy this excellent effort. Well done again!

Eskaubei & Tomek Nowak Quartet - Będzie Dobrze (2015)

Eskaubei & Tomek Nowak Quartet

Eskaubei - rap
Tomek Nowak - trumpet
Kuba Płuzek - keyboards
Alan Wykpisz - bass
Filip Mozul - drums

Będzie Dobrze

FOR TUNE 0059

By Adam Baruch

This is a very interesting album, which amalgamates Rap and Jazz; a concept that has been attempted many times before, but rarely turned out to be a success. Polish rapper Bartłomiej Skubisz (a.k.a. Eskaubei) combines forces with a Jazz quartet led by trumpeter Tomek Nowak, which also includes keyboardist Kuba Płużek, bassist Alan Wykpisz and drummer Filip Mozul. A few guests appear on selected tracks. The album presents eleven original songs, all composed by Nowak (with the exception of one tune which includes music composed by Płuzek) and with lyrics by Eskaubei (with the exception of two song lyrics written by the a.m. guests). The album also includes the radio edit of the title song as a bonus track.

Rap and Jazz are seemingly two completely contrasting Art Forms. Rap focuses on the spoken word, which attempts to deliver a message, and which uses music as a background stimuli, mostly rhythmically, with the melody part being usually pretty limited, repetitive and ornamental rather than substantial. Jazz on the other hand is all about complex melodic and harmonic structures and unlimited improvisation. The Jazz & Poetry idiom successfully managed to combine spoken word and Jazz music since the 1950s but Rap & Jazz, as already mentioned above, has been much less consistent and successful in trying to present a contemporary artistic attempt of amalgamating spoken word and Jazz.

When analyzing a Rap & Jazz project, like the one here, I usually try to separate the contents into two separate planes and than estimate the level of correlation between them. In this case my feelings are as follows:

The Rap part, i.e. the strength of the lyrics and their delivery (sadly limited to Polish speaking audiences only) is cohesive, intelligent and moving. The subject matter touches upon many of the problems we all encounter in our lives, like social injustice, personal relationships, morality, hypocrisy of the media and the pitiful state of music industry. The delivery is emotional, clearly understandable and above all classy.

The music is also quite excellent: funky, melodic, uplifting and intelligent. The performances are excellent with Nowak's trumpet delivering many scorching solos and Pluzek playing a beautiful soulful electric piano, like a true pro, also delivering several heartwarming solos. The rhythm section is the backbone of this music, keeping the beat and pushing the groove rolling. This music could have easily stand on its own (without the Rap on top), producing an excellent Funk-Groove-Soul-Jazz album.

But of course most importantly these two layers placed upon each other produce the best Polish Rap Jazz effort so far. This result is hardly accidental, in view of one of the album's songs, in which Eskaubei tells about the deep influence of Miles Davis on his artistic creation. Overall this is a most enjoyable, aesthetically pleasing piece of music, which puts a smile on the listener's face. Warmly recommended!