Slowfox
Sebastian Gramss – double bass
Hayden Chisholm – sax
Philip Zoubek – piano
Of all the unconventional projects Sebastian Gramss has initiated, Slowfox is the most melodic. Fundamentally correct, but this statement should also be seen in perspective. Of course, ECHO award winners Gramss, Hayden Chisholm and Philip Zoubek are far too reflective to stray onto the thin ice of entertainment. “We invite the listener in by linking to the familiar,” is how Sebastian Gramss describes the starting point from which the trio develops a chamber music aesthetic of tracing. The music lives from a subtle depth in which there is much to discover: harmonic refinement, elegant sound ideas, subtle imaginative power.
Bandleader Gramss, who also acted as producer, calls the music “Melodic Avantgarde”. But unlike the subversive avant-garde of earlier decades, Slowfox changes certain parameters, but not all of them. The trio’s open approach brings together sophisticated structures and improvisations, appealing equally to intellect and heart. Instead of striking frenzy or muscle games, there are atmospheric nuances and slender sounds that interlock in transparent arrangements.