At Karamel, London: With some hours to spend on a mild February evening in London on one of my infrequent trips down for work, I found myself with fellow members of London’s thriving Jazz Meet Up group at Karamel – a wonderful vegan café in Wood Green. It was also a chance to see Weegee, something I recommend anyone does if they are playing.
Karamel proved a surprise itself: Set in a side road of Wood Green, North London, it offers a homely setting with really decent vegan food which is good whether you are vegan or not. The acoustics are good as well, which is a bonus if you are hearing good music.
Weegee are a quartet based in London and have been together for about five years. They consist of Louis Bowden on keyboards and piano (and story telling), Joe Browne on saxophones, Dave Johnston on bass guitar and Allan Shrestha on drums and percussion. And they are really good.
The group opened with a series of songs, some of whose names were lost in the noise of the evening but included “Tokyo,” “Eris,” “Puma” and more. Weegee delivers brilliantly, and the tunes are well structured and have depth. This is enriched by Louis Bowden’s introductions, which were frequent and eloquently tell of the backgrounds to many of the songs.
“Tokyo” was heavy, delivered with drive and fervor and featuring some terrific sax from Joe Browne (who, by the way, stole the show on several numbers). Then a number about the wind in the trees – this was clear, gentle and the sounds created by Weegee were redolent of those days when the wind sighs and rolls through the leaves.
“Let the Light In” was a track about that moment when you wake up next to someone you love, knowing that shortly the day would start, the moment would be gone and life would go on. It built beautifully from gentle stirrings to full take-it-on-the-chin life! Here, the soprano sax set the gentle mood and Weegee moved from loving gentleness to fire and driven passion in a heartbeat.
“Eris” was written to honor Michael Collins, the guy who stayed in the lunar module whilst Neil Armstrong and company made the moon landings and became famous for small steps. He had to remain on board and travelled to the dark side of the moon – no light, no sound and the track which ensues is atmospheric, deeply esoteric and spacey.
From the opening number, this group grabs the attention, switching from cool, lounge room jazz to a dynamic diverse and energetic band in a heartbeat. When Weegee began playing, listeners may have been forgiven for considering the music as background to the more important matter of eating and drinking – but by the half way mark of the changing and developing opening number, drinks and meals became secondary to the magic of the sounds coming forth.
In “Eris,” the soprano sax wails subtly across the depths of sounds underneath, whilst later the keyboard solos with spacey effects. The tenor now solos, using the essences of the major key the piece is set in and running with it. Sublime. The next number featured Eastern influences, the sax taking center stage, as life breathed into instrument until it becomes a wailing shrieking thing of immense beauty. Then, out of the depths emerged an incredible drum solo from Allan Shrestha, power and might choosing a rhythmic niche which he made his own. The final track of the first set featured a storming episode between sax and drums.
I had to leave shortly into the second set, but already I had heard enough to know that this band are one to watch, in my small opinion, and I had in my possession one of the pile of small ‘business cards’ which simply features the hand-written word ‘Weegeeband’ as their Facebook contact.
Although it is Louis Bowden who introduces the numbers, delivers complex and beautiful piano lines and tells wonderful stories to give the essence of why the number were written, the sense is that Weegee are equals. Generous space is given to each musician sharing the stage, with particular free-blowing time allowed for the tenor and soprano saxes of Joe Browne. Dave Johnston on bass is steady as a rock and also given room, as is the very talented Allan Shrestha.
Tight, clever and completely different with stand-out musicians – what more could you ask?
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