CBSO Centre, Birmingham UK 15-10-2016 Review and photographs by John Watson When you see the names Kit Downes, Petter Eldh and James Maddren in the publicity for a new trio, you just know this will be a band that cannot fail…. Read More ›
chris montague
Troyka – Ornithophobia
(Naim naimcd210) This is the third album from the trio of Chris Montague on guitar, Joshua Blackmore on drums and Kit Downes on keyboards. The band treated the Birmingham audience of the bigger Troyk-estra to a preview back in November. All… Read More ›
Trish Clowes – Pocket Compass
(Basho Records SRCD 45-2) I’ve been wrestling for weeks with this disc – trying to decide whether or not to write about it. There are lots of very good reasons why I should write about it. Trish Clowes is a… Read More ›
Troyk-estra
CBSO Centre, Birmingham UK 08-11-2014 “It’s great to be the support act for our own gig,” said guitarist Chris Montague as he, drummer Josh Blackmore and keyboardist Kit Downes took the stage for a Troyka first half. With a multitude… Read More ›
What a 21st-century big band sounds like
If the American Federation of Musicians had not called a strike against the big recording companies on 1 August 1942, would the big bands that had dominated jazz in the earlier years of the Second World War have survived? Or… Read More ›
Reflections on gigs I have seen in the last 10 days
A busy stretch of gigs has proved to be a very stimulating experience and has led to the following summaries and reflections. First up was a trip to Paris on 20 June to catch a new band In Bed With In set up by… Read More ›
Nick Smart’s Trogon – Tower Casa
(Babel Label BDV13129) The colourful Trogon is the national bird of Cuba, I have just learned, and its bright feathers reflect the gaiety of this session from trumpeter Nick Smart and his band. On guitar is the very busy Chris… Read More ›
Busy week ends with supergroups in Bromsgrove and Coventry
It’s another busy jazz week in the smaller or sometimes novel venues with lots of very exciting homegrown music plus some visitors from elsewhere in the land. Plus there’s a supergroup or two in the Wednesday triple-stretch grand finale. First… Read More ›
Slowly Rolling Camera
(Edition Records EDN1048) It comes from further west, from Cardiff to be precise, but this jazz-soul album has a distinctly Bristol feel to it. Partly this comes from the fact that it is produced by Andy Allan, who has also… Read More ›
Troyka
Hare and Hounds, Kings Heath, Birmingham UK 30-1-2014 Troyka play an intense hybrid of funk-strewn jazz rock with a bluesy edge and a hefty dose of electronica. On Thursday night they returned to the Hare exactly a year to the… Read More ›
Blue Touch Paper – Drawing Breath
(Provocateur Records PVC1043) Blue Touch Paper is the modern jazz fusion band of composer and keyboard player Colin Towns and he has Mark Lockheart on saxophones, Chris Montague on guitar, Edward Maclean on bass, Benny Greb on drums and Stephan… Read More ›
CD review: Trish Clowes
And In The Night-Time She Is There (Basho Records SRCD 41-2) Reviewed by JJ Wheeler Trish Clowes reminisces on her innate sense of playfulness as a child, more often deviating from regimented practice routines at the piano to create short… Read More ›
CD review: Troyka
Moxxy (Edition Records) Not to be confused with the ’60s Canadian rock band of the same name, this trio of guitarist Chris Montague with Joshua Blackmore on drums and Kit Downes on keyboards goes from strength to strength, with this… Read More ›
Late reminder: Troyka tonight
Rising star of the jazz keyboard Kit Downes, who recently played a superb Rush Hour Blues gig in Birmingham with his acoustic piano trio, returns to the city this evening, this time plugged in as organist with the jazz/prog trio… Read More ›
Disc of the day: 31-07-09
Troyka: Troyka (Edition Records EDN1014) I realise that bands like Troyka would prefer not to have the jazz tag attached to them for fear it may alienate their younger audience, so apologies in advance for reviewing this disc here. Even… Read More ›
thejazzbreakfast 