E.S.T.: Leucocyte (ACT)

****

During the Swedish piano trio’s last Australian tour, they took a couple of days to go into a Sydney studio to jam – no pre-written material, just their instruments, some electronic gizmos and their extraordinary musical telepathy built up over ten years of touring.

In some ways, then, this is the least “prepared” of their released recordings and has become their valedictory musical statement – leader and pianist Esbjorn Svensson died in a diving accident less than a month after Leucocyte had been delivered to their record company.

There is a lot of fascinating music here, from rich introductory chords of Decade, through the almost conventional hard swing of a track called Jazz, to the graceful melodicism that ultimately grows out of abstract noise sculptures in Still.

But, overall, it is the long workouts, jazzy versions of head-banging, that leave the strongest impression. Premonition: Earth builds to a drum and bass-dominated climax with drummer Magnus Ostrom, as a friend pointed out, seeming to take his lead from Jimi Hendrix’s Machine Gun. The title track is a four-part tour-de-force of noise and silence and most points in between.

If it is, inevitably, looser in construction and more indulgent than their prepared studio albums, Leucocyte still shows E.ST. maintaining their strict quality control.

Hard to listen to without a lump in the throat.

Karrin Allyson: Imagina: Songs of Brazil (Concord)

****

The American singer has sung the standards of the great American songbook, tackled Coltrane, and now devotes an album to that other rich lode of standards: the Brazilian ones, so many of them written by Antonio Carlos Jobim.

Her diction has always been precise, and it is lovely hear it applied to Portuguese, which she doesn’t pretend to sing like a native but just as herself. And the variety of tone and mood she can, seemingly effortlessly, bring to a lyric and melody is a joy, too.

The instrumental settings – no horns here, but occasional touches of vibes or accordion amid the guitars, percussion, piano and bass – are of the smoothly-cruising limousine variety, and the English translations she sings in between the Portuguese are just as classy.

I remember long ago having a Sarah Vaughan disc of Brazilian tunes. It was good – Sassy didn’t make duds – but sounds now like a very crude clash of styles compared to the integration and understanding the modern jazz musician aims for when mixing influences.

If you like singers and don’t yet know Karrin Allyson you have a huge treat in store. And this would make a lovely introduction.

Geoff Simkins Trio: Conversation (Symbol)

***

The title says it all – three fine musicians having a chat on a variety of subjects, some written by Charlie Parker or John Lewis, Jim Hall or Lee Konitz, and a couple their own.

Alto saxophonist Simkins has been around the British jazz scene for more than 30 years, and is well known in education circles for his improvisation classes.

Here he has guitarist Dave Cliff and double bassist Simon Woolf to talk to. All are highly melodic players with a firm but gentle swing and an unruffled air about them. Loads of insights into sometimes complex topics – and never a voice raised in anger.

Soil & Pimp Sessions: Planet Pimp (Brownswood)

***

It starts with a thunderstorm and portentous organ – we could be back in the pre-punk ‘70s. And there are many more times during this album by the Tokyo magpies when that prog rock monster raises its gargantuan head.

The lovely thing about Soil & Pimp, though, is that they unashamedly stitch together the prog rock with its very antithesis, the punk mentality. Oh, and they have some pretty hot jazz chops too.

Storm has a certain Sub Ensemble feel to it, while in Go Next! the wah-wah horns conjure up memories of the late ‘60s electric sax excursions of Eddie Harris. They take their fun seriously.