Matthew Halsall - Fletcher Moss Park (2012)

Most of my favourite jazz albums are from late 50s or early 60s. That's when jazz had it's golden years. There are only few albums from recent years that I think can compete with some of those albums. Fletcher Moss Park by Manchester-based trumpeter Matthew Halsall is one of them. This album takes clear influences from that early 60s period and I can hear similarities to such artists as Miles Davis, John Coltrane and Bill Evans. The studio quality of the 21st century gives this style of jazz a magical sound. Most of this album is quite relaxed in terms of tempo and sounds. The amazing harp played by Rachel Gladwin gives the album a magical sound. The trumpets played by Halsall are subtle yet very eloquent. Like Miles Davis proofed in the 60s, sometimes the notes that are not played are just as important as the notes that are played. 
I came across Matthew Halsall when I was trying to explore the new sound of British jazz a few years ago. I wanted to see more live jazz, but I found it a bit difficult to find shows where the music was innovative and fresh. Most jazz shows you see in major jazz venues in London are very traditional and often played by old musicians to middle aged people. I wanted to find the youthful side of jazz in UK and Matthew Halsall was the one I probably liked the most out of the ones I found. Although, there were lots of other names as well, such as Theon Cross and Nubya Garcia.

The album begins beautifully with fairy tale piano and harp sounds in the song Cherry Blossom. When the song gets properly started, I'm reminded of Bill Evans jazz ballads. The rhythm section is doing amazing job as well. The drums and bass don't play much, but they keep the mood really magical giving just enough space to Halsall's trumpet. The title track Fletcher Moss Park gets its name from an actual park with botanical gardens in Didsbury in Manchester. This song has fantastic harps in the background, while the bass and horn section remind me a bit of afrobeat aesthetics even though the tempo stays quite slow throughout the song. Mary Emma Louise picks up the pace a little bit while still maintaining the sound of the album. The echoey piano carries the song along with the drums giving the improvisation room to the trumpet and harp. Sailing Out to Sea brings out string instruments not that common in this type of jazz. There's a bit of cross-over between jazz and modern classical music in this song, which I find really interesting. Wee Lan (Little Orchid) starts with looping bass lanes and is soon accompanied by pizzicato harp sounds and violins. This short song is almost like an interlude that leads to the end of the album. The Sun in September features a flute, which sounds absolutely magical along with the brilliant, yet simple pianos. The album ends with Finding My Way, which kind of takes things back to basics. This song sounds much like Matthew Halsall's previous album On the Go, which I like very much as well.

There's a video of The Sun in September played in studio. I don't know how interesting these sorts of videos are, but at least it's nice to see what the band looks like and how beautiful the music sounds played live in studio.

Even though I discovered Matthew Halsall while investigating artists who I want to see live, I still haven't managed to see him live. He has had a few shows in London in recent years, but the tickets always come for sale really early on, months before the shows so I've been unsure to buy the tickets. I hope I get another chance when live shows are back at some point.

I do like other albums I've listened to by Matthew Halsall as well, but there's something about the sounds on this album that make it quite special. I guess the harp and piano and the slow tempo in the likeness of early 60s Miles Davis and Bill Evans make it very special.

Listen to the album on Spotify.