PAGANOVA – PAGANNOVA (Album Review)

An album so elusive yet descriptive, how could we resist not showing it to the rest of you, esteemed readers on Music Review World? Described as the act of ‘putting 2 monster saxophone players in front of a hot rhythm section’, that in its culmination is none other than the Kansas-city based jazz quintet named ‘Paganova’.

In its self-titled album, the tracks are described as from straight-ahead post bop to latin, fusion and a couple of original tracks. The group is full of energy and led by the acclaimed pianist and composer Michael Pagán, and veterans of the Kansas City jazz scene such as David Chael, Mike Herrera, Ray Demarchi and the bassist Louie Pagán. The group is self-described as a seasoned, formidable yet listener-friendly ensemble, not veering into the deep ends of non-listener friendly artists like Stockhausen. If you’d like to know more about the origin story of the group, you can read here.

Their CD release of the album was met with numerous glowing reviews in the US and Europe. Now, it’s their turn to go through the fire of Music Review World.

The album starts off with a strong start, with very simultaneous lines of melody before descending into a stable groove. It is quite easy to follow, but the high amount of improv and the relationship between the saxophonist and the pianist definitely keeps your brain running and attention. There is definitely, with all jazz albums, a HUGE, almost large degree of motivic variation, which is certainly the strength of the genre as a whole.

I absolutely love how all of the musicians seem to have a synergy and good communication with each other; it is almost like as if each section is playing call-and-response with each other. The bass is dynamic and running alongside the heartbeat of the smooth groove, pacing through, giving these tracks a very supported base for the other instruments to truly shine. It has a positively infectious quality to it, making me want to play along as well. \

There’s definitely variation with the themes and the type of songs within the release, with tracks like ‘Deep in My Soul’ giving an almost neo-soul esque take on typical jazz notes. This just shows how multifaceted and talented the musicians are, being able to seamlessly go through various subgenres without any apparent struggle. It’s warm, engaging, deep and absolutely scintillating. It can also have an orchestral pop flair to it, which helps elevate its dramatic nature as well.

The middle tracks of the album are a bit more edgy and suave, such as ‘Guess Who’s Blues’ and ‘Eiderdown’. They could almost pass off as historical jazz tracks, which makes me immensely impressed. Yes, innovation is necessary, but I think what we’re hearing here is a great degree of skill.

The title of one of the most poignant tracks in the whole release would have to go to ‘Where Do We Go From Here’, with its fascinating scale, chord structure, improv lines, and ornamentation. It’s deep, soulful, and almost reminds me of some of Thelonious Monk’s compositions. Words cannot do this wonderful, dynamic track any justice. It is very much like reality- complex in emotional presentation, unnerving, but also familiar.

There are some unique tracks in this joint, particularly the track ‘Gaviota’ with its funkedelic soundscape in the midst of the jazz instrumentation. I think this gives it a very interesting edge, with the bass performing a solo in the middle and what I think is the Rhodes piano. It gives it a time period but also pays homage to it without it sounding ‘corny’ due to the lines of notes it goes through.

The album almost ends off with ‘Just the Other Day’, a classic jazz song that has its ups and downs but will definitely appeal to traditionalists. It has its merits, though, so do not brush the composition away merely by its description. The saxophone gets a bit closer from a mastering perspective, clustering to the left ear. This gives it a very interesting spatial dynamic that will change the way you perceive song and then finishes off with ‘Napoli’, a song that combines intellectualism with time-signature changes at some instances and Latin infusion. It’s very classy and fascinating to listen to.

All in all, this album is quite multivariable, and it does a wonderful job of transitioning between ideas and modes very well. This is also supplemented with the outstanding ability of every musician involved, who knows exactly what notes to choose at which point in time- a skill that Miles Davis constantly talked about in the art of improvisation. There is never a dull moment with this release, and it contains enough musical variation and inspiration to reach every ear, even those not ‘trained’ to jazz.

SCORE / Excellent to Outstanding – Paganova is a wonderful album that feeds off of refining the art of jazz traditions that already exist with a taste for innovation and precision. The album is an extremely engaging listen that will truly inspire you, with tracks that fit a wide variety of moods all under the umbrella of jazz and truly competent musicians.

If you liked this, you can catch up with Paganova on Facebook