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Featuring:
Mark McKnight, Guitar
Seamus Blake, Saxophones
Ross Stanley, Organ
James Maddren, Drums
Recorded at Castle Sound Studios, Scotland
Mix/Mastered by Tyler McDiarmid, NYC
| (All our Digital Albums are 320 bitrate, & include a PDF file of the Liner Notes) | ||
| (Includes Shipping/ Postage fee Worldwide) | ||
Listen to/Purchase individual MP3 Tracks:
(each track costs $1.00 and are 320 Bit Rate)
| 101. Do or Die | |
| 202. Pieces | |
| 303. Nightcap | |
| 404. Bewitched – Intro | |
| 505. Bewitched | |
| 606. Tease | |
| 707. Contemplate | |
| 808. (We’ll) Just Disappear |
About 'Do or Die' by Mark McKnight
Release Date: Sept 26 2011, in Ireland/UK Stores + Worldwide Digital
Since the 2009 release of his much lauded debut 'Overnight', Mark
McKnight has emerged as one of the most exciting and significant
new voices in European jazz guitar, representing Irish jazz at the 12
Points! Festival as well the UK in the European Jazz Orchestra.
Having recorded 'Overnight' in NYC with a band comprising some of the
city's finest jazz musicians, the intervening two years have seen McKnight
focus primarily on the development of his own UK based organ trio. "I was
fortunate to meet the amazing young Hammond organist Ross Stanley in late
2008, shortly after finishing my first record," explains McKnight. "I have
always felt at home with the sound of the Hammond and having just finished
the acoustic quintet music of 'Overnight', I was looking for something new to
explore and write for."
And indeed it's the searching but always melodically defined writing, just as
much as the virtuosic playing displayed by all four group members, which
definitively sets Do or Die apart. McKnight states, "I've been very lucky to
find the perfect combination of musicians for this project in terms of their
collective understanding of the musical aesthetic I'm looking for. In addition
to Ross, I'm featuring another of the UK's foremost young jazz talents,
drummer James Maddren. James' rhythmic and textural invention in
combination with Ross' incredible ear and harmonic ingenuity create a truly
inspiring and unpredictable rhythm section for any soloist or listener."
The quartet is completed by one of the jazz world's most celebrated
saxophonists, NYC's modern tenor icon Seamus Blake. "Seamus has always
been one of my favourite saxophonists and someone whose music I've been
checking out for years," McKnight adds. "As a result he fits perfectly with the
vibe of the group and of course brings his own unique and personal voice to
what I've written."
This is an album which, from start to finish, not only reinforces the ever
developing voice of McKnight as both an improvisor and composer, but also
confidently announces the arrival of a significant new interpretation of the
Hammond organ group in jazz today.
"The future of Irish jazz guitar."
Irish Times
"Characteristically rather elegant combined with an emotional intensity"
Jazzwise
"Already an exceptional talent and one to watch"
Irish Times
"An exhilarating talent"
Glasgow Herald
Press Highlights
"Outstanding new album...[McKnight] is a phenomenal young Belfast guitarist"
Trevor Hodgett, The Irish News
"A superb recording...what appeals, quite apart from the high level of musicianship are the clarity, hunger and sense enquiry in McKnight's, and indeed the whole group's playing...a fresh and invigorating approach to the [organ trio] format"
JazzUK
"..gorgeous explorations of the theme by McKnight and saxophonist Seamus Blake, who trade with fluidness, intensity and feeling. Both soloists' voices are richly drawn: McKnight, in particular, creating a canopy of thought-provoking and emotive mood."
Mark F. Turner, All About Jazz
"'Do or Die' is an album that confirms McKnight's status as a rising star with its blend of intriguing compositions and top quality playing all round."
The JazzMann
"a class act"
JazzWise
"A fine album, which is hopefully the first of many from this line-up"
Drummer Magazine
"McKnight, Ross Stanley (organ ), James Maddren (drums) and Seamus Blake stretched out on McKnight’s compositions to dramatic effect, stretching the fabric of the tunes, changing the order of the solos and generally blowing the hell out of the material"
[Review of Live Performance] The Jazzmann
"superbly played, unexpectedly original, and definitely grows on you"
John Fordham, The Guardian
"McKnight has formidable technique, a fluent flow of ideas and an instinctive appreciation of contrast"
The Irish Times
"a growing presence on the international jazz scene....[McKnight's] guitar style combines a singing sound with searching, bluesy energy and a quick witted sense of form...[Do or Die] showcases a band that takes the classic hammond quartet into its own zone...McKnight and Blake tear up the guitarist's variously elegant and urgent melodies"
The Herald
"McKnight's crisp, inventive guitar work assiduously avoiding cliches"
The Scotsman
"musicianship of the highest order....McKnight's fluency is something to behold...a contender for gig of the year..."
[Review of Live Performance] Bebop Spoken Here
"There's a strong sense of narrative in [McKnight's] soloing which blurs the line between improvisation and composition, and he mercifully resists the temptation to show off his technique, though it is prodigious."
The Sunday Business Post
"[Do or Die] reveals the depth of songwriting that McKnight has achieved....truly inspirational."
Guitar Techniques
"Mark McKnight is a phenomenal guitarist whose fluency and dexterity have created a stir in recent years...on [Do or Die], there is much to admire..."
Sunday Independent