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If you can get past the goofy name and the even more ridiculous blinged-out rabbit sleeve art, you’ll discover some of the most exciting jazz music recorded in 2008.
Japanese self-proclaimed “death jazz” stylists Soil & “Pimp” Sessions are influenced as much by the interstellar escapades of Sun Ra as by post-Coltrane spiritual jazz and the confrontational assaults of the early 80s New York no wave scene. The super-tight six-man combo proves equally adept at explosive limb-flailing attacks, funky improvisation and deeply soulful swinging – sometimes all on the same track.
While the Japanese jazz invasion has yet to hit these shores, Soil & “Pimp” Sessions are building their profile in the UK with help from taste-making BBC DJ Gilles Peterson, who has released their music on his Brownswood label. But, hey, don’t hold that against them.
Top track: Fantastic Planet
