Reviews

Carsten Dahl, Into the Storm, Storyville ****

Updated 9 March 20262 Mins read

I was a bit thrown by ‘Body and Soul’ appearing so early on this latest from Danish pianist Carsten Dahl with top US bassist Reuben Rogers – known for his work with Charles Lloyd – along with his compatriot drummer Greg Hutchinson completing the sound.

Its placing on the album so dreamily early on does not detract from the impact gained by opener ‘Minoring Together’ however, a Dahl piece led off by the sound of Hutchinson’s cymbals.

The audience factor emerges clearly enough on this piece and then later cheering rings out in an interlude that precedes Coltrane epic ‘Giant Steps.’

It’s the bassist who opens up this section of the album which was recorded in January 2013.

No idea if the album has been out before. I think it was recorded at the Jazzhus Montmartre, a famed club historically in Scandinavia and found in the Danish capital, Copenhagen.

I liked the tuneful perky fun of Hugo Rasmussen number ‘Sweets to the Sweet’ that the bassist recorded with Doug Raney back in the day. Rasmussen died in 2015.

Dahl and Rasmussen worked together in a band called The Crazy Constellation Trio,

Check the 2011 footage above of the Crazy Constellation trio in action.
Into the Storm is an album that doesn’t take itself too seriously but is deadly serious about getting the feel of pieces like Oscar Levant’s 1930s song ‘Blame it On My Youth’ just right.

Its sensitive charms were beautifully interpreted by George Shearing in the 1950s and reinvigorated for another generation by both Brad Mehldau and Keith Jarrett in the 1990s – the latter simply stunning on standards trio classic The Melody At Night, With You.

Dahl himself is an expert interpreter of Keith Jarrett as fans with know from his Solo Songs of Keith Jarrett album also released by jazz indie Storyville three years ago.

The familiar is well catered for on Into the Storm by including Juan Tizol classic ‘Caravan’ and the Gus Kahn gem ‘You Stepped Out of a Dream’.

Giving the album extra live recording appeal Dahl chats to the audience on ‘Speak’ making a little comment about ex-wives.

More serious in its execution ‘The End of a Beautiful Friendship’ follows. It’s so tender and factors in a fine bass solo from Rogers.

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