I was highly impressed with this young band, not just for the playing which was excellent all round, but also for the quality of Wright’s composing and arranging.
- Jazz Mann Reviews
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Max leads his own bands, The Max Wright Quintet and Quartet. The band plays a mixture of music, predominantly composed by Max. His music fuses together many influences, from modern jazz to electronic music, creating a unique sound with a classic line up.
Max's Quartet have recently released an EP, listen to it below or download it for free on bandcamp! To stay up to date with Max's quintet follow his Facebook page to get regular updates, or join the mailing list below. The bands play regularly in Cardiff and London. The band made their debut performance at Cardiff's leading Jazz venue Cafe Jazz to great critical acclaim - read the review below. |
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Review from www.TheJazzMann.com
"MAX WRIGHT QUINTET
First to take to the stage at a pleasingly well attended Café Jazz was the quintet led by the young drummer and composer Max Wright. The leader was joined by fellow RWCMD students Josh Heaton (tenor sax), Norman Willmore (alto sax), Michael Blanchfield (piano) and Matheus Prado (double bass). Of these Prado was the only musician whose playing I was previously familiar with thanks to his numerous appearances in Brecon at both the annual jazz festival and the regular Brecon Jazz club nights.
The Wright Quintet was only formed recently but I was impressed by just how well together the group was at this early stage in its lifetime – tonight was the band’s first real public gig. Their set featured a beguiling mix of two jazz standards, two original compositions by the leader and an intriguing Wright arrangement of a lesser known Bob Marley tune.
The quintet kicked off with an arrangement of Thelonious Monk’s “Epistrophy”, an apt choice as the centenary of Monk’s birth approaches on October 10th. This familiar, but still engaging, standard allowed saxophonists Heaton and Willmore, plus pianist Blanchfield to demonstrate their already impressive ‘chops’ in a series of expansive but fluent solos as Prado and Wright provided the necessary rhythmic propulsion.
I was even more impressed with the Wright original “Collider”, a highly rhythmic work that had something of a New York M-Base / Downtown feel about it and which featured Heaton and Willmore working effectively in tandem on both the main theme and its subsequent variations. Willmore was the featured soloist here and there seems to be something of a buzz about this young man’s playing among the regular cognoscenti of the Cardiff jazz scene. The word is that Norman Willmore is a name to look out for, a musician with a bright future ahead of him.
I also enjoyed Wright’s innovative, slowed down jazz arrangement of the Bob Marley tune “Johnny Was A Good Man” from the 1976 album “Rastaman Vibration”. Solos here came from Heaton on tenor, Prado on melodic double bass and Blanchfield at the piano with Wright’s subtle drum support now revealing his abilities as a colourist.
The quintet’s barnstorming take on Sonny Rollins’ modern standard “Airegin” was inspired by a version by Wynton Marsalis and saw Heaton taking the first solo, stretching out powerfully and at length over Prado’s fast bass walk and Wright’s sizzling ride cymbal. The drummer varied his attack during Willmore’s solo, his briskly brushed grooves complementing Prado’s still rapid walk. Blanchfield followed at the piano and there were also features for Prado and Wright as each group member relished their moment in the spotlight in a high energy performance that elicited a loud and enthusiastic response from the crowd.
Finally we heard the second Wright original, a tune called “13.1” and named after the distance of a half marathon. Unaccompanied bass introduced another piece of original writing that was taut, rhythmic and riff based and which again featured Heaton and Willmore combining effectively. It was Heaton who delivered a suitably marathon tenor solo on another piece that won the approval of a large and supportive audience, many of them fellow students, at Café Jazz.
I have to say that I was highly impressed with this young band, not just for the playing which was excellent all round, but also for the quality of Wright’s composing and arranging. The two original pieces stood up very well and the adaptation of the Marley tune was genuinely interesting and innovative.
I spoke with Max afterwards and he clearly envisages a bright future for this band. He intends to record an EP of his original compositions, which on this evidence should be well worth hearing, and to look for more gigs. Let’s hope he is able to realise his ambitions. Tonight’s performance revealed that this is a group with bags of potential and helped to get the quintet’s career off to a terrific start."
Please visit www.Thejazzmann.com for Jazz news, jazz reviews and live jazz gigs, events and reviews from Ian Mann the Jazz Mann.
"MAX WRIGHT QUINTET
First to take to the stage at a pleasingly well attended Café Jazz was the quintet led by the young drummer and composer Max Wright. The leader was joined by fellow RWCMD students Josh Heaton (tenor sax), Norman Willmore (alto sax), Michael Blanchfield (piano) and Matheus Prado (double bass). Of these Prado was the only musician whose playing I was previously familiar with thanks to his numerous appearances in Brecon at both the annual jazz festival and the regular Brecon Jazz club nights.
The Wright Quintet was only formed recently but I was impressed by just how well together the group was at this early stage in its lifetime – tonight was the band’s first real public gig. Their set featured a beguiling mix of two jazz standards, two original compositions by the leader and an intriguing Wright arrangement of a lesser known Bob Marley tune.
The quintet kicked off with an arrangement of Thelonious Monk’s “Epistrophy”, an apt choice as the centenary of Monk’s birth approaches on October 10th. This familiar, but still engaging, standard allowed saxophonists Heaton and Willmore, plus pianist Blanchfield to demonstrate their already impressive ‘chops’ in a series of expansive but fluent solos as Prado and Wright provided the necessary rhythmic propulsion.
I was even more impressed with the Wright original “Collider”, a highly rhythmic work that had something of a New York M-Base / Downtown feel about it and which featured Heaton and Willmore working effectively in tandem on both the main theme and its subsequent variations. Willmore was the featured soloist here and there seems to be something of a buzz about this young man’s playing among the regular cognoscenti of the Cardiff jazz scene. The word is that Norman Willmore is a name to look out for, a musician with a bright future ahead of him.
I also enjoyed Wright’s innovative, slowed down jazz arrangement of the Bob Marley tune “Johnny Was A Good Man” from the 1976 album “Rastaman Vibration”. Solos here came from Heaton on tenor, Prado on melodic double bass and Blanchfield at the piano with Wright’s subtle drum support now revealing his abilities as a colourist.
The quintet’s barnstorming take on Sonny Rollins’ modern standard “Airegin” was inspired by a version by Wynton Marsalis and saw Heaton taking the first solo, stretching out powerfully and at length over Prado’s fast bass walk and Wright’s sizzling ride cymbal. The drummer varied his attack during Willmore’s solo, his briskly brushed grooves complementing Prado’s still rapid walk. Blanchfield followed at the piano and there were also features for Prado and Wright as each group member relished their moment in the spotlight in a high energy performance that elicited a loud and enthusiastic response from the crowd.
Finally we heard the second Wright original, a tune called “13.1” and named after the distance of a half marathon. Unaccompanied bass introduced another piece of original writing that was taut, rhythmic and riff based and which again featured Heaton and Willmore combining effectively. It was Heaton who delivered a suitably marathon tenor solo on another piece that won the approval of a large and supportive audience, many of them fellow students, at Café Jazz.
I have to say that I was highly impressed with this young band, not just for the playing which was excellent all round, but also for the quality of Wright’s composing and arranging. The two original pieces stood up very well and the adaptation of the Marley tune was genuinely interesting and innovative.
I spoke with Max afterwards and he clearly envisages a bright future for this band. He intends to record an EP of his original compositions, which on this evidence should be well worth hearing, and to look for more gigs. Let’s hope he is able to realise his ambitions. Tonight’s performance revealed that this is a group with bags of potential and helped to get the quintet’s career off to a terrific start."
Please visit www.Thejazzmann.com for Jazz news, jazz reviews and live jazz gigs, events and reviews from Ian Mann the Jazz Mann.