London Jazz News review for Seven Deadly Sings
Review for: Seven Deadly Sings CD from London Jazz News (February 2014)
“Vocalist and composer, Louise Gibbs, has turned out an ambitious and challenging fifty minute “song suite for jazz singer and septet” that succeeds on many counts. The 7 Deadly Sings accords a sin for every instrumentalist in the septet to express themselves on. (My favourite is the bassist being Sloth – but that’s not very nice, or fair, now is it?).
The distinctive cast of players that Ms Gibbs has assembled here acquit themselves to the task at hand exquisitely. Tim Whitehead’s brooding and moody tenor sax scores highly on Lust and Tom White’s egregious gutbucketings on trombone are just the job for Gluttony. Not to be outdone, the wistful, yet rich-toned florid melodicism of Toni Kofi on the alto sax deliver the goods on Greed. The remainder of the soloists fully realise their respective sins as well and all serenaded by Louise’s looming vocal commentaries. An equal combination of scat, vocalese and lyrics done over a varied suite of tempi, feels and moods.
Deadly singing, you might say, in the most sinful of manners and settings, as only Louise can do. A daring and innovative project, to say the least, but in the end a victorious one, which finds truth in the old saw about the devil having the best tunes.”
– Frank Griffith
