Album Review: The View From The Top from Gemma Farrell Quintet

Album:  The View From The Top
Artist:  Gemma Farrell Quintet
Label:  Self-Released
Website:  http://gemmafarrellmusic.com

Gemma Farrell Quintet's second endeavor, The View From The Top, is a modern jazz-leaning recording filled with easy listening scores that complement people's lifestyles.  Based in Australia, saxophonist Gemma Farrell leads her quintet through original works composed by her, showcasing a penchant for hard bop hydraulics, straight-ahead jazz motifs, and improvised spins.  Supported by Sam Hadlow on trombone, Dan Garner on guitar, Kate Pass on bass, and Ryan Daunt on drums, the Gemma Farrell Quintet create a pleasant listening experience.

The harmonious communication formed by Farrell and her crew on "Every Year" is reminiscent of luminary voices familiar to audiences like David Brubeck and Thelonious Monk.  The meandering tweets of Farrell's sax infuse bends and curves which keep the track advancing, acting as a thickening agent that fattens the melodic progressions.  Sam Hadlow's trombone makes expansions along "Get Back Up" with a catchy melodic hook that twines around Farrell's improvised statements.

"Breathing Space" is dotted in the feathery wisps of Kate Pass's bass and the poignantly placed cymbal strikes of Ryan Daunt's drums, injecting shimmery vibrations along the track as Dan Garner's guitar strings enhance the blissful swells.  The lyrical exchange between Farrell's sax and Hadlow's trombone courses through "We Got There" with an animated dialogue that imbues a jovial mood in the atmosphere.  The sleek rumbles in the horns infuse "Jealousy" with a Latin flare shifting to a bopping shuffle that cruises into the lulling ruminations of "Violet's Song."

From playful and animated to lulling and meandering, the Gemma Farrell Quintet's correspondence is relatable to human experiences.  In the vein of pioneers like David Brubeck and Thelonious Monk, the Quintet create a pleasant listening experience.  Their easy listening scores complement people's lifestyles and imbue the atmosphere with a satisfying lightness.  

Musicians:
Gemma Farrell - Saxophones
Sam Hadlow - Trombone
Dan Garner - Guitar
Kate Pass - Bass
Ryan Daunt - Drums