Killer Shrimp @ Corner House, Newcastle. November 26th

Damon Brown (trumpet, loops & vocals), Ed Jones (tenor saxophone & loops), Mark Hodgson (double bass) & Luke Flowers (drums).

The cold spell continued. From the outside the Corner House never looked so inviting. The band arrived on time - would the audience?

Minutes before the off one hardy soul had arrived (huskies happy to rest up outside). Thirty minutes past the supposed first set start time sufficient numbers had congregated to constitute something resembling an audience.

The band, professional to the last, played a blinder.

So, you thought the big attraction would be drum maestro Alyn Cosker? Read on. Front line leaders trumpeter Damon Brown and tenor man Ed Jones brought a new sound to Newcastle. Firmly rooted in bop territory, added elements gave the band and listeners something a little different. Hip Hop, drums 'n' bass, loops and a Brown vocal reggae number were incorporated into the collective sound of the quartet. The wonders of laptop electronics, used sparingly, on occasion morphed Brown and Jones' sound into something akin to that of steel pans! This was post electric Hancock and similar to the guitar synth sound of which John McLaughlin was once so fond.

Tunes old and new included It Never Happened, Baltic Wharf (how appropriate given the arctic conditions in the north east!), Lef An Lee (celebrating the talents of pianist Leon Greening), Sticks and Stones and others ensured this was a gig to remember.

Bassist Mark Hodgson coped admirably with the new musical elements thrown at him and the star of the show (for this reviewer) was drummer Luke Flowers. He has played with the band many times. His credits include working with the wonderful Corrine Bailey Rae and the Cinematic Orchestra. Flowers is a superb technician with an in built sense of time. He can, seemingly, play any style, any tempo, all done with great taste. As one astute listener said to me 'Flowers is a better fit (than Cosker) in this band'. I couldn't disagree.

An excellent night. The concert was a Jazz North East presentation. The promoters' next offering is at Gateshead Old Town Hall (Friday 3rd December) featuring Ig Henneman's Kindred Spirits. An On the Outside event, the line-up is star-studded to say the least. For those with musically adventurous ears this is one not to miss.

As I write the blizzards threaten a white out. Round up those huskies, don't be deterred and get to Gateshead Old Town Hall next week (Friday 3rd, 8:00 pm prompt).

Russell.