CD Review: Roos Jonker ‘Mmmmm’

Roos Jonker (vocal, beats?, other instruments); Rory Ronde (guitar); Benjamin Herman (sax).

(Review by Ann Alex).

This is a delightful debut album, heavily jazz-influenced, but with many other elements from hip hop, pop, and genres which probably don’t yet have a name.  This singer, who studied at the Jazz Department of Amsterdam Conservatory, wrote and arranged all the songs, which include very individual love songs with strong hooks to aid the memory (quote: ‘Will you be there, still there when I fall’); songs with countryside images; a song about dealing with sadness (Shoes and Booze).  The feel of the album is light, fresh and airy, a sweet gentle easy-listening voice, with very interesting skilled musicianship.
For example, Hangover has the voice double tracked, with a steady, strong drumbeat and the sax playing start/stop tricks.  Still There has a hip hop style drum, then on Man in the Middle, the drum rumbles along to a catchy song.  The title track Mmmmm involves (as expected) lots of humming and a lazy-sounding  sax, and Play the Guitar, a song about thinking of memories late at night, features an effective guitar solo.  New Dress verges on free jazz with all instruments playing in a surreal free-for-all. Me and You is a standard jazz track, and the album rounds off with a lyrical, Chopin-like piano and sax instrumental, one of those tunes which is moving for reasons that are beyond explanation

I think this would be a good CD to give to younger people who say they don’t like jazz, as a gentle introduction, as there are enough aspects to get their attention without pushing the jazz message too hard.  The album was released in the UK on 12^th November on Discovery Records.

Learn more at www.roosjonker.com.

Ann Alex