Laura Jurd's Dinosaur/Lab Trio @ the Lit and Phil - Nov.12

A Match and Fuse gig

Laura Jurd's Dinosaur: Laura Jurd (trumpet); Elliott Galvin (piano); Conor Chaplin (electric bass); Corrie Dick (drums).

Lab Trio: Bram de Looze (piano); Anneleen Boehme (double bass); Lander Gyselinck (drums).

(Review by Steve H/Photos courtesy of Ken Drew).

Laura Jurd has visited Tyneside several times in recent years and on Wednesday night she returned to the Lit and Phil with an original line up which had not previously played here before. The band rebranded as Dinosaur proved to be anything but extinct. The set started off safely and pleasantly with all 4 musicians demonstrating their considerable talents both collectively and individually. 

Laura then introduced a piece she had previously played in Newcastle with a string quartet whilst also explaining that Conor Chaplin’s electric bass had somehow got left behind, luckily local hero bass supremo Andy Champion was able to provide a suitable replacement.  

The rendition of Happy Sad Song proved to be one of the musical highlights of the year each member of the band reaching uncharted territory as the music swirled and soared gloriously throughout the auditorium. The playing seemed to move through all the different musical genres – classical, funk, free jazz, bebop and back again. Jurd’s use of electronics with the trumpet were marvellously innovative. At the end of the extended piece the audience were completely enthralled - the collective work of the quartet having inspired and moved everybody present.

Earlier in the evening, we were treated to a performance by Lab Trio. Previously my 3 favourite Belgians were Rene Magritte, Plastic Betrand and Tin Tin (given the nature of the blog we must also mention saxophone inventor Adolphe Sax), De Looze, Boehme and Gyselinck will now need to be added to this illustrious list. The trio, almost Jarrettesque in style, played a mixture of original and covers to great effect. Unfashionably communicative for a bass player, Boehme introduced band members and the tunes played. The range went from Bach to the theme from Twin Peaks . On their original composition Two Polar Bears, Boehme enhanced the instrumental with some atmospheric vocals. The final piece of the trio’s set took me a while to work out but it was a charming interpretation of 80’s pop legend Rick Astley’s Never Going to Give You Up.

Between the two sets, as is customary with Match and Fuse gigs, a combination of the bands merge together for a collective improvisation. On this particular evening we were entertained by a combination of Jurd and Dick from Dinosaur and Boehme and de Looze from Lab Trio.

Steve H.