Newcastle Jazz Festival: Ben Shankland Trio + Amy Thatcher & Fran Knowles @ The Globe - Aug. 16

(© Malcolm Sinclair)

Ben Shankland (keyboards); Ewan Hastie (double bass); Chun-Wei Kang (drums)

Pianist Ben Shankland is an emerging force in Scotland and on the wider jazz scene. In 2022 bassist Ewan Hastie was crowned BBC Young Jazz Musician of the Year, and Chun-Wei Kang is a drummer we're all going to be hearing a lot more of. As the trio ambled onto stage, many of the Globe's row upon row of seats were occupied. Clearly word had got round, this was one of the hot tickets at this year's Newcastle Jazz Festival. 

(© Malcolm Sinclair)

Young and prodigiously talented, that's all three of them. Much of the trio's set would comprise Shankland's original compositions alongside one or two standards for good measure. At all of nineteen, Royal Birmingham Conservatoire student Shankland is in possession of a formidable technique. A torrent of notes, ideas pouring forth, swinging like the clappers, how can one so young assimilate seemingly the entire history of jazz piano, not to mention having more than a passing acquaintance with the classical repertoire? Amazing, simply amazing! 

(© Malcolm Sinclair)

Hastie's technique was something to behold, secure isn't the word! Kang's strong rhythmic sense allied to faultless use of brushes and sticks encouraged Shankland to stretch out and stretch out he did. As gigs go this one rates very highly. At the year's end when the 'Gig of the Year' lists are drawn up the Ben Shankland Trio at the 2023 Newcastle Jazz Festival cannot be other than a serious contender.         

Amy Thatcher (accordion, keys, vocals); Fran Knowles (drums, keys)

(© Malcolm Sinclair)

Earlier, Tyneside-based duo Amy Thatcher and Fran Knowles opened the 2023 Newcastle Jazz Festival. Hearing an accordion-drums duo isn't an everyday occurrence. Catching a recent performance by Thatcher and Knowles at Newcastle Arts Centre encouraged your reviewer to bag a front row seat here on Railway Street. Opening with This Town is Big Enough for the Both of Us, we were listening to a heady brew of folk melody, drum 'n' bass-inspired riffs, quirky, off-centre beats and no little humour. A set of three quarters of an hour featured material from the duo's album Emergency of the Female Kind.

Accordionist Thatcher handled the majority of the announcements, the interplay between the two musicians seemingly telepathic, Knowles' eyes on Thatcher's every move. Titles such as Anyway, Back to Me and Power to the Loser suggest Thatcher and Knowles don't take themselves too seriously although the content, not least lyrically, points to a keen observational eye/ear. A good start to the NJF 2023. Russell