MEMORIES - Review

Krzysia Górniak’s new album!
Pat Metheny is thrilled by her music.

Author: Piotr Iwicki  |  Source: www.codzienna.net

A girl with a guitar is nothing surprising today. But a girl with a guitar who plays jazz on a world-class level, that’s something! Krzysia Górniak, as we’re talking about her, has just released her new album “Memories”. It’s magnificent!

Reading various publications and more or less in-depth reviews of this album, I get the impression that the journalists want to label the artist at all costs, “put in the shoes” of one or another convention: from Pat Metheny to John Abercrombie. But in my opinion the strength of Krzysia Górniak‘s guitar playing is the complete inability to pigeonhole her. Naturally, an acoustic guitar treated like a typical acoustic instrument, supported only by pickups instead of a microphone (as in the case of an acoustic guitar), will always bring associations with one or another six string jazz giant, but the similarity of timbre and sound is one thing, and style is something else. Following the lead of pushing Krzysia into some kind of framework, it should be said that “Sweet Almonds”, due to playing and singing in unison is a reference to George Benson or Kevin Eubanks, because that’s their style. It’s just that they do it differently. Following this trail to a dead end, basically everyone is Wes Montgomery, because he plays the guitar. Joe Pass, John Scofield and Jimi Hendrix as well. But jokes aside.

“Memories” is a record caressed, cuddled and pampered and it’s clearly audible. It’s not playing “about nothing”: a theme, improvisation, a coda and off for the payroll. It’s music with a capital M.

This album is one great dedication to the artist’s loved ones as an impression and experience of notes and sounds, in travel, in the taste of coffee and friendly conversations, including one dedicated to the late drummer Grześ Grzyb titled “Touch of Your Soul”. It is also, as she said in an interview for Jazz Forum magazine, the unity of music with feminine subtlety.

This album also proves the significance of competence selection, how important it is to match musicians to your puzzle, the final effect of which is a disc with music enchanted in digital beats.

All musicians accompanying Krzysia climb to the top of their skills. They are: Michał Wróblewski – piano, keyboards; Piotr Wrombel – piano, keyboards; Michał Jaros – double bass and Marcin Jahr – drums. Especially the latter two significantly determine the final effect of the album. You can say that they form a conglomerate with the leader resulting from an almost empathic communication above the notes.

“The fragility of fate is part of life and the more we are aware of the inevitability of transience, the more we appreciate the time that remains.” Krzysia writes on the cover and it is not so much a motto, but a kind of warning, something that lights up in us is a light that says that nothing is eternal, nothing is given forever.

In a way, Krzysia Górniak follows the path that Adam Bałdych followed. They both once strongly supported electronics until one day they disconnect the current and entered the world of sounds much closer to nature. Electricity is used only to transfer the waves generated by the metal strings to our ears.

The artist’s eighth album is a continuation, because it does not come out of nowhere, out of the blue, but reveals that this jazzwoman is on a continuous climb to the Mt Everest of jazz. Compositions like the one dedicated to Grzyb are something that only a few in musicians will come close to. And you don’t have to judge it solely in jazz terms, but even in music in general, without dividing into genres and styles. Similarly, like the tune “Travel”, vibrating and full of emotions.

“Memories” is a flawless album, addictive as a good book or movie. For me, all the more important that when I first heard Krzysia Górniak many years ago, I noticed something that makes you focus exclusively on her. This was also noticed by Pat Metheny, who more than 20 years ago said about her playing:

„I’ve been listening to your CD (“Tales”) and you all sound really good on there! Nice blend between you and I think that it is great that you seem to be working hard on trying to get your own group sound and concept happening!” 

Today, he would probably say much more and even more enthusiastically. To sum up, this album is an absolute must.

 – Piotr Iwicki