Teis Semey - Mean Mean Machine (2021)

Amsterdam-based Danish guitarist Teis Semey returns this November with Mean Mean Machine, his third album in just three years. Lauded and awarded for his experimental approach, the album is an attempt to fuse the punk and free jazz that he buried himself in during lockdown, with the Scandinavian songs of his childhood, found in a book his grandmother left to him when she passed away.

The result is 7 tracks of guitar-fuelled, nearly-danceable jazz with a finger on the pulse and a fist in the air. A flaming response to the critical state of the world and an homage to the extreme beauty that still exists.

It’s no surprise that Semey often refers to the quinet as his family: whilst hailing from 5 different countries, they have forged a close relationship together on the hotly-tipped Dutch jazz scene over the last years.

Interestingly, all five are bandleaders in their own right, bringing a deep understanding of what it takes to turn melodies and chords into a unique and happening set of music.

“My ideal is a leaderless sound. Everybody knows all the parts. That is also the way we rehearse. Anyone can start anything at any given moment. That results in a lot of unleashed creativity.”

Whilst his music has been labelled as avant-garde in the past, he is keen to unite both uncompromising musical concepts with an awareness of the audience.

Tracklist:

1. Sun Song
2. A Strange Absence of Birds
3. Bamboo Eyes
4. Requiem
5. Monday in Turqouise
6. Glue or The Eternal Struggle of Beauty
7. Tragedie