The quintet of young saxophonist and composer Loek van den Berg (b. 1996) first took to the stage in 2019, then played at festivals and went on tours that took the five artists as far away as Spain, Malta, Turkey and India. The group’s debut album Wayfarer also boosted their career in 2022: the title track was voted Best Composition at the Dutch Jazz Competition and the album won an Edison Jazz Award. A good incentive to release a follow-up, which turned out to be the album Seafarer, recorded with the same lineup: Nathan Surquin (trombone), Aseo Friesacher (piano and vocals), Cas Jiskoot (bass) and Martin Hafizi (drums). The music is closely related to that on Wayfarer, with an eclectic character that is highly evocative. Melody, virtuosity and interplay fuse together to create hypnotic music. The layered, melancholic, narrative compositions take us on a journey filled with imagery.
