Home » Jazz Articles » Album Review » Tomasz D?browski FREE4ARTS: When I Come Across

Tomasz D?browski FREE4ARTS: When I Come Across

By Troy Dostert
February 1, 2020
View read count

Tomasz D?browski FREE4ARTS: When I Come Across

A musician who has frequently changed creative directions, trumpeter

Tomasz Dabrowski

trumpet
b.1984

" data-original-title="" title="">Tomasz Dabrowski takes yet another uncharted path with his latest FREE4ARTS album, When I Come Across. With erstwhile pianist

Jacob Anderskov

piano

" data-original-title="" title="">Jacob Anderskov moving aside for guitarist Simon Krebs, this version of the band now possesses a grittier, rock-inflected sound. With frequent Dabrowski colleague

" data-original-title="" title="">Sven Dam Meinild switching from alto to baritone sax, unique sonorities become possible as well, resulting in music with a subtle beauty in the midst of its edgy grooves.

The ruminative opener, "HBP," offers insinuating, wistful harmonies from Dabrowski and Meinild, while Krebs' gentle guitar accompaniment coaxes them along and drummer

Kasper Tom

drums

" data-original-title="" title="">Kasper Tom floats by with brushes, only picking up the intensity by the end of the track with a more strident rock rhythm as Krebs lets loose and the group signals what is to come. "Pegleg" continues in this vein, with the band's prog-rock leanings surfacing decisively, as Krebs' menacing chords punch forward in tension with the off-kilter rhythmic foundation of the track. Much of the album has this characteristic, with a slightly de-centered familiarity which gives the music its engaging, but somewhat disorienting quality, as each track leaves room for departures and uncertainties.

Dabrowski's lyricism is another key trait, with melodies that don't so much jump out at the listener as much as burrow into the subconscious, teased out through the empathetic interactions between horns and guitar. Amidst the thicket of rhythmic twists and turns, recognizable motifs will come into focus, even if they are occasionally submerged beneath collective abstraction, as on "I Have No Idea," where a semi-cacophony breaks out midway through, only to recede as another theme re-emerges toward the track's close. "When You Get to Actual Playing" does take a while to develop, but it too occupies that space between tunefulness and indirection, as a low-key exchange of ideas between Dabrowski, Meinild and Krebs keeps the track in a pensive vein.

But there is nothing pensive about the album's closer, "When I Come Across," as Krebs' acidic guitar lines propel the music toward its cathartic finale. With just a guitar-drum duo to start the track, Tom stays in sync with Krebs' lurchings before Dabrowski and Meinild jump into the mix, Dabrowski's own trumpet blasts eventually descending into noise before the piece finds its convincing resolution in a burst of rock intensity.

It is a near certainty that Dabrowski will have more surprises in store for the near future but, meanwhile, this is a fine finish to his prolific 2019 output.

Learn more about our star rating system

Track Listing

HBP; Pegleg; I Have No Idea; Stand Alone Objects; When You Get to Actual Playing; Pulse For Me; When I Come Across.

Personnel

Tomasz Dabrowski

trumpet

Sven Dam Meinild

saxophone

Simon Krebs

guitar

Kasper Tom

drums

Album information

Title: When I Come Across | Year Released: 2019 | Record Label: Audio Cave

PREVIOUS / NEXT

8: Kindred Spirits (Live at The Lobe...
< Previous

In the Arctic Dreamtime
Next >

Support All About Jazz

All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.