Gilad Atzmon - Refuge - 5 stars

Saw Gilad at the first gig of his new tour at the Brighton Jazz Club last week. He uses a lot of electronics for this album and it sounds great. He had some problems getting the sound right due to an horrendous crackling noise which resulted in a near riot and him finishing the first set acoustically. He was not phased at all (I would have died). It made me realise just how much mental energy and confidence he has. Have three of his previous albums and don't really listen to them much. Bought the latest album - Refuge - on the strengths of the gig. Refuge is due to be issued on 1 October. Gilad was saying that he thinks this is his best album to date. I have to agree. By a long mile. It really is up there with the best contemporary jazz. Great tunes, some fantastic soloing and really good arrangements and great band. Am playing constantly at the moment. This one gets 5 stars from me. Buy the CD here http://www.gilad.co.uk/