| With their second release, Unfocused Welcomes, the | | | | sleeves and sending out a welcome message to their |
| Saxopaths have ventured down a new road and | | | | guest musicians in their improvisation style - four guys |
| brought along some guest musicians to share in their | | | | and four saxophones with each taking their turn for a |
| eclectic saxophone sound. | | | | solo. Memories of Tilo introduces their first guest |
| Unfocused Welcomes: Unfocused Welcomes, | | | | musician, Pierre Dørge on electric guitar, and his |
| Memories of Tilo, Stumble Dance for Nimble Feet, Stille | | | | haunting guitar licks are in harmony with the layered |
| Hjerte, Sol går ned (Quiet Heart Sun Sets), Bob | | | | sound of the saxophones; the quartet slows it down |
| Jackson Hard Work No Pay, Ausencia, Consolation, | | | | from their feverish pace of the opening track to |
| Shout, Adios, Godnot (Good Night) | | | | produce a melancholy sound. |
| Personnel: Kristoffer J. Rosing-Schow: Soprano and | | | | Stumble Dance for Nimble Feet has Marilyn Mazur on |
| Alto Saxophone; Anders Banke: Tenor Saxophone; | | | | percussion keeping a sassy baseline in complement to |
| Niels Oldin: Baritone Saxophone; Bob Jackson: Alto | | | | the boys. The Danish track Stille Hjerte, Sol går |
| Saxophone; Katrine Krog Russo: Vocals; Pierre | | | | ned (Quiet Heart, Sun Sets) had arranger Kristoffer J. |
| Dørge: Electric Guitar; Marilyn Mazur: Percussion; | | | | Rosing-Schow suddenly feeling like he needed to add |
| Bo Stief: Electric Bass; Members of the Sokkelund | | | | 6 vocals in the middle of the song so he called the |
| Choir (Elizabeth Schwartz, Cecilie Rosenmeier, | | | | singers from the Sokkelund Choir to assist him, and the |
| Henriette Kirkeby, Sophie Mueller, Jakob Soelberg, and | | | | resultant choral sound is exceptional. Bob Jackson |
| Claus Ravn); Peter Bruun: Drums; Thommy Andersson: | | | | Hard Work No Pay is a playful track and has the |
| Double Bass; Paolo Russo: Bandoneon, Vocals | | | | quartet and drums sauntering their way through this |
| Unfocused Welcomes was released under the | | | | song with a carefree and whimsical style. Ausencia |
| CDJazz label and is the second release from the | | | | has a tango overtone that is produced via the |
| 14-year-old Danish saxophone quartet Saxopaths. | | | | saxophone and the band calls it gothic tango. |
| When I heard that the Saxopaths had a second | | | | Consolation is a ballad of over 8 minutes taking the |
| release I was excited to hear what this innovative and | | | | listener on a series of interludes and changes with the |
| cutting edge quartet had been up to. | | | | addition of drums and double bass to hold down the |
| On their first release I was quite taken to hear four | | | | baseline of the story. |
| saxophones cutting through chords and riffs to create | | | | Other tracks of note are Shout (a rowdy fanciful blues |
| a compelling sound. Unfocused Welcome is a step in a | | | | track), Adios introducing us to the bandoneon (a free |
| different direction for the quartet as they infuse their | | | | reed instrument) that is popular in Argentina to produce |
| sound with guest musicians. The opening and title track | | | | the Tango sound, and closes with a lullaby style in |
| Unfocused Welcomes has the quartet rolling up their | | | | GodNot (Good Night). |