On the heels of their first album, Jazz, which received great reviews in major magazines all around the world, Hipnosis has released Carrousel. There is a reason why they received many good reviews.
Carrousel is a throw back to 1960s jazz. There is groove jazz, modal jazz and also free jazz inspired by that rich period. This album swings.
Track one, "Carrousel," is a song sung by Merit Ostermann. If you get a chance to check out the lyric sheet, you will see that there a lot of lyrics and lines jammed into this one and she pulls it off so well. Track three, "Nova Express," features Gerhard Gschlossi on trombone, which he sails through with ease. Martin Kolb highlights this with his drum playing, which again is a throw back to the 60s. The song "Soul Search" is an outlet from acoustic bass player Jerker Kluge to show his chops. It also has a ‘Miles’ build up half way throughout. Ostermann returns with "Springs Seems To Be A Little Colder." This is a love song about well love spring.
It is nice to hear an album that is a time warp back to the 1960s. This German band has it so nailed down. There songs are tight and well thought out. Combined with vocal contributions of Ostermann, these players should gain worldwide recognition soon.
