Turkish-born guitarist/composer Sinan Bakir makes a strong
debut as a
leader with the self-released On My Way, an inventive guitar-
trio outing with
bassist Thomson Kneeland and drummer Mark Ferber. As
the title suggests,
the Hartford, Connecticut-based musician shows he is
definitely on his way
to becoming a creative voice in the world of jazz guitar.
Bakir moves easily from a classic Kenny Burrell-style,
especially on chord
melody passages (title track and Steps), to a more modern,
linear approach
in the mold of John Scofield (Stop n' Go, Karma). The
guitarist effectively
mixes bebop lines with chromatic trills, relying heavily on
guitaristic
hammer-ons and pull-offs, to create a unique voice void of
direct imitation.
The full effect of Bakir's approach can be felt on the dirge-like
ballad
Evergreen. Kneeland, with his deep-in-the-wood tone, cuts
through the
harmonically-rich ballad Ice Orbits with an inventive solo
turn. The bassist
then displays even more technical brilliance on the Latin-
tinged Steps,
paving the way for one of Bakir's more inspired improvised
journeys from the
session the up-tempo Play. The disc as a whole benefits
from Kneeland
being featured prominently. Ferber's sensitive drumming
provides the right
amount of dynamic push the proceedings, elevating piece to a
high level of
musicality.
John Vincent Barron - Jazz Review.com
A lot of young artists seem to throw out hard and fast material
at the top of
their album programs, to instantly grab attention, but the rest
of the music
often falls flat and doesn't live up to the early-track hype.
Guitarist Sinan
Bakir goes the other way, easing into his music as On My
Way sets sail,
preferring to hold all the aces until later in the game. The title
track and, to a
greater extent, Into The Blue are musically expressive and
performed well,
but don't really demand attention. While Bakir, bassist
Thomson Kneeland and
drummer Mark Ferber seem to be more than comfortable in
this modest
musical area, the music doesn't stay there and the album
really starts to take
off with Oddity. Opening as a Ferber-feature that highlights
his tom work,
Bakir and Kneeland give off a darker vibe when they first join
in. Ferber cranks
up the intensity as he develops his ideas, and eventually ends
up with a more
insistent feel, driven by his cymbal work. Stop N' Go starts
off with a three-
chord pattern from Bakir, while Ferber works a funk-tinged
rock beat as Bakir
solos, with a similarly inclined, repetitious line from Kneeland.
Ferber blows
off some steam with an impressive solo of his own, and the
band chills out
after this one, delivering the mellow ballad, Ice Orbits. While
Steps falls
into a similar category as the opening tracks, its featherweight
Latin
underpinnings differentiate it. Play!, the penultimate
performance on the
album, is a more overt expression ofBakir's Latin roots, and
the Samba-fun(k)
from Ferber and Kneeland is fantastic. Bakir's inspired soloing
feeds off of the
energy coming from his trio mates, with lines possessing
laser-like focus. The
material leading up to Play! is equally impressive. The spirit
of guitarist John
Scofield looms large over Bakir's playing, in particular on
Blues for Istanbul
and Karma, where the entire trio seems to relish the
opportunity to cut
loose, the music resonating with a great sense of urgency.
Kneeland's delivers
his strongest solo the album, as he flies through the music
with impassioned
technique and energy. Blues For Istanbul has a cooler
demeanor in its DNA,
but happens to have one of the hippest feels of any tracks on
the album. This
trio outing certainly demonstrates that Sinan Bakir is, indeed,
on his way.
Dan Bilawsky - All About Jazz
These pieces are not just vamps waiting for long solos;
instead, many of the
songs have strong melodic lines that open up logically for the
various solos.
Oddity displays a Middle-Eastern feel in the rhythms and
ringing guitar
chords; Bakir's stinging phrases gallop atop Ferber's exciting
drum work and
Kneeland's rich bass tones. Stop & Go has a rockish feel,
thanks to the
pounding drums and thumping bass lines. Bakir digs in on this
track and one
can hear the influence of Allan Holdsworth, not so much for
blazing fast riffs
but in the textures of the guitar sound. Without a second lead
instrument,
Bakir alternates between single-note lines and chordal
strumming. Steps is a
good example of how he allows the melody to dictate the
pace, giving room
to Kneeland for a short, melodic, solo before digging in to a
thoughtful guitar
spot. Other highlights include the title track that opens the
program. The
guitarist's sound is quite clear allowing the trills and little
circular riffs to
stand out on a piece that is somewhat introspective. Play! is
another hot
track, with a rhythm line that, at times, sounds like Juan
Tizol's Caravan.
Kneeland's bouncing bass phrases atop Ferber's strutting
drums gives the
guitarist the impetus to let rip.
On My Way is a solid debut. It's easy to put this music on
and just let it play.
One can hear the influences of Holdsworth, John Scofield and
Bill Frisell but
Bakir is no imitator. The voice of the guitar one hears on the
opening cut
never wavers or falters throughout. The rhythm section is
impressive in their
support and creativity. Sinan Bakir is a good young composer
and player
worth your attention.
Richard Kamins - Hartford Courant
Young Sinan Bakir shows a maturity well beyond his
youthful appearance. The young man favors a clean tone and
assured, John
Scofield-like approach. Backed by bassist Thomas Kneeland
and drummer
Mark Ferber, the guitarist starts off with two nicely paced mid
tempo numbers
before things really kick into high gear on the sinewy Oddity
and rocking
Stop N' Go. Bakir calls upon some of his heritage in some
moments on his
solos which exhibit a bit of Middle-Eastern influence. Ice
Orbits is cool and
subtle, while Karma is high-stepping fun. Blues for Istanbul
combines
Turkish directions with the blues, while Play! has an
engaging Latin touch
that is delivered with jubilant energy by the trio. A nice mixture
of slower-
paced and faster material, played well. Bakir does indeed
seem to be a young
musician on his way and I will be interested to see where he
takes his talent
next.
Brad Walseth - JazzChicago.net
Music has a formula: Understanding theory, originality, natural
talent, the
right chemistry, discipline and focus, incorporate your own
influences,
understand the business side, and most importantly, music
continues to grow
inside you for the rest of your life.
Sinan Bakir has accomplished and understands all of the
above with his (self
released) debut LP On My Way His well matched trio
including the extremely
talented Thomas Kneeland on acoustic bass and the
magnificent drummer
Mark Ferber, have presented us with something new,
different and fresh. Jazz
has evolved yet again with this new alternative. Lend an ear,
it's not your
parents/grandparents music anymore. If you haven't
discovered Jazz yet, now
is the opportune time to do so. Jazz has a new vehicle with
Sinan Bakir at the
helm and this generation can claim him as one of their own.
Debut LP On My Way .
Stop and Go has a delicious vibe with an example of what a
perfect trio
should sound like. Listen for the drum solo.
Ice Orbitswww.myspace.com/sinanbakir has a sweet lazy
day feel with
layers of emotional complexities yawning and spreading it's
wings.
Evergreen Is truly a lovely piece from start to finish with an
epic bass solo.
Lucia Sanchez - Examiner
Sinan has introduced himself as a talented author, and his
performing views
accepts a modern tendencies. His themes were done in one
interesting
performing mood, where influences comes out from the 50's,
and reachs
actuelle period. His guitar technique is in many aspects
unique, but offering
arrangments has something taken from Metheny/Scofield
approaches. His
performing energy is also specific, and in interesting way he
treats often
rhythm changes in present album themes. On My Way is
highly
recomandable product, and realistically announce Sinan' s
arrival on modern
jazz scene.
Branimir Lokner - Music Editor and Reviewer
Any jazz afficianado will love this hot debut from guitarist
Sinan Bakir, who
has been making a name for
himself, playing around the tri-state area these past couple of
years. This is
an album you can really
sink your teeth into, delving into the many delights of Bakir's
pure guitar
sounds, (no pedals please),
his passages are well thought out and devoid of any guitar
shredding so
endemic in todays music be it
jazz or rock. Bakir wears his influences proudly and I hear the
echo's of the
greats like Wes
Montgomery, Les Paul, Pat Metheny, John Scofield et al.
Recorded in a one day
session, in a re-
furbished studio that was once an old church, Bakir and his
two seasoned
New York studio veterans on
acoustic bass and drums have made an album that could
have been recorded
50 years ago but could
also have been made today and will still sound great 30 years
from now..You
couldn't get a higher
compliment.
Joe Sciortino - Amazon reviewer
Live Gig Review
Bakir appears to have a strong grounding in jazz sub-genres,
as well as
classical and pop music. However, his own style might be
best described as
post-fusion, similar in concept to that of guitarist Kurt
Rosenwinkel. Both
men came of age after the original jazz-rock fusion era had
crested, yet their
music synthesizes rock and jazz elements with more ease
and fluency than
did the originators of fusion during the late 1960s and early
1970s.
Stop 'n' Go, the second tune of Saturday's performance,
displayed this
seamless marriage of funk, rock and jazz influences, Byrd's
keyboard work
recalling the impassioned sounds of Herbie Hancock and
Chick Coreain their
electric prime. Bakir's solo paid homage to John McLaughlin's
Mahavishnu
days while also sounding very contemporary - and
considerably more
restrained in tone. The guitarist and keyboardist brought the
piece to a climax
when their comping during the tail end of Brown's solo grew
into a fast,
furious and fun-filled improvisatory dialogue.
Much later, Oddity explored equally fulfilling possibilities
through the
intersection of jazz, rock and Latin musical styles. Bilello's fine
mallet work
introduced this piece before Bakir took off on one of his most
inspired
fingerpicking excursions of the night. His clean, crisp attack
revealed an
impressive technique, honed no doubt during his residency at
the Hartford
Conservatory, where he studied on scholarship after arriving
in the U.S. nine
years ago
Chuck Obuchowski - Hartford Courant
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