You should be able to trust the opinion of a man, who has not only shaped the world of Jazz on and off the stage but who has also, as a producer, propelled Michael Jackson “The King of Pop“ to fame. Quincy Jones says about Laura, “This young woman doesn‘t need to worry about her career, she is amazing and I am sure we will be hearing more from her in the future.“ When they met for the first time at the Stuttgart Jazz Open in 2017, what appeared to be a prophecy about the 21 year old singer Laura Kipp, has today been confirmed. She has launched her debut album “Quiet Land“ under the Label LAURA. This debut album is a showcase introducing us to her talents. Despite there being many excellent Jazz musicians out there today, who span a wide range of music genre and styles, it is rare and surprising to find such a charismatic and understated maturity beneath such refreshing youthfulness. She also expresses the freedom and complexity of Jazz together with the instant emotional power of Pop, Soul and Chanson.
The opposing elements that she draws on really create a certain tension while also blending them beautifully. As a hardened Jazz Critic who has heard and seen hundreds of singers over the years, it unfortunately becomes harder and harder to impress . However, Laura Kipp doesn‘t fail to impress from the outset. Despite her age she is so mature, well travelled and charismatic and this comes across in her voice. Her far reaching travels from her homeland in Swabia Germany to Paris, from New York to Los Angeles are also reflected in her broad range of styles, from brilliant songwriter ballads to punchy jazz vocalese, from soulful blues to string saturated glamorous Hollywood sounds . She has already internalised that unique power of jazz which she combines with her own individual expression together with collaborative creativity. She builds on this with an inner confidence in her wonderful voice, her songwriting as well as the combined skills of her band members, the arrangements of both her mentor and bassist Jens Loh along with the expertise of Cornelius Claudio Kreusch as the producer and distributer. The result is irresistible and rare in the German Jazz scene. Young jazz musicians can become obsessed with experimental style jazz but Laura has gone beyond this with what can only be described in the best sense of the term “old fashioned“ with a modern twist. It is simply pure musical pleasure for those who love a bit of sophistication.
More informations: https://www.glm.de/en/artists/laura/
Listen to the music: https://glmmusic.de/QuietLandWE
Video Little Stevie see here:
https://youtu.be/fgCdm57AldM?t=32
It’s amazing that no musician comes to mind right away who has already processed this image: The balcony as a creative culmination point, as a place of encounter, of exchange with familiar as well as new people, which at the same time “excites contradictory feelings,” as singer Laura puts it: “The feeling of being at home and the feeling of being exposed to the outside world. The feeling of freedom coupled with the feeling of being in a safe place.” A powerful metaphor for the mind of a musician. And a perfect anchor for an album: “Sunset Balcony” is the name of Laura’s new work, “created in her mind on balmy evenings on a sunset balcony, alone or with loved ones, thinking about our place in the world or even just what we want to cook for dinner,” as she reports.
