Portico Quartet
Post jazz playing indie band
Portico Quartet describe themselves as a „post jazz“ playing indie-band, of which their line up of drums, bass and saxophone would seem somewhat normal, were it not for the Hang, an innovative, fascinating instrument from Switzerland who’s sound reminds you of Asia. The good looking, cool Nick Mulvey, actually an African-music-admiring guitarist and singer, discovered it years ago at the Womad Festival and integrated it into the jazz context.
And it was clearly a success, as the debut album of Portico Quartet “Knee Deep in the North Sea” was short-listed for the Mercury Prize, one of the most important British music awards. The second album “Isla” that came out in the UK in October will be released also all over the European continent in mid February under Peter Gabriel’s label Real World Records.
It only takes a quick glance at the press quotes from Portico Quartet’s new album reviews to predict that these four young musicians from London will soon become one of the hippest new jazz bands around. Their music is on the one hand light, catchy and makes you want to dance, yet on the other, highly emotional, completely mesmerising and full of energy. It is like nothing you’ve ever heard before.
In fact the simple ‘constraints’ of Portico Quartet’s unusual line-up have proved to be a gateway to a world of musical possibilities that makes them sound like no one else around, like World music from another planet. Yet there’s nothing alien about their music: the four principal voices – saxes, bass, drums and hang – communicate with the intensity of a string quartet, the ease of a jam session and the youthful glee of a pop group.
The complete line-up of the band is Duncan Bellamy (drums), Milo Fitzpatrick (double bass), Nick Mulvey (hang and percussion) and Jack Wyllie (soprano, tenor saxophones and electronics).
