Andrea Fascetti
“Dedicated to Steve”
www.andreafascetti.comItalian 7-string bassist Andrea Fascetti has really impressed me here!  If I had never looked at the liner notes, I would not have guessed that Andrea was a bassist, actually.  His tone is that of a thick hollow body guitar expertly recorded.  It really does come across as an exceptional jazz quartet.Honestly, I wasn’t sure what to expect, but the music here is just wonderful and swings hard, the band is very musical and the performances are superb.  Andrea is effectively covering the role of guitarist here, as he leaves the bass duties to Riccardo Fioravanti on upright.  Although, more accurately, Andrea is primarily in the role of playing the melodies and electric bass solos (he leaves some for Riccardo, who does a wonderful job).  As you may have guessed from the title, the album is dedicated to Steve Swallow who is an obvious influence in Andrea’s compositions here.  5 of the 11 tracks are original compositions of Andrea and the rest are Swallow tunes, although you wouldn’t really know the difference as the whole album is really very cohesive and the writing is just plain strong across the board (which says a LOT for Andrea!).

Those looking for bass gymnastics and heroics may be disappointed but anyone looking for a great jazz quartet playing thoughtful and creative music should find plenty to love here.