Four

Various Artists - Magig Moments 10 "In The Spirit of Jazz"CD / digitalThe anniversary sampler Magic Moments 10 gives an insight into the current album releases from the ACT catalogue. 14 tracks, over 1 hour of the best jazz infotainment "in the spirit of jazz".Credits: Compilation by Siggi Loch Mastered by Klaus Scheuermann

Three Fall & Melane - FourCD / digital Sebastian Winne drums & percussion Til Schneider trombone Melane Nkounkolo vocals Lutz Streun bass clarinet & tenor sax Three plus one. With the arrival of vocalist Melane Nkounkolo, Three Fall have grown to four, and opened up new worlds of sound. When they were a trio, their blend of jazz, funk and hiphop already gave them considerable stylistic range and variety, but in this album, “Four”, their armoury of possibilities has been expanded and enriched with new elements: soul, reggae and Afrobeat. Three Fall had been a trio ever since their formation in 2008. Their unusual instrumentation, drums plus two blowing instruments – i.e. not following the convention of having either a bass or a harmony instrument – proved rapidly successful. Their 2011 ACT debut “On A Walkabout” had new instrumental versions of tunes by the Red Hot Chili Peppers, which the Peppers’ drummer Chad Smith has described as the best cover versions he has ever heard. It has now been four years since the release of the subsequent Three Fall album “Realize”. The lads have been travelling the world – just in the year of 2016 they performed in Egypt, Qatar, Japan and South Korea. And then they met Melane….“Ever since we worked with hiphop artist Promoe on one of the tracks on “On A Walkabout”, we had the idea of performing with a singer”, explains trombonist Til Schneider. “When happened to see Melane at a festival, I was blown away immediately. She can sing, dance and rap. Plus she has unbelievable charisma.” Melane Nkounkolo was born in Germany in 1986. Her parents had moved there from the Congo. Her childhood was shaped by Congolese music, notably the “King of rumba rock” Papa Wemba. “It was only later that I came into contact with other types of music”, says Melane. “So what I could do was to develop my own style, and one which can't be pinned down or categorized.” “Four” is also the fourth album by Three Fall. The singer’s velvety and limpid voice stands in contrast with the deliberately rough edges of the band. The forceful sound of the trio – its members alongside Schneider are drummer Sebastian Winne and saxophonist Lutz Streun – persists, but now there is also room for something much more gentle and soft. After a short intro, the album explodes into life with the funk-crossover track “Medium Rare”. This is the kind of number with which Three Fall & Melane could get any crowd rock festival swaying along to – and even without using an electric guitar. The tuneful “Tata Na Lola” has a line from Bob Marley’s “Three Little Birds“ dropped in at the end, sung in Melane’s natve language Lingala. The title of the track means “Father in Heaven”, and in this song Melane deals with the subject of her late father. “What this is about”, she says, “is that our life her on earth isn’t the end. Some day we are going to see each other again. The song was a source of strength for me, because I believe that our loved ones only cease to exist when we stop talking about them, thinking about them...and singing about them.” In “Elevation of Love” the band has covered a classic song of the Esbjörn Svensson Trio. Three Fall’s version of this brings out the group’s powerfully lyrical side. “Thank You” is a laid-back soul number propelled by its R&B feel, while “Silver & Gold”, infused with reggae and dub, opens up some very differet facets of the quartet. And then there is the most remarkable track on the album: Three Fall & Melane have transformed Ace of Base’s pop hit “All That She Wants” from 1992 into an out-of-this world Afro-soul spectacular. The mood shifts in the chorus, when foot-tapping reggae grooves send the song in the direction of the dance floor. It’s an unforgettable version which is bound to lift spirits at many a late summer party. On “People” things get more political. Melane takes a stance on the refugee issue, reflections which are conditioned by her personal experience: her brother had to flee during the civil war, but was also deported from Germany. "It is a symbolic song which represents the fates of many people. Nobody leaves their home country voluntarily, and I know many people to whom similar things happened. Writing songs is always also a safety valve, a means by which I can talk about issues such as racism which are everywhere in society." Within a very short space of time, a deep friendship between the three original Three Fall members and Melane has emerged. “Four” reflects the contrasting personalities of the four musicians. This album is an explosive, lyrical, soulful and danceable journey. City of origin: Cologne and Berlin. Destination: Anywhere.Credits: Music composed by Til Schneider, except otherwise noted Lyrics written by Melane Nkounkolo, except 12 All harmonies of the wind instruments were generated in real time Produced by the artists Recorded by Wolfgang Stach at Maarweg Studio 2 &Til Schneider at Tailormade Studio, February 2017 Mixed by Til Schneider & mastered by Klaus Scheuermann

Three Fall - Realize!CD / digital Lutz Streun tenor saxophone, bass clarinet Til Schneider trombone Sebastian Winne drums & percussion Young German jazz is in a very healthy state, and of the most extraordinary examples is the trio Three Fall. They caused a furore with debut album “On a Walkabout”, and Trombone Shorty, who the trio supported on his German tour, found them "unique". The Westdeutsche Zeitung newspaper called them "refreshingly different" and the Heilbronner Stimme discovered in them "programme music for people who don't believe in boundaries". Lutz Streun (Saxophone & bass clarinet), Til Schneider (Trombone) and Sebastian Winne (Drums) are now adding more fuel to the fire with their second album, “Realize!”. "As soon as we've released an album we start looking forwards again and write new pieces," says Lutz Streun, "The freshness of our music is really important to us. That's why we immediately had new ideas after 'On a Walkabout'. This time we tried the pieces out live as well, and gave ourselves plenty of time. Three Fall is its own little cosmos, alone because of the unusual line-up. We want to always keep further developing our sound, and that's why we also worked with electronic effects this time." Once again the trio includes a mix original compositions with interpretations of rock and pop material. On the debut album they only covered Red Hot Chili Pepper songs, however this latest record includes tracks by Rage Against The Machine ("Killing In The Name"), Nirvana ("Lithium") and Coldplay ("The Scientist"). Three Fall succeeds in integrating all three covers into the album, though "Killing In The Name" made its way into the Three Fall repertoire in a very unusual way: "A couple wanted to book us for their wedding, which is strange enough, because we are not a gala band," Lutz Streun recounts. "And then they really wanted us to play this Rage Against The Machine song. And since we like it as well, we thought it would be fun.” "Lithium" is off the Nirvana classic "Nevermind" and "The Scientist" is a piano ballad from the early days of the British band Coldplay, with a much-sampled and unforgettable riff. "The album definitely needed a beautiful, warm ballad," says Lutz Streun. Despite the presence of these covers, Three Fall’s own compositions still hold their own, ranging from the African-influenced "Chapa Chapa Maputo" to the striking rhythms of "Bata" and the hypnotically booming "Stein". The cool melody in "Endless" could be from Paul Desmond, and the electronic effects are unpretentious and blend seamlessly into the fabric of the song. Sebastian Winne's mastery of his kit means you never miss a bass. Lutz Streun and Til Schneider spur each other on with succinct melody abbreviations and mighty wind riffs. They entwine each other and toss the ball back and forth. It soon becomes irrelevant whether the foundation is in hip hop, rock, world music or reggae, because what Three Fall take from jazz is most of all the freedom to do what they like. Three Fall have made waves almost all around the globe. After a China tour last year and a Russia tour this, they have now given young German jazz a face internationally as well. "The cities in China vary greatly," says Lutz Streun, "as do the audiences. But you can see that music is a universal language. We were especially touched by the enthusiastic reactions in the south of China." With their second album “Realize!” Three Fall now give their fans something new to enjoy. Nobody else plays like Three Fall, not because they want to be different, but because they are.Credits: Produced by Marco Ostrowski Recorded February 27 & 28, 2013 at Realistic Sound Studio Munich by Florian H. Oestreicher Mixed by Florian H. Oestreicher Mastered by Klaus Scheuermann

Three Fall blends jazz, hip-hop, world music, and funk with saxophone, trombone, and drums. A unique sound without bass and chord instruments.