#3tm

3TM at Bar Ö Turku Finland 30.10.2021

3TM at We Jazz Odysseus Festival 2021 on Lonna Island

Vinyl Corner is a feature where we take a look at vinyl pressings of various albums and weigh them up to see just how good they sound, how well they're pressed and what sort of packaging to expect - as well as giving a brief overview of the music itself. This time we're rating a recent release from a long-time Vinyl Corner favourite: We Jazz records. The Music: Scandinavia has been a hotbed of jazz innovation for longer than most of its current players have been alive and even now - at a time when many would report the genre as having a faint pulse at best - it's a region of the world that continues to produce fresh and inventive music in the style. Helsinki's We Jazz records have been an important component for this recent resurgence and here at Vinyl Corner we've written about practically every title they've released over the last couple of years. Of all the artists on the We Jazz roster, it's drummer, bandleader and composer Teppo Mäkynen who has proven to be particularly prolific of late. He released a pair of records in 2019: a collaborative LP with Timo Lassy and an ambient side-project entitled Abyss. That latter album was billed as a prelude to this new 2020 effort, entitled 'Lake'. It's perhaps his strongest effort yet - and certainly one that finds him successfully building upon the style established with last year's disparate yet subtly connected works. As leader of trio 3TM, Mäkynen wrote and produced the entirety of this hypnotic, understated effort, performing it alongside saxophonist Jussi Kannaste and bassist AnttiLötjönen. These are sultry, subtle pieces that shine through the group's economic yet effective use of melodic accenting; this understated grace makes for an affecting listen, free of flashy showmanship or honking melodrama. If 'Lake' might prove too slow-burning to initially stun, then repeat listens reveal a beautifully evocative, atmospheric effort performed with a deft hand from all involved. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WmESo9uEF-E The Pressing: Consistency is a strong point for We Jazz records and this applies to their vinyl pressings as much as the music they release. 'Lake' is no exception to this rule, which is fortunate - if unsurprising - considering that this a work of such subtlety that any excess of surface noise would considerably mar the listening experience. Surfaces are clean throughout with a low noise floor and tidy sound boasting well-cut, clear audio and solid clarity. There are a few instances of light background crackle now and then but nothing that we found to be at all intrusive upon 'Lake's singular, arresting mood. The record itself is roughly mid-weight black wax with clean surfaces free of visual imperfection. There is also a white vinyl edition available for the coloured-wax hounds and collectors out there and it should, at least theoretically, sound as good as the black vinyl edition.  It should also be mentioned that there's a double LP version of the album available which bundles this title with its prelude and sibling album 'Abyss'. The Packaging: As with the aforementioned 'Abyss', 'Lake' is presented with a minimalistic art direction that suits the swirling mystery of the music to a tee. Packaged in a standard-width non-gatefold sleeve, the cover is manufactured from roughly mid-weight card stock. It isn't the heaviest-duty cover we've ever seen but it's certainly solid enough and the textured finish adds a pleasing extra dimension to the presentation. Curiously, there's no text printed onto the spine. While that decision may have been taken as an attempt to leave the minimalist art direction uninterrupted, it does result in an album that's likely to be difficult to find on a packed shelf of albums. The record is found in a printed paper inner sleeve that bears a photograph, credits and an essay by Mäkynen reproduced in both Finnish and English. While this is a welcome inclusion from an aesthetic perspective, caution is advised when removing the record as these paper inner sleeve can scuff vinyl if removed improperly. Final Thoughts: This is another great title from We Jazz. Fans of Mäkynen's previous work will doubtless be interested to hear the direction he and the rest of 3TM have taken here, and the vinyl release is also of impressive quality. Enjoyed this feature? We're always looking for further albums to highlight on Vinyl Corner - and if you have a vinyl release that you'd love to see written about here, please get in touch at [email protected] - it would be great to hear from you! Read the full article

Lake’ is the follow up to award-winning Teppo Mäkynen’s 3TM debut album ‘Form’. A forward-thinking project bringing together inspiration from acoustic jazz and abstract electronic music in a highly personal way.

Ugly Beauty: The Month In Jazz – December 2019 Henry Threadgill, who won a Pulitzer Prize for his 2015 album In For A Penny, In For A Pound, has reunited his band Zooid after several years working with larger ensembles on discs like Old Locks And Irregular Verbs and Dirt…And More Dirt. They'll be releasing a new record sometime in 2020, and they recently … More »

Vinyl Corner is a feature where we take a look at vinyl pressings of various albums and weigh them up to see just how good they sound, how well they're pressed and what sort of packaging to expect - as well as giving a brief overview of the music itself. We're heading into the deep and frigid underworld of Scandinavia's oceans for a fairly unusual new title from We Jazz records. Despite the label's name, today's featured album is not a jazz record at all but rather a moody new ambient effort from Teppo Mäkynen. The Music: Those who follow Vinyl Corner closely will be familiar with Finnish label We Jazz records. We've written about many of their releases in the past and one of the few consistent themes of their varied output is that every title is jazz in one way or another - hardly a surprise considering their name. With 'Abyss (A Prelude To Lake), they broaden their horizons away from that genre towards an expansive vision of ambient music. Despite being credited to Finnish jazzers 3TM, this is actually a solo effort from bandleader Teppo Mäkynen. As suggested by the lengthy title, 'Abyss' serves as a primer to the group's upcoming release 'Lake'. Just how much the two albums will share in common remains to be seen but taken purely on its own terms, 'Abyss' is a textural and atmospheric work. Murky, distant tones echo around the soundstage in a convincing replication of deep-sea echo-location clicks and deep synth washes evoke the ebb and flow of underwater currents. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Hw1M2kdkAc The Pressing: Every other title we've reviewed from We Jazz has provided a classic black vinyl option alongside a more limited colour edition, however 'Abyss' is available exclusively in milky clear form. From an aesthetic perspective, this is nothing but good news but the real question, of course, is how good it sounds. While we've seen little reason to argue that colour vinyl sounds any worse than traditional black, many continue to perpetuate this notion, so the idea of a clear-only release may raise some hackles. Fortunately, this is a great sounding record - especially considering the highly revealing, low-volume nature of the ambient music contained within the grooves. Finding a satisfactory vinyl release of any ambient album can be an experience rather more gruelling than pleasurable, with many titles in the style - even from big-budget major labels - falling far short of the deathly-quiet surfaces needed to enjoy this subtle, delicate music. Very impressively, We Jazz have managed to produce a pressing easily quiet enough to make 'Abyss' an enjoyable listen. All records have some small degree of surface noise - that's a simple limitation of the medium. While we did hear a few crackles now and then, the flaws we did pick up on were minor and infrequent enough not to distract from 'Abyss's beguiling ambience. The Packaging: We Jazz have a fairly consistent approach to the aesthetic presentation of their releases. They often sport minimalistic yet striking artwork that accurately reflects the mood of the music inside. 'Abyss's art certainly evokes a sense of lonely and expansive pelagic gloom, even if the image is not amongst the most striking of the label's catalogue. The sleeve itself is a single-pocket affair fashioned from fairly lightweight card. While it isn't the heftiest of covers, it does benefit from a pleasing textural finish and the barcode has also been placed upon a hype sticker rather than printed directly onto the cover. The record is found in a generic non-polylined inner sleeve, which is fairly tight and may well cause abrasion marks if the record is removed carelessly. As we always say in these cases, it would have been great to see the label include a polylined inner here. Final Thoughts: 'Abyss' finds We Jazz records moving away from their typical remit towards new musical horizons. It's an intriguing glimpse of what may be to come and, even if it is merely a one-off for the label, the highly admirable pressing quality makes this release a highly worthwhile venture. Enjoyed this feature? We're always looking for further albums to highlight on Vinyl Corner - and if you have a vinyl release that you'd love to see written about here, please get in touch at [email protected] - it would be great to hear from you! Read the full article

Drummer/producer Teppo Mäkynen presents a new album by his lauded trio ensemble 3TM in 2019. Before the second 3TM album, "Lake" comes "Abyss", a collection of 10 ambient pieces laying the groundwork for the upcoming album.

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