This release delivers all that you could want from a debut album – exceeded expectations and an appetite for more
Independent release MRK25CD (CD), MRK25VNL (LP)
Matthew Kilner (tenor saxophone); Paul Harrison (piano); Ewan Hastie (bass); Alyn Cosker (drums); Paul Towndrow (alto saxophone on ‘The Lighthouse’)
Recording date not stated
‘The Space In Between’ is the debut album of young Scottish saxophonist Matthew Kilner, though I had to check twice that this really is his debut recording. To say that he is ‘mature beyond his years’ both in sound and writing would be something of a cliche, but it does need to be said.
But that should really come as no surprise. While at the University of Aberdeen, Kilner won the Ogston Performance Prize for outstanding musical performance, which is judged as a live public competition, and in 2023 reached the final of the BBC Radio Scotland Young Jazz Musician of the Year. He has also packed his quartet with some the best jazz musicians in the land and written all of the compositions, so both his playing and writing are showcased here.
Currently based in Glasgow, the album has been inspired by his formative years in Aberdeen, whether that be the impression of its coastal landscapes, cultural traditions or characterful locals. Kilner says that through the album he hopes to “give an authentic account of life in the North East of Scotland to those who have not experienced it”.
Kilner has a confident playing style, rooted in 60s post-bop. He also shows great variety in his writing, with a strong focus on melody. Not afraid to blow, he is all over the opener, ‘Harry the Heron’, with a tight rhythm section negotiating the various twists and turns and setting up Kilner’s energetic soloing with impressive range. The melody is never totally out of reach and when it finally comes home the listener cannot help but feel that an extra 5 minutes of this wouldn’t go amiss.
On ‘Ask Or Tell’, Kilner shows a warm playful side. A simple melody is stated at the outset, then gentle heat applied gradually, first through an exploratory piano solo, then with Kilner taking things on, adding further energy and volume. The piece is inspired by a conversation with Paul Towndrow, prior to making a career move to Glasgow. It sounds like the move went very well.
‘The Lighthouse’ is a slow blues waltz dedicated to the Girdleness Lighthouse in Aberdeen and features Paul Towndrow, himself, on alto sax. A piano introduction announces a stately melody with a lilting air, which is taken on by tenor then alto with delightful toing and froing between them. A great fondness for the iconic landmark is clearly evident in the emotional playing throughout.
‘Haar’ is an immersive and atmospheric mood piece named after “a creeping sea fog that all Aberdonians know very well”. Kilner opens with a deeper resonant tone, suggestive of a foghorn sounding through the mirk. He then takes it up a notch or two, with a solo that variously references spiritual jazz and Scottish folk amid the mournful sound of banks of cold incoming fog.
The piece, ‘Freehearted’, a term “used to describe someone who is frank, unreserved and honest”, starts as a duo between sax and piano playing out a woozy blues melody, like an anthem for fragile heads the morning after the night before with Kilner’s tone full-fat and buttery. The entry of bass and drums signals a change in tone and energy, with Kilner’s fine solo taking the track skyward, before reintroducing the melody and slowing things down to a resolution.
The album finishes strongly with the title track, which builds an infectious Scottish folk-infused melody from quiet beginnings, before hitting a revolving stride that leaves a warm and satisfying glow. You cannot help but smile and imagine this being a real crowd-pleaser at gigs.
This release delivers all that you could want from a debut album – exceeded expectations and an appetite for more. To coin another cliche, Kilner is definitely ‘one to watch’.
