>> Wet Cookies
bio: When WET COOKIES played their first live sessions in 1999, their music was raw, untreated and loud. It was pure improvisation, inspired by 70’s free-funk and albums like ‘On The Corner’ by Miles Davis. This not only applied to individual solos, but the music itself was createdspontaneously. All they needed was a basic guideline to really ‘get the thing goin’. Although based on traditional jazz instrumentation, their sound was clearly influenced by electronic music and artificial, psychedelic soundscapes. As the band experimented with numerous sound processors, electronic drums and mallets, the engineering gradually became an integral part of their live performances. In order to maintain this energy on CD, their debut album ‘Earthling’ was composed by the entire band and recorded live at two studio sessions in Vienna. Rooted in tradition but also heading into the future ‘Earthling’recalls not only styles from the likes of Herbie Hancock, Chet Baker or Gerry Mulligan but also elements of today’s music like Groove Armada or St. Germain. Founders Axel Hirn (also known for his work with the dub combo Noiseshaper) and Björn Klein set out to make not just another nu-jazz album with some jazzy flavours over contemporary dance music, but to create an original piece of music that is entirely based on improvisation. This feat was made possible thanks to an outstanding group of musicians who participated in the project, some already established figures in the international jazz scene who have collaborated with artists like Natalie Cole and Joe Zawinul, amongst others. Finally, after recording the album, Axel added his own brand of dub-inspired madness, to give the Cookies a distinctive and unique dub vibe. Making this album was an exciting journey with many choices to be made. Now it is over the listener to follow these, or quoting Winton Marsalis "Jazz, like any language, has its own grammer and vocabulary. There’s no right or wrong, just some choices that are better than others."
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