Joonas Riippa

"Riitta Paakki and her band never show off. They work together admirably well, delivering a delightful musical experience."

Bassist Antti Lötjönen is one of the busiest Finnish jazz players, having played on well over 100 records, and in dozens of groups. His solo debut was released in April, just a day before Lötjönen turned 40. This summer, touring will have to wait, but Lötjönen doesn’t mind the breather. In Wif Stenger’s interview, the bassist talks about his music and team playing.

"The interplay between the hard-charging and the low-key provides a tantalising backdrop for Paakki’s masterful playing and compositions."

"Teemu Viinikainen's light touch on the delay, sustain and looping pedals creates a spacious, floating sound that triggers all kinds of pleasure synapses."

Lauri Porra reveals in the first sentence of his booklet commentary that he is the great-grandson of Jean Sibelius – but it’s more by way of explaining his musical background than to trade on the relationship.

...Staging six days of jazz at the beginning of the Christmas season was a risky undertaking, but We Jazz’s astute programming decisions made it work...