Ned Ferm – Autumn’s Darling

Vokalsongs und ein Jazz-Songwriter-Crossover-Universum, singbare Melodien und einfache Formen  – Mit allen Musikern in einem Raum, wurde der Aufnahmeprozess von den Produktionen von Daniel Lanois und Mark Howard  inspiriert

Auf seinem gefeierten Debütalbum SPENT ALL THE MONEY aus dem Jahr 2014 präsentierte der amerikanische Multiinstrumentalist und Komponist Ned Ferm einen Teil seiner musikalischen Geschichte, seiner Sprache und seiner Vision davon, wie Musik klingen kann, wenn strenge Genregrenzen aufgegeben werden. Mitte 2022 erhielt sein Projekt HEART IN HAND mit Kenny Wollesen begeisterte Kritiken, weil es die Zuhörer auf eine kaleidoskopische musikalische Reise durch den amerikanischen Westen und darüber hinaus mitnahm. Auf AUTUMN’S DARLING verarbeitet Ferm nun seine ländliche Herkunft in einem Vokalalbum mit einer Vielzahl kreativer Stimmen und fesselnden Geschichten, die durch den Gesang des Bandleaders und Marie Fisker zum Leben erweckt werden.

Ferm ist auf einer Farm auf einer Insel vor der Küste von Maine geboren und aufgewachsen, wo er als Wunderkind zunächst Geige spielte und sich später auf das Saxophon konzentrierte. Er übersprang das letzte Jahr der High School und besuchte zwei Jahre lang das renommierte Jazz-Studienprogramm der William Paterson University in New Jersey, bevor er 2001 als erster amerikanischer Student überhaupt am Kopenhagener Konservatorium für Rhythmische Musik aufgenommen wurde, wo er drei Abschlüsse erwarb und heute unterrichtet (wenn er nicht gerade auftritt, aufnimmt, produziert, übersetzt, Barkeeper ist oder Basketball trainiert).

Ferm’s life and professional experience helped to shape one another, and his musical voice and vision became a blend of fresh creativity and studied structure. The songs and lyrics on this new album are all written by Ferm, with a few co-written by other bandmates who also appear on the recording (with the exception of Nicolai Munch-Hansen, 1977-2017). The subject material varies from care-free innocent fun to nightmarish survival (Ferm says that the writings of Cormac McCarthy heavily influenced his lyrics for several songs). Genre-wise, there are sweet and steamy country ballads, pop tunes with insistent driving beats, swinging folk songs, and smoothly polished almost classic rock-inspired tunes. Each piece gets its own unique approach and adds something specific and special to the album as a whole.

Best known as a jazz saxophonist, Ferm’s career has thus far been a body of work identified by genre-blending musical adventures with a bevy of musicians from across generations, having played with Yusef Lateef, Roswell Rudd, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Tyshawn Sorey, Mark Guiliana, Jakob Bro, Sam Barsh, Maria Faust, and pop sensation MØ.

On his previous Stunt release, SPENT ALL THE MONEY, Ferm alternated the program between instrumental and vocal songs, creating a jazz-country-crossover-universe in which the band explored folksy, singable melodies and simple forms that would prove to be popular with casual listeners as well as discerning critics and musicians.

On AUTUMN’S DARLING, Ferm and co-producer Mads Brinch decided to fully commit to the vocal material that had a half-presence on the previous release. They set up in the Sauna Studio in Frederiksberg, Denmark in April of 2021 and invited 9 of their favorite multi-instrumentalists (Anders Christensen, Jakob Høyer, Rune Kjeldsen, Mads Hyhne, Silas Tinglef, Jeppe Brix, Jens Hein, Rasmus Valldorf, and Adrian Aurelius) to join them and breathe life into 12 songs, 10 of which would make it onto the final album. With everyone in the same room, the recording process was inspired by the Daniel Lanois / Mark Howard productions for Bob Dylan and others, with musicians switching instruments on different songs to achieve different sounds. Everyone brought musical openness and diverse technical virtuosity to the studio for two days of rehearsing and three days dedicated to recording.

After some wildly creative instrumental dubbing, mixing, and editing sessions, Marie Fisker came into the same studio to add her sultry, soulful voice to the songs, which brought the sound of AUTUMN’S DARLING together. Ferm and Fisker had worked together in various contexts before (including singing a duet on Ferm’s previous album and playing together in the critically acclaimed Cabin Project in 2014), but the chemistry in the color combination of their voices reaches new heights on this album.

Highlights include Tonight (a “true duet” with Fisker), Gone Gone Gone (a bittersweet pop tune), Song Of Rest (a winding folk ballad you’ll swear you know even though you’ve never heard it before), and Levon, making its debut as a song with lyrics written by Ferm (the music was written by his dear and departed friend Nicolai Munch-Hansen and can be heard in an instrumental version on the 2013 Stunt release ÆTER).

GIVING ME A REASON / GONE GONE GONE / SONG OF REST / THEE IS NO ESCAPE FOR ME / LEVON / THE ONLY HOTEL IN HELL / IRENE / STEPPING STONE / TONIGHT / MARRY ME

NED FERM – vocals and instruments (keyboards, percussion, flute, saxophone, etc); MARIE FISKER – vocals; MADS BRINCH NIELSEN – instruments and vocals; RUNE KJELDSEN – guitars; JACOB FUNCH – guitars, keyboards, vocals, percussion;  JEPPE BRIX SØRENSEN – guitars; ANDERS CHRISTENSEN – bass, piano; JENS HEIN – bass, guitars; JAKOB HØYER – drums, percussion; SILAS TINGLEF – drums, bass, guitars, percussion; MADS HYHNE – trombone, keyboards, percussion; RASMUS VALLDORF – percussion; ADRIAN AURELIUS – percussion

STUCD 22072/STULP 22071 Ned Ferm, Autumn’s Darling, Stunt Records, Sundance Music ApS.