Urban Elements is a quintet of top young musicians from the unusual combination of Sweden and Chile. However the musicians certainly have no difficulty in communicating musically. Trumpeter Sebastián Jordán and altoist
Fredrik Kronkvist, who contributed all 14 of the originals for
New Dimensions, are both outstanding players who know how to burn. Four of the numbers (titled "Opening Move," "Interlude," "Intermission," and "Outro") are brief transition pieces but most of the other selections are lengthier cookers, as revealed in their song titles (which include "On the Move," "Chasing the Cat," and the three-part "Multiple Targets"). While some of the originals are based on familiar chord changes, in general the music is quite modern with the musicians displaying their own individual voices. If additional proof were needed that jazz has long ceased being a strictly American-dominated music,
New Dimensions can act as evidence. Recommended. ~ Scott Yanow