The quintet Pilgrim, founded by Zurich based tenor saxophonist Christoph Irniger, has become over the years one of the most exciting ensembles in young European Jazz. After the highly praised group’s latest vibrant live album Big Wheel, Pilgrim presents now their fourth recording Crosswinds. On this gorgeously considered, but luxuriantly open new recording the quintet uses ambiguity as a tool. Some compositions are freely improvised, while others are completely notated, yet most lie in between, with an elasticity that reflects a life of freedom, where informed choices are made spontaneously. The accompanying soundtrack oscillates between enigmatic reflection and wild eruptions, although the band creates a dense, all-round sound which is hard to categorise.
