Ruud Voesten, a drummer and composer based out of The Netherlands, has carved out a niche in terms of keeping us in touch with good, swing-laden jazz mixed with a few classical influences thrown in for good measure. On “Clickbait Merchants”, Ruud takes us on a highly technical, yet absolutely delightful (are these correlated? I think yes, at least for me!) journey laden with brass, shuffled drums, and dramatic stabs. Keep reading for my thoughts on this piece!
As with a lot of jazz music, the overall mood of the music keeps changing the way you choose to listen to it. From the word ‘go’, this track has the eerie, mysterious-yet-fun vibe I would get from an imaginary Tom Cat playing a detective atop Fifth Avenue. The brass plays perfect support while the main motif of the song gets developed in the first passage, as we transition to a more layered, piano-heavy interlude that sounds more like the relaxed jazz we’ve come to love and appreciate so much over the decades. The saxophone starts making its presence known, with the sheer display of excellence on offer with the quick, tasteful runs, resolving to the next note perfectly.
As the track evolves, it’s like watching a whole theatrical unfold in front of your eyes, taking you through energy levels, in and out of them with panache and grace– and it is a treat to listen to, every step of the way. The instruments tickle my ears– and my fancy– just perfectly, and the execution here, if I may say, is damn near flawless.
With “Clickbait Merchants”, I got to check out a truly good jazz piece– this gets a two-thumbs-up recommendation! Check out the track here:
Check out our playlists here!
Check out our YouTube channel for music reviews, playlists, podcasts, and more!
Promotional Disclaimer: The content in this post has been sponsored by the artist, label, or PR representative to help promote their work.
