By Ed Enright | Published August 2018
Danish guitarist Mikkel Ploug and New York tenor saxophonist Mark Turner team up as a duo on this inspired collection of tailor-made Ploug originals.
Having toured Europe together for 10 years in a Ploug-led combo, they scaled things way down on Faroe in order to allow more subtle musical interaction and intensify their mutual focus on melodic and chordal development. In this calmer, more delicate environment, the nuances of Turner’s dry tone and Ploug’s resonant guitar emerge to form an emotionally stirring, tonally balanced picture. Their individual voices dovetail gracefully as saxophone and guitar explore their individual roles and come together to achieve a level of creative flow that’s the goal of any artistic pairing.
The music is an advanced study in musical styles and moods, at turns somber (“Faroe”), melancholy (“The Red Album”), dreamy (“Highland”), mysterious (“Warmth”), saudade (“Como”), playful (“Sea Minor”), anxious (“Steps”), flirtatious (“Celeste”) and ceremonious (“Wagner”). Incredible chops aside, Ploug and Turner succeed in tapping into the awesome power and extreme beauty of hushed, intimate interaction on Faroe. Listen to it loud for maximum enjoyment.
