NESTOR DIMOPOULOS & EVGENIA KARLAFTI’S ORGAN TRIO /MUSIC SOUP

UPBEAT MOOD

Chicken Coup Records/Summit Records

Nestor Dimopoulos, guitar; Evgenia Karlafti, organ; Vagelis Kotzabasis, drums. SPECIAL GUESTS: Kym Purling, piano; Hengry Gergen, trumpet.

Co-leaders, Dimopoulos and Karlafti have been playing together for some time.  They began by playing in clubs with Evgenia Karlafti playing piano, sometimes with a quartet, or as a duo, also with Evgenia singing while playing piano, accompanied by Nestor Dimopoulos on guitar. They assumed the group name, Music Soup.

On this recent release, scheduled to hit the streets on September 6, 2024, Evgenia Karlafti steps from the piano to play organ, along with Nestor Dimopoulos on guitar and Vagelis Kotzabasis on the drums.  I am drawn to their second song, “A Day in the Park” written by Dimopoulos.  It’s a bright ‘swing’ number and gives both Dimopoulos and Karlafti time to dig in and improvise on their solos.  Vagelis Kotzabasis brightly pops his drum licks to inspire the trio forward. This tune reminds me of the 1960s when organ trios were popular in jazz clubs around the country.

Music Soup (the trio) has been together since 2014.  Consequently, they resonate as a group that’s tight, and they feel comfortable with each other. “Freeland” is an original composition by Karlafti and dedicated to “O.P with love”, the initials of Oscar Peterson who is a pianist she admires.

They have written all the music for this project. I enjoyed “Around the World,” an original song that the duo co-wrote.  I wish they had let their drummer solo on that extended vamp. All in all, These are three talented musicians who offer their original compositions, with a 1960 style of playing and arranging. They are currently based in Athens, Greece but plan on touring the U.S in the fall.

Reviewed by Dee Dee McNeil

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