Jaga Jazzist

Jaga Jazzist - "Oslo Skyline"

I'm seriously convinced that I'm a complete sucker for any band that has more than 6 or 7 members in it.
Case in point: Do Make Say Think, Broken Social Scene, Architecture in Helsinki, The Polyphonic Spree, The Arcade Fire, Out Hud - am I forgetting any here? - Scotland Yard Gospel Choir, Hank, etc. Now I can add the Norwegian collective known as Jaga Jazzist to that list.

This band comes recommended for fans of hugeness, all vast and expansive and everything. It's sort of a bombastic fusion of space-rock, free jazz, post-rock and electronic experimentation. With ten members (3 are siblings) in the mix, it's really no surprise that any attempts to attach one single label to Jaga are utterly useless.

Anyway, I don't know what else to say about them that you can't find out by heading over to their site and reading in their press page or in their glowing reviews. Another reason to visit their website: If you're still not sure about them after hearing "Oslo Skyline", there's a few more full mp3 samples from their previous albums over there. So, seriously, make sure you go by it (the site). And make sure you go buy it (the newest album, What We Must, which I am totally loving right now). I'm absolutely mystified as to how this group slid under my radar for so long (they released their first recordings in 1994).

Update: Borrowed Tunes just posted something about Jaga Jazzist shortly after I put this up, except that they have 2 other tracks from What We Must for you to hear. I lose, you people win.