Massachusetts-based Whaling City Sound has been primarily a jazz label, but
Balval's
Blizzard Bohème is not jazz per se. Rather, the focus of this French group is East European Gypsy music with jazz, cabaret, and rock overtones.
Balval were formed in Paris, which is quite appropriate given that one of their jazz influences is guitarist
Django Reinhardt, the king of Parisian Gypsy jazz. But
Reinhardt's influence is musical instead of lyrical;
Reinhardt was an instrumentalist, and the expressive lead vocals of Awena Burgess are an important part of
Balval's sound. Burgess has no problem handling herself in different languages;
Blizzard Bohème is full of traditional songs from all over Eastern Europe, and that includes songs from Romania ("Dumbala Dumba") and Hungary ("Keren, Chavorale, Drom," "Liza," "Blues," "Ado Chavo") as well as Russia ("Smelka"), Albania ("Cirikli"), and what is now the Czech Republic ("Loli Rokla"). But while many of the songs are traditional, the arrangements of this half-female, half-male quartet are not. Traditional East European-style Gypsy groups do not incorporate elements of jazz or rock -- the East European Gypsy traditions of Russia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, and elsewhere were around centuries before the United States gave birth to jazz and rock -- although there are plenty of modern groups (both inside and outside of Eastern Europe) that, like
Balval, put a contemporary spin on East European Gypsy music. Musically,
Blizzard Bohème doesn't cater to purists, but emotionally,
Balval is quite faithful to the spirit of East European Gypsy music on this pleasing CD. ~ Alex Henderson