Reviews & Press
November 2022:
Saku Mantere (b. 1974) lives an interesting double life. He is a respected professor of strategic management at McGill University in Montreal, Canada, but also a musician and singer who once played in the band Lieka, touring on the Vapaat Äänet tour of the Finnish Jazz Association.
Now Mantere has released his debut album in Canada, on which he appears as a singer. Half of the album's ten songs are composed by Mantere and some also have lyrics. Other composers of the album include e.g. Tom Waits, pianist Stanley Cowell and John Coltrane, whose Countdown song was written by Mantere.
The central figure on the album is Mantere's childhood friend Jussi Lampela, who has gathered an orchestra of nine top-level Finnish musicians and wrote the arrangements for the background of Mantere's song. Nonetti is included on the album's eight tracks, Mantere has made the remaining two tracks with Canadian musicians.
Lampela's sophisticated arrangements perfectly support Mantere's beautiful vocals with sensitive tones. Mantere is not an actual jazz singer in terms of his phrasing, rather his expression resembles softly sung crooners, sometimes also singer-songwriters. But the end result is very successful. The album is very addictive because you can listen to it again and again.
Mantere was supposed to perform two years ago with the group led by Lampela at Koko Jazz Club two years ago, but the opportunity was canceled due to the coronavirus. But on Thursday, December 1, at the release concert of the album, Kokossa Mantere and the players on the album were heard live.
(Translated from Finnish)
November 2022:
Upon First Impression is the debut album of Finnish-born, Montreal-based vocalist Saku Mantere. His outstanding performance is supported by an extraordinary array of talented musicians on trumpet, saxophones, trombone, piano, bass, drums, and more. Mantere's rich voice resonates in these songs about heartbreak and living life split between two homelands and cultures. Highly recommended! The tracks are And Death Shall Have No Dominion, Time, Wedding Poem, Building You Building Me, Open Secrets, Radio Silence, I Think It's Time to Say Goodbye Again, Countdown, The Professional, and Leap of Faith.
December 2022:
Pour cette dernière chronique de l’année 2022, autant dire que nous sommes gâtés avec lechanteur finlandais Saku Mantere pour Upon First Impression. Guitariste, professeur àl’Université McGill ainsi que chercheur, sa nouveauté frappe dans le mille avec un nonet composé de ses compatriotes, plus un quartet composé de la pianiste Kate Wyatt, du trompettiste Lex French, du contrebassiste Adrian Vedady et du batteur Jim Doxas.
10 plages originales–un voix toute en souplesse
Comme les chanteurs de jazz sont rares en nos terres, nous avons jeté une oreille. Plus Kurt Elling que Kevin Mahogany, sa voix toute en souplesse n’est pas tout à fait celle du «crooner» habituel. Très habile dans les vocalises, il manie bien le verbe avec juste ce qu’il faut pour nous raconter des histoires, puisque ce sont 10 plages originales.
Building You Building Me sensible et Countdown swingante
Avec quelques surprises tel Building You Building Me qui se rapproche beaucoup plus de la sensibilité d’un Leonard Cohen, Upon First Impression est donc une nouveauté à tiroirs quidonne une large place aux solistes sur des arrangements finement travaillés. Puisant aussi dansun répertoire, disons ancien, nous songeons à ce que fit le regretté contrebassiste Charlie Haden avec son Quartet West, il peaufine avec douceur l’art de la ballade qui met en vedette le trompettiste Lex French, émule de Clifford Brown. Question swing, Countdown vautamplement le détour, avec un plus qu’un clin d’œil à Michel Legrand, le tout soutenu par son nonet cuivré qui porte la réplique avec vigueur.
Saku Mantere–un voix élégante
Certes, il est difficile de réinventer le genre, mais nous pouvons affirmer que c’est une nouveauté élégante dans tous les sens du terme avec un chanteur qui a du potentiel. Souhaitons que pour son prochain disque il offre une série de standards, puisque sa voix s’yprête à merveille.
"Je suis certain que nous allons le croiser dans un festival futur ou une boîte de jazz, justement avec sa formation montréalaise."
Christoph Rodriguez
December 2022 // January 2023:
Finnish-born Montreal-based jazz vocalist/composer Saku Mantere’s ten-song debut release is a very personal musical project, touching on his diverse, emotionally moving life experiences. Mantere divides his time between Canada, where he works as a McGill University organizational theorist professor, and Finland. His English original compositions and cover song arrangements were recorded in Montreal and Helsinki with his musical collaborators from both countries.
Mantere’s setting of Welsh poet Dylan Thomas’ And Death Shall Have No Dominion, is a storytelling jazz and pop mix. Canadian musicians support Mantere’s clearly articulated wide-pitch-range vocals like Lex French’s opening trumpet to mid-tune improvised Kate Wyattpiano and Adrian Vedady bass duet, to Jim Doxas’ upbeat drums throughout. Mantere harmonized Tom Waits’ Time, upon which his childhood friend renowned Finnish arranger/conductor Jussi Lampela based his nonet score featuring Finnish instrumentals-like counterpoint and trills contrasting Mantere’s especially touching high-pitched singing and vocal whispers.
Mantere’s originals are amazing. Highlights include his classic slightly edgy jazzy ballad Radio Silence, with broken-hearted emotionally sad lyrics and softer vocal and instrumental-held notes. Nice change of pace with his closing upbeat tango-nuevo song Leap of Faith. His colourful vocal duet with Jennifer Gasol about a couple drifting apart, perhaps referencing Mantere’s own marriage breakup, and virtuosic Finnish musicians’ instrumental solos held together by drums is super fun. Mantere’s music is superb. A song sung in Finnish next time would be illuminating too!