Great reviews and public praise to this great little album !!
The album was selected into the annual HONORABLE MENTION – NEW RELEASES (2012) by ”The New York City Jazz Record” in USA, and was also the recommended release in the same magazine in January 2013.
’’Is it possible to play heavy metal with just saxes, bass and drums? It certainly is when you have players of this mettle and with a leader who when the occasion calls for it hits as hard as Bonzo ever did. Pasborg’s arrangement of Led Zeppelin’s Black Dog preserves the weighty riffage of the song, done with complete conviction by the two big horns, but also its speedy turnaround.” **** – Jazz Journal, UK
”Free Moby Dick is a success on many levels. Brilliant selections and arrangements, fantastic playing and synergy. While paying a tribute to some legends of rock music history it might be also a way to attract new listeners to jazz (nothing bad in that, mind you). Fun, Jazz and Rock’n’Roll? Jazz Rocks? Pick your marketing line. I enjoy the heck out of it.” – Jazz Alchemist, Poland.
“Free Moby Dick er en plade med kultpotentiale. Innanen og Mockunas er fantastiske. Det er godt hørt af Pasborg, at sætte de to sammen.” – Jazznyt, DK
This release was – together with 2 other of Pasborgs releases – selected as one of the best releases in 2012 by ‘Jazznyt’, and together with that, Pasborg was rewarded the ”Jazznyt-prisen 2012’’.
”Free Moby Dick” er et energisk, ekspressivt instrumentalt album. Fire jazzmusikeres dybt fascinerende livtag med nogle af rockmusikkens tunge standards. Bunden i fortolkningerne er Stefan Pasborgs trommer og Nicolai Munch-Hansens bas. Men oven på dén bund gennembrydes lydmuren noget så eftertrykkeligt af Mikko Innanens uregerlige barytonsaxofon og Liudas Mockunas ditto tenorsaxofon.” **** – Gaffa, DK
”Det lukter svidd gummi i svingene før Pasborg kaster seg på hjul på en slik måte at de gamle mennene stirrer måpende ned fra zeppelineren og lurer på hva som skjer der nede. Det svinger voldsomt, og de fire herrene er med på å gjøre ‘Out in the Tiles’ til en solid jazzlåt….Nå har jeg fulgt disse fire musikerne noen år, og jeg vil pasta at dette er det tøffeste de har gjort på plate så langt.’’ – Jazz Nytt, Norway