Review: Gerardo Frisina - Insight Vol. 1 (Schema Records)

If I was a jazz dance optician, Gerardo Frisina's new album 'Insight' is the sound version of Latin spectrophotometry - you need this!

Well we would say that as being big fans of the Schema 'school' of Afro-cuban, Brazilian, Latin and all points south of the Italian base of the label for man years.

In fact, it's a great testamony that they have managed to keep the quality so high and 'Insight' is no exception.

'Mindoro', 'Desejar', 'Tarab' are all beautifully jazz dance smooth plus there's an instrumental version of 'Samba Skindim' that first appeared on Frisina's 2009 10" EP.

And if you're more Fania, 'Coherente' is the track to go large with and 'Some Soul' slips into a jazzy poolside groove and even more laid back, 'O Soñho'. 

It's been a couple of years since his last album, 'Joyful Sound' (see review HERE) so we got excited about the collaboration of Frisina & Toco feat. Luzia Dvorek 'Deixa Passar' (see review HERE) but just as exciting with this release is that it's Vol. 1 so there's a Vol. 2!

Artist: Gerardo Frisina 

Title:  Insight Vol. 1

Release date: 4th April, 2025

Label : Schema Records

Catalog Number : SC550

Format: LP vinyl / Digital / Bandcamp

Review: Gerardo Frisina - Joyful Sound (Schema Records)

Those with good memories will recall that I said in 2021, "If you've not caught up with last year yet, you'll at least want Gerardo Frisina's "Album Of The Year",  'Moving Ahead'.  Well 2 years on you'll be wanting to move ahead to his latest double, 'Joyful Sound'.

For those that don't know, Gerardo Frisina, is an Italian musician and producer who is most known for his near on 20 year relationship with Schema records, usually focusing on Latin jazz; with the exception of the incredible 12" on Afro Art, 'Alborado/ Congart' ‎(2005).  

So any album by him is highly anticipated, but boy, does 'Joyful Sound' do exactly that!  

Fourteen incredible foward thinking jazz that spans many genres/influences with movement (dance) at it's heart.  

Whether it be the Afro/world tracks, the dub electronica, Afro-Cuban or jazzdance, Afro-Indo/dub-jazz-house (on the fantastic 'Almost Free' anyway) the musicians on here are on it - it being a joyful sound; Enzo Frassi (double bass), Fabrizio Bernasconi (piano, Rhodes), Gendrickson Mena (trumpet, piano), Alfonso Deidda (sax, flute) and Ernesto Lopez (drums, percussion), with the addition of Piero Perelli on drums and Giovanni Guerretti on piano, Hammond and Rhodes..  

Trust me, this is so good you can't isolate one track, it's just gets better on every listen and will be filling the airwaves and clubs (when open) for some time to come as clearly "Album Of The Year" is nailed on!  

What with A.MA Records(A.Ma Edizioni), this looks like another brilliant year for the export of Italian jazz, Congrats Gerardo, congrats Schema!

Artist: Gerardo Frisina

Title: Joyful Sound

Release date: 3rd February, 2023

Label : Schema Records

Catalog Number : SC515 LP / Digital / Bandcamp