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Hot Club Sandwich: Café Matrix

Essentially a duo comprising singer/guitarist Andrew London and bass player Terry Crayford, Hot Club Sandwich meld together jazz, blues and sometimes country in an acoustic (con)fusion that is often augmented by other players. This time around harmonica player Neil Billington and sax man Nils Olsen are the featured musicians on a set of songs recorded live in the somewhat unusual setting of the Matrix Digital Studio. Unusual that is because the studio was converted into a café with Hot Club faithful invited in to attend the recording sessions over two nights. As always with the Hot Club the playing is masterful as well as playful and features fine solos from Billington and Olsen on a set of songs that feature jazz standards and London originals full of his trademark, if somewhat corny humour. In fact if there's one thing that detracts from what the Hot Club serve up here it's the jokiness of London's originals. A little bit goes a long way and while it's a feature of what they do, the Hot Club are at their best when things are played straight. That aside, this album is sure to please the faithful.

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