»We had one jam, and we never stopped«, says bassist Roman Klobe, who met keys player Moses Yoofee at the same school in Berlin. The german capital has become a hotbed for jazz in recent years, and the Moses Yoofee Trio have quickly become one of its most exciting groups to breakthrough.He came across drummer Noah Fürbringer through seeing clips of him on Instagram, so he messaged him asking if he wanted to play with them.
»We didn’t have a goal to play gigs in the beginning, it was just to have fun«, Klobe says. They first met in February 2020 but as the pandemic hit shortly after, the quiet period gave the trio »time to just make music« with no pressure, according to Yoofee.
They are not just known for their work as a trio. Fürbringer put out a jazz record in 2022 with Berlin label Kryptox and drums for rapper Casper, whilst Klobe is musical director for pop artist Lune. Yoofee produces beats and has put out EPs with Ballroom Radio Records and Casa Voyager. He also appears on Rhythm Section’s »Shouts 2022« compilation, as well as on the recent compilation »Entangled Grounds – The Sound of XJAZZ! Berlin«.
»It’s also really easy, not complicated music, which is cool.«
Moses Yoofee
But in this project, they explore jazz fusion, hip hop, and broken beat rhythms, often fluidly moving between all of them during a song. Yoofee says »there’s a lot of deep moments« and this resonates with their similarities to the UK scene and acts like DoomCannon, but also with touches of GoGo Penguin from the intensity and pacing of their tracks. But their inspiration comes from the American scene with Robert Glasper and R+R=NOW, alongside Berlin artists like Petter Eldh.
For the three of them, their session work has informed how they play in the trio and what they should focus on in their sound. »It doesn’t matter what the music really is, but really about how to [get] people to like your shit«, Klobe reveals.
Scene developed, asses saved
The time to grow during the pandemic led them to recording the mini-album. »Ocean« in six days at Berlin’s Brewery Studios in mid-2022, and this was released on experimental record label LEITER run by the pioneering composer Nils Frahm. »We didn’t really prepare anything, as tracks like »Ocean« and »Richmond« were made up completely on the spot«, says Klobe. »It’s also really easy, not complicated music, which is cool«, adds Yoofee.
»Richmond« is hip hop in style but with also slaps hard funk, particularly when the bass comes in and this continues as the song changes up in the second half with Fürbringer’s drums driving the pace. The title track has an incredible intensity to it with how the groove is positioned around the jarring, repetitive piano, and all three exemplify how magnificent their playing is here. »Minor Issues« is frantic jazz fusion with superb soloing, accompanied with a sensational buildup pattern from Fürbringer’s gliding strokes between the snare, toms, and ride cymbal.
Whilst they have only released a few singles alongside the »Ocean« mini-album, the trio have a reputation for their live shows as they won the Live Act of the Year award at the 2024 German Jazz Prize. Their secret fourth member has helped them to translate their studio sound into a live spectacle. »Fabian, our sound guy, makes the best out of every PA – he saves our ass a lot«, says Yoofee.
A live session at Club Gretchen was one of the first things they ever released that established themselves, and the session’s location is a place the trio feel has helped them and the Berlin jazz scene a lot. »Lars at Club Gretchen is really important and has been supporting us from the beginning«, says Yoofee. »He’s trying to develop the scene and bring smaller people [in]. Our first big show was with him, and he would put us on every two months if we wanted to.«
After regularly touring Europe for the last couple of years and their mini-album »Ocean« to be released on an exclusive HHV vinyl limited to 500 copies on September 13, 2024, they are now back in the studio. »The new album is 82% there«, Yoofee says.
