Bonington Theatre in Nottingham, UK on December 14, 2006
Polar Bear are a band with a wide appeal - they cover a lot of ground from gentle ballads to the wilder shores of improvisation. According to the band, the name was chosen because polar bears are "cuddly but dangerous"! Seb Rochford, the band's leader and main composer, is a great drummer to watch, almost dancing around the kit, playing with delicacy or giving the drums a good thrashing when necessary. Tom Herbert is a solid and supportive bassist, and the two saxes compliment each other nicely; Pete Wareham tending towards an angular stridency in his playing, while Mark Lockheart is a bit more lyrical. The joker in the pack is John Burton, aka "Leafcutter John", who samples and manipulates sound from a variety of sources (e.g. a bowed cymbal, a deflating balloon, the output from the mixing desk) with a laptop and a games controller. An intriguing and exciting band.
JazzReview.com
