Jester/Steidle

As part of the Leipziger Jazztage 2021, Leipzig guitarist Steffi Narr and Oliver Steidle - a central player in Berlin's experimental scene, will meet for the first time. Second concert at 23:59.

In the background yosai's "Gedankenwanderung" is playing, which creates so much space, imposes itself so little and thus actually makes wanderings in thought possible; in the foreground an encounter event is taking place in anticipation: A first interplay of Steffi Narr on guitar and Oliver Steidle on drums. There this so well-balanced guitar play of Narr carries, on the culmination waves, which are so typical for the Leipzig band yosai, oscillating between folk, jazz and pop-rock. Versatile, but always so precise, so tuned, that it is almost uncanny: Whenever there is a pull in the stomach, the sound and-or the tempo changes. Break - detour - continuation, without ever losing the connection. Insistent touch that does not let the thread break.  

Similarly versatile and equally to the point, always surfing the tipping moment and thus keeping the energy level and intensity of his playing in balance, is the drummer Oliver Steidle. In the most diverse constellations and groupings, which he helps to shape and form with his virtuoso adaptability: Thus Steidle drums(s) in bands such as the quartet Field led by Uli Kempendorff, for Aki Takase's trio Tama or the Hong Kong Quintet, for Philipp Gropper's quartet Philm and in the collective band Outliers with Toby Delius, Haavard Wiik and Clayton Thomas. In between or alongside, to stretch the spectrum so far that it seems almost improbable that there is one and the same person sitting behind the drums, he performs amalgams with guitarist Olaf Rupp and bassist Jan Roder based on grindcore and metal, broken up by playful improvisations with Die dicken Finger. 

Constantly on the road - especially with his own projects such as the Frejazz Combo SoKo Steidle, Oliwood and Oli Steidle & the Killing Popes (the latter band already performed at the Leipziger Jazztage 2018) - at festivals, concerts and recordings, it is a stroke of luck that Steidle makes it to Leipzig for "Body Time". Even luckier the coincidence that Steffi Narr, who was trained and settled (for the time being) in Leipzig, gave the decisive impetus for this first encounter. For which we will still be grateful to Narr: A virtuosic, versatile and in the most positive sense turbulent evening seems very likely with this (somewhat unusual) cast.