Initiative H - Polar Star (2022)

The French neo big band celebrates its 10th anniversary with a live concert broadcasted live on the French radio station France Musique.
INITIATIVE H succeeds in the bet for a large format ensemble (12 musicians, 2 technicians) to celebrate their 10 years of existence. This important project for the whole team has evolved over 10 years through 5 original creations, 7 albums and EPs, collaborations with artists such as Émile Parisien, Thomas De Pourquery, Vincent Artaud and fifty concerts in major Jazz festivals (Jazz in Marciac, Jazz à Vincennes, Jazz à Juans, Millau en Jazz, Jazz sur son 31, Toulouse d'été, Soleil Bleu, etc.), as well as in concert halls: proof of the commitment of the musicians in this large-scale creation.
Faithful to its first four creations (Deus Ex Machina, Dark Wave, Broken Land, IH x Moondog), the big band presents a real suite once again with POLAR STAR as David Haudrechy likes to compose his works.
The genesis of this one is an ode to the explorers who went to visit "the ends of the world", the North and the South poles. Between icebergs, extreme cold, icy waters, infinite landscapes, clear skies and current and crazy expeditions as led by Jean-Louis Etienne with Océan Polaire.
POLAR STAR embodies the visual and soundtrack of these crazy epics: a music that is at the same time intimate, fragile and epic, and sometimes abyssal to escape in a dreamlike exploration movie.
It is an "awareness" album, taking care of the extreme beauty of the world, but also a message full of hope: to be amazed and to continue to be. POLAR STAR reveals a new breath, at the same time powerful, sensitive and luminous. It is an epic whirlwind that immerses us into the depths of a progressive jazz with rock, electro, and sometimes pop fragments.
“We love what amazed us and we protect what we love“ Jean-Yves Cousteau

Track List:
1. Abyssal Zone (7:57)
2. Dark Lightning (3:22)
3. Ice Breaker (7:47)
4. Silent World (6:05)
5. Crystal Trap (6:51)
6. Isolation (5:29)
7. Polar Star (4:57)
8. Bright Sight (5:52)
9. White Ocean (4:31)
10. The Watchers (Bonus Track) (3:13)