Ollie Howell Quintet

Ollie Howell is a drumming phenomenon. As a student at the Welsh College of Music and Drama, he took part in a concert staged for the benefit of the legendary Quincy Jones, who was visiting Cardiff, and so impressed the man known simply as Q that he became Howell's mentor. Another jazz legend, former Miles Davis drummer Jimmy Cobb, who played on Davis' landmark album Kind of Blue, was similarly taken with Howell's prowess and has also taken Howell under his wing.

Featuring tenor saxophonist Duncan Eagles, trumpeter Mark Perry, pianist Matt Robinson and bassist Max Luthert alongside Howell, Howell's quintet is both a powerhouse of energy and vitality and a superbly reflective unit. Their album, Sutures and Stiches, has been enthusiastically reviewed and represents all that's good about the youthful, dynamic London-based label Whirlwind Records that's proving such a force in documenting the exciting jazz scene in the UK today.