Friends www.moserobie.com www.gas-art.com www.akildasan.com Distributors www.dustygroove.com www.cdbaby.com www.soulseduction.com Hotspots www.lydmar.se www.bounce.nu www.doubleisland.com.au *Basic Soul/Simon - "Most of you will remember Cecilia from Koop's excellent "Baby" and "Waltz for Koop" but judging by this album, those two tracks are only the tip of the iceberg. Cecilia is based in Stockholm but has also lived in New York and in both cities she has quickly become a regular at the legendary jazzclubs. Here is proof yet again that Scandinavians are leading the way with 21st century jazz. With a total of nine tracks this is a wonderful journey through the acoustic jazz productions and Celcillia's expressive vocals and lyrics. "Straight It Up" has been compared to some of the true greats of our scene and I cannot disagree. In fact it is so good that it would not look out of place on the excellent Ricky Tick Records, and fans should take note. Simon, 03/06 *Giant Step/Velance - "It's onward now to the region of Scandinavia, where an immense amount of quality music has surfaced in the last few years (Nuspirit Helsinki, The Five Corners Quintet, Koop, and the Gonkyburg massive of Swell Session et. al. to name a few). The city of Stockholm, Sweden is where one Cecilia Stalin resides. Best known to the world as the vocalist on Koop's "Baby" and "Waltz For Koop" on its most recent album for Compost, Stalin has blossomed into a multitalented wonder. Evidence can be found on her full-length 'Straighten Up'. Backed by a hand-picked quintet of choice local jazz talent, Stalin not only signs on the album (those only hearing her "Koop" work will be pleasantly surprised), but has also arranged, written, and produced the album. It's tremendously soulful and delightful. It's out on Firefly from Sweden. Find out more on the album at her web site, including where you may find it stateside." Read the full review on:Giant Steps Review *Per-Henrik Cellton/Barometern - "Cecilia Stalín 'Straight up' Cecilia Stalín, alltså med betoning på sista i:et är en ny bekantskap för mig. Ett okänt namn, men en välkänd röst. Kanske. För Cecilia Stalín har varit med i åtskilliga år. Det hörs. Hon har varit med i ett flertal smågrupper, men även storband, både här hemma och i USA. De som köper plattan - och det tror jag blir många - kanske blir besvikna på bristfällig information. Där kan dock utläsas vilka som är med på plattan, men inte att hennes kvintett består av, förutom henne själv också av Adam Forkelid (piano), Jonas Edquist (gitarr), Lars Ekman (bas) och Mattias Pottonen (trummor). På plattan medverkar dessutom tenorsaxofonisten Karl-Martin Almqvist och trumpetaren Nils Janson. Ingen skugga må falla över det ordinarie gänget, men Karl-Martin Almqvist är suverän. Just samspelet med Cecilia är utsökt. Och när hörde vi ett skönare spel av Nils Janson? En invändningen - varför så lite Janson...Men det är ju Cecilia platta! Jag blev glatt överraskad. Visst förekommer vissa olägenheter som svenska jazzsångerskor lagt sig till med - att pressa rösten till en väääsning. Men i det stora hela är Cecilia tämligen befriad från den svenska vokalistskolan. Hon är persolig. okonstland och rör sig obehindrat mellan sina egna texter och ordlös sång. Har månne en ny stjärna fötts på den svenska jazzhimlen...PER-HENRIK CELLTON *Dusty Groove.com - "Cecilia Stalin 'Straight Up'(Firefly /Sweden) Incredible work from vocalist Cecilia Stalin -- a singer you may know from her work with Koop, but a far greater artist on her own! This has Cecilia really fleshing out the groove she first explored on "Waltz For Koop" -- a spacious, soulful mode that brings together older modes of scatting and vocals with a freshly jazzy sensibility -- one that's clearly tuned on the tones of the current club jazz underground, but which also has a lot more to offer than strictly dancefloor jazz! There's a depth here that's really tremendous -- a quality that easily puts the record at a level with some of our favorite jazz vocal work from older years -- including albums by Carmen Lundy, Dee Dee Bridgewater, and others. But Cecilia's also got an ear for the fresher sounds of the 21st century too -- and although the album's an all-acoustic, jazz-based set, it's sure to cross over nicely with fans of Koop and others from the European scene! *Jan Olsson/Skånska Dagbladet - "Cecilia is a knowlaged and personal jazzvocalist, definately belonging in our countrys top division". *Reggie Workman (bass player) - "Cecilia cleverly carved a niche for herself in an area, which is usually dominated by varied instrumentalists; her disciplined approach to improvisation illustrates that she can execute lines comparable to any instrumentalist. Ms.Stalin's unique vocal quality added depth and variety to the ensemble". *Irene Sjögren (jazzvocalist and teacher at the Royal Music Collage in Stockholm) - "Cecilia is a genuine and natural jazz musician, very competent and musically experienced. She has got a warm, expressive voice and a very nice time, knows her harmony, she is a good improvisor, and above all, she communicates with her fellow musicians extremely well". *Wordandsound Review - "David Fredman a.k.a. david panda and Cecillia Stalin come up with their first release on dessous recordings, proving david panda's skills as deep house producer which are enobled by Cecilia Stalin's lyrics/melodies and her great voice. their first tune is the athmospheric vocal housetune "Sister Supreme". "Sister Supreme" is a dreamy, friendly and innocent deephouse-song - way more than a simple clubtune. smooth stuff for the summer." *Epitonic review - "The now-classic title track and album opener features the amazing pipes of Cecilia Stalin, a breathy mix of Astrud Gilberto and the mind-blowing range of Minnie Ripperton, gliding over a lovingly restrained backdrop with just a touch of strings." *Gerald Poindexter, Signonsandiego - "The nine-song, 35-minute disc's romantic title track features guest-vocalist Cecilia Stalin, whose chilled-out delivery slides with effortless clarity alongside cascading strings and nimble, upright bass lines. These sophisticated, cosmopolitan-sounding elements (incidentally, perfect for martini-lounge ambience) reappear later with similarly brilliant allure on "Baby." *Groove.no - "Særlig hyggelig er det å stifte bekjentskap med gjestevokalist Cecilia Stalin, som med sin lekende og kjølige stemme bidrar til at platen får det lille ekstra hva gjelder særpreg." *Radiovista - "The big revelation of this album was Cecilia Stalin, wow what a voice. But Yukimi Nagano doesn't do a bad job herself, in this swinging gem of a late-night jazz tune. This is a fantastic chillout album all the way through. But as pleasant as this is, it still doesn't match Cecilia in the title track." *Vibe - "Koop's computer manipulations spotlight guest vocalists such as Cecilia Stalin, who offers silken crooning on the ethereal title track and the come-hither "Baby." *Uzine - "We never seem to find / peace of mind" sings Cecilia Stalin at the onset of the cd (viz. on the title track), yet thirty-five minutes is all one actually needs if the music is as good as Koop's. As miss Stalin's voice climbs to "And we've only just begun", the tone is lushly set for nine luxurious pieces of groovy jazz that ooze Verve class and Blue Note quality. Miss Stalin's two vocal parts are actually so astonishingly elegant that Yukimi Nagano's singing on two later tracks doesn't grab your attention as much, though it's equally outstanding (e.g. on "Summer sun")." *Patrik Sjeren - David Panda/Cecilia Stalin - Sister Supreme. "Finally!! I have been waiting to get this on vinyl ever since I first heard it in the office a year or so ago. And now the wait is over. Swedish producer David Panda brings you a very sweet production here perfectly tuned in with Cecilia Stalin's melody and wonderful jazz voice." *World of Popmusic - Editorial Reviews - "Koop combines a wealth of summery melodies and floating vocals with the acid jazz of Gilles Peterson and the laid-back trip-hop aesthetic of Jazzanova and Peter Kruder. The result is a sweet, effortless sound on Waltz For Koop. Starting off with a Brazilian feel, Koop enlists Astrud Gilberto-like chanteuses Cecilia Stalin to augment the mood.Good-natured and accessible without being trendy, Waltz puts a lot of other 'chill' collections to shame." *Soul Seduction (Soul Seduction) - "Newcomers Cecilia Stalin and Yukimi Nagano steal much of the show with a gorgeousness and naivety in their delivery and tone. Young singers who are entrusted to bring forth a maturity beyond their tender years, and some how they pull it off wonderfully. Waltz for Koop is one of those!" *Opuszine (Anna Marie Stjarnell) - ""Baby" sees Cecilia Stalin singing sweetly of perfect love to a club-friendly backing. She also appeared on the first Koop album and it's easy to see why."