An Pierlé Quartet

"Do you know what a person needs in 2024? Less regret. Less fake. Less fear. And the courage to live now." An Pierlé sings about all of it with the wisdom of a woman who no longer needs to be a girl. Four years after Wiga Waga, the An Pierlé Quartet is back with a new album: Ultimate Survival.

The grooves are even deeper, the lyrics more confrontational. The disease with the big ‘K’ was warded off, the realisation that you'd better enjoy the day has been all the more urgent since then. But Pierlé did not allow something so dark to dominate the new album: the title was a gift by artist Patrick Van Caeckenbergh, who designed the cover. Pierlé: "At first it reminded me of a game like Mortal Kombat, but he took his inspiration from an old book about animals taking care of other species. That's what we all need today."

Ultimate Survival is a record about experience that takes you on the waves of a narrative. And while the album may not be classic jazz, it is the work of a bona fide jazz band - the link to David Bowie's Blackstar is never far away. With keyboardist Hendrik Lasure and drummer Casper Van de Velde (together known as schntzl), the band has pretty much the core of The New Wave of Belgian Jazz in its ranks.

The godfather of that jazz wave is producer-recorder Koen Gisen. "Casper and Hendrik are international class", says Gisen. "They never play the same thing twice, even in the studio. Live, this will be a wonderful derailment, knowing that, thanks to those two, it always lands on its feet." Pierlé: "Our guys are also old at heart. And that's exactly why they are our mentors, rather than the other way around. To choose adventure. And to live in the now."