Michael Schiefel Platypus Trio – Michael Schiefel Platypus Trio

Michael Schiefel Platypus Trio – Michael Schiefel Platypus Trio

A playful yet deeply exploratory jazz set, this self-titled release from the Michael Schiefel and his Platypus Trio blends inventive vocal jazz, improvisation, and rhythmic experimentation into a conceptually unified work. Known for pushing the boundaries of jazz singing, Schiefel treats the voice as both instrument and storyteller, shifting between lyrical phrasing, abstraction, and extended vocal textures.

Across the album, recurring “platypus” motifs act as a loose conceptual thread - less narrative, more symbolic playground - allowing the trio to move fluidly between structured compositions and free improvisation. Tracks like “Listen!” and “Platypus Dancing” set an energetic, exploratory tone, while shorter interludes such as “Platypus Swimming” provide brief moments of minimal, almost sketch-like reflection.

The centrepiece, “Dreamtime Platypus,” stretches into an expansive improvisational journey, where time feels elastic and the trio’s interplay becomes increasingly abstract and atmospheric. Throughout, the music balances humour, virtuosity, and spontaneity without losing cohesion.

Michael Schiefel Platypus Trio stands as a distinctive statement in modern European jazz - quirky on the surface, but underpinned by serious improvisational craft and a willingness to challenge expectations of what vocal jazz can be.

Tracklist:

1. Listen!
2. Platypus Dancing
3. Platypus On The Beach
4. Platypus Mediation
5. Platypus Swimming
6. Dreamtime Platypus
7. Platypus Happy
8. The Home Of The Platypus