Berlin may well be widely considered as the creative hub of the German jazz scene, but in the deep south of the country there is another city where talented and promising musicians are finding new pathways in jazz. Among these, for example, are the Jazzrausch Bigband, vocalist Alma Naidu and guitarist Philipp Schiepek. They all hail from Munich. Bassist Nils Kugelmann, born in 1996, is another new talent from the Bavarian capital. His ACT debut, ‘Stormy Beauty’, makes it clear why, already at a young age, he is considered among the top German bass players.

It is in his trio, with Luca Zambito on piano and Sebastian Wolfgruber on drums, that Kugelmann has found his true calling. ‘Stormy Beauty’ demonstrates that with admirable clarity. All of the tracks here are written by him; his signature as composer is unmistakable. Whether he is evoking a euphoric mood of departure in ‘Unexpected Love’ and ‘About the Moment of Beginning’, or tracing the path to finding one’s own voice in the exuberant improvisations and crashing rhythms of ‘Finding Your Place’, or showing a reverence and enthusiasm for nature in the hymn-like ‘Symphony for the Rain’ and ‘Wild Leaves Falling’, or intoning the powerful love song ‘Song for a Golden Blossom’, there is no mistaking Kugelmann’s outstanding qualities and unfailing instincts, his way of finding melodies and motifs which stick in the mind. His instrumental virtuosity frees up the double bass and even turns it into the dominant melodic instrument in a piano trio. Kugelmann gives every single note a sense of definitiveness and a feeling of expressiveness, even at the fastest tempo.

‘Stormy Beauty’ is a strong debut, full of power and passion. Here is a young artist who has something new to give to jazz, and also the confidence to follow his own path.