Naru

ナル　お茶の水店

Jujiya Biru B1, Kanda Surugadai 2-1, Chiyoda-ku. (03)3291-2321.

〒101-0062　東京都千代田区神田駿河台2-1

Cover charge 2,500 yen. Three sets at 19:30, 21:00 and 22:30, or two sets from 19:45 and 21:45 (sometimes the charge goes up and sets are reduced for certain performers)

www.jazz-naru.com
https://www.facebook.com/ochanomizu.naru https://www.instagram.com/naru_jazz/
https://x.com/jazzNARU
@jazzNARU

(Naru has a second club in Yoyogi, almost exclusively dedicated to vocalists. www.yoyogi-naru.com)

Ochanomizu Station. From the west exit of JR Ochanomizu Station, go diagonally across the huge criss-cross intersection. You can see the club sign from the west exit. Just a one-minute walk.

Compact, tidy and intimate, with no dust on its neat shelves of bottle keeps, Naru is a very comfortable place catering to students on expensive dates, salarymen chilling out and jazz maniacs of all stripes. A lot of clubs try hard for "nice" but Naru does it naturally. Food and drinks are several notches above any club in the city, and affordable. Why more clubs do not offer good wine, as Naru does, is a sad mystery to this jazz writer. Perhaps it's the experience that comes from two generations running the same club in the center of the city. Perhaps it's respect for the sophistication of the music. Whatever the thought and care behind it, it's good.

Their selection of jazz players is excellent, chosen with obvious care and attention. The performers play with a great deal of intensity, but with a kind of focused and professional sense. The music is typically straight-ahead, but without the feeling of being strangled into traditional patterns. The musicians here always have the workmanship to dip into free jazz, clave rhythms, complex harmonies or "out" soloing, but then bring it back to a satisfying resolution. They push the edges here, but fold them back up, too. Many nights singers take the stage and a slightly less edgy and more soulful feel takes over.

I always feel a kind of respectful hush come over me when I head down the stairs past the musician photos heading into Naru's basement space. Somehow, the intimate setting of upholstered booths, smooth black lacquer, polished brass rails and curved bar meandering around the piano feels calming and dreamy. Naru’s sound is superb and the drums and sax do not even need to really be miked. Always a complete and satisfying night out, Naru offers great music in a cool club.

 

Kei Akagi