Outer space. Infinite distances... From the very beginning of time, people have been fascinated by the sky – and so has max.bab, “a new promise for German jazz“ (Concerto). max.bab’s ACT debut Inner Orbit is an exploration of humanity’s adventures in space, an exploration that uncovers new dimensions; through its music the quartet focuses on the internal orbits since those “are at least as important as the external ones,” points out saxophonist Max von Mosch, thus explaining the idea of the album. “We’ve been wondering what astronauts actually feel in the weightless infinity of space and have tried to translate it into our language of sound.” The core of Inner Orbit is „Leonov’s Space Walk,“ a 30 minutes suite about the Soviet cosmonaut who was the first man ever to venture a space walk in 1965. For twelve minutes he was floating in space. “I felt like I’ve never felt before, and I watched the Earth turning in its majestic way underneath me," Leonov later reported. Only by means of music can the emotional significance of his extraordinary experience be shared. max.bab is telling Leonov’s adventure in real-time. In the overture we can hear his heart beating as he contemplates the infinity of space for the first time. Together with him we encounter the tension between fear and the scientific curiosity just before the “Interstellar Exit” which flows into the wonderful ease of open space. „5000 Miles In 12 Minutes“ propels us outside, into zero gravity. Yet the unlimited freedom also has its immanent danger: When Leonov tries to return to the capsule his space suit inflates in the vacuum of space. Only by becoming one with the universe and deciding to deflate his space suit of the air that he had brought from Earth is Leonov able to get back through the narrow hatch. max.bab completes its report about “Leonov’s Space Walk“ not only with four new originals but also with Esbjörn Svensson’s famous story from his “internal orbit”: “From Gagarin’s Point Of View.” Ten years ago the members of max.bab launched their joint mission. Many collaborations with artists such as Charlie Mariano, Wolfgang Muthspiel, and a full string orchestra have inspired max.bab constantly. In 2007 the Sueddeutsche Zeitung recognized max.bab’s music as “jazz on a world level.” On Inner Orbit we can now follow the altitude max.bab has already reached.