Manafonistas

That was a special moment, yesterday, when returning from the sea with a long grey coat soaked full of rain and water dripping from it till dusk in the bathroom. Coming to rest. Rune had send me a nice mail and the stream of two forthcoming albums. And, meanwhile I listened to both of them, one before midnight, and one down by the sea, some hours ago. A lovely sky, sun shining, strangers smiling, and when no one was around, except three coloured birds I had never seen before, my beach chair turned into a discotheque playing Mats Gustafsson‘s new Fire! album with verve! And what a fine labour of work is that: he‘s blowing the flute here, too, and in moments, you think you‘re inside the world of Herbie Mann‘s „Stone Flute“. Just an apparition. Rhythms as flexible as tight and fully loose, and a transparency of sound that is definitely not what springs to mind first when thinking of the „style“ we think we know from the Swedish post-free-jazz matador. The man who loves going for the wild seems to be in a very relaxed mood without sacrificing, pun intended, the fire in „Fire!“ The spirit of Albert Ayler is never too far away! – The other high quality work comes from Elephant9. And surprise: Stale Storlokken‘s band also moves into a laid-back version of their otherwise well-known ability to create a decent tour-de-force. Again, Stale‘s keyboard collection evokes strong vibes of old time fusion music, but with a freshness and delicacy far away from smartass-like walking down memory lane. From a distance, something like an „ocarina-sound“ may receive a warm welcome from Pat Metheny‘s late 70’s state of mind. Another excellent new skin for an old ceremony.

Mats Gustafsson – Flute, baritone sax, live electronics
Johan Berthling – Electric bass
Andreas Werliin – Drums
with Goran Kajfes – Quartertone trumpet
Mats Aleklint – Trombone, sousaphone, horn arrangements

Ståle Storløkken – Rhodes piano, Hammond organ, grand piano, Eminent 310, Mellotron, Continuum
Nikolai Hængsle – Electric bass, electric and acoustic guitars
Torstein Lofthus – Drums, percussion

Eine kleine Nachtmusik I

Trio Tapestry‘s sense of melody, space and  letting-go  is immaculate. I will always remember their first record, one of the jazz miracles of 2019. For me, it was the best album Joe Lovano ever made, with Manfred Eicher’s perfect sequencing of the tracks. Listen to the vinyl: suspense, sound and silence in perfect union. It is quite natural that this follow-up lives up to the high standard of the first meeting in New York. Now with a deeper touch of Provence pastel and colours at dusk. You can think of every jazz writing cliche of praise, from „filigree“ to „elemental“, and be sure that Lovano, Crispell and Castaldi are breathing new life into it. After the first three pieces of pure baladry (written by soul, not by the book), the appearances of sound take more and more adventurous side steps, from moments of pianistic unrest and upheaval, to an exploration of metal and sound in Castaldi‘s drum figures. A zen-like purity‘s bold pairing with an adventurous spirit. The record delivers everything with grace, selflessness and the most nuanced sense of  tempo, time standing still and a flow of undercurrents. If this sounds slightly over the top, let the music take over, dim the lights and follow the tapestries!