Record Reviews

ESPEN ERIKSEN TRIO ~ NEVER ENDING JANUARY RUNE GRAMMOFON 2173 ~ NORWAY ~ Jazz Recorded: 2015 Released: 2015 This is the third album by the Norwegian piano trio led by pianist / composer Espen EriksenFind albums by this artist with bassist Lars Tormod JensetFind albums by this artist and drummer Andreas ByeFind albums by this artist. It presents eight original compositions, all by Eriksen. The music is a classic example of the Scandinavian Jazz variety: beautifully melodic, utterly melancholic and elegantly minimalistic. Eriksen writes sensuous, captivating melody lines, which develop slowly and delicately as each tune progresses in time, gaining momentum and strength up to a moderately climatic level and then it is suddenly over. This type of music has its perils of course, as it can easily slip into smooth background trivia, which often happens. However it is certainly not the case here, as Eriksen manages to control just the right amount of sweetness to make his music captivating but not crossing the line into kitsch, which speaks volumes about his taste. The rhythm section has a limited window of opportunity to show off here, with the main focus being to follow the leader amicably and sensitively, which they certainly stick to admirably. Jenset supports the melody lines adding a solid ground and overtones and Bye, who uses mallets extensively, adds a nice steady heartbeat. Overall the trio works like an organic body, with everything being just exactly as it should. The album was excellently recorded by Michael Scott HartungFind albums by this artist at the Propeller Studio in Oslo, a city which is practically a recording Mecca these days. Listeners with proper Hi-Fi equipment will certainly start drooling while this music starts playing. Overall this is a highly enjoyable and aesthetically pleasing album, which is accessible to a wide range of music lovers, nor necessarily limited to the Jazz audiences. Recommended!

Updated: 12/03/2016Posted: 12/03/2016

CD 1 Mini-Sleeve Recommend To A Friend