BJØRN TORSKE
Kokning
STS196
Smalltown Supersound 2010
09 Tracks. 52mins01mins

Amazon UK: CD | LP | DLD US: CD | LP | DLD Boomkat: CD | LP | DLD iTunes: DLD

With countless projects and collaborations under his belt, Norwegian musician, producer and DJ Bjørn Torske has had, since his first appearance, as Alegria on SSR Records almost twenty years ago, fingers in more pies than one could care to mention, but when he landed on Smalltown Supersound, a few years ago, he found his natural place alongside the likes of Diskjokke or Lindstrøm. His debut album for the label, Feil Knapp, combined elements of house and disco with more playful electronic forms and occasional Krautrock hints.

Krautrock appears to be the starting point of Torske’s latest offering, his fourth, and filters through much of the album, in various doses. Continue Reading »

K-X-P
K-X-P
STS182
Smalltown Supersound 2010
08 Tracks. 43mins45secs

Amazon UK: CD | DLD US: CD | DLD

K-X-P: behind this enigmatic banner operate two former members of Op:l Bastards, Timo Kaukolampi (electronics and vocals), and Tuomo Puranen (bass and keyboards). So, that’s the K and the P explained. Standing in between is an X, or rather a third space which is occupied alternatively by Anssi Nykänen and Tomi Leppanen, both drummers by trade. X should therefore in this case be understood as ‘non-defined’. The musical ground covered by all four musicians is pretty vast and varied. Kaukolampi is perhaps best known for writing for, and producing, Norwegian electro-popster Annie, and while Puranen was also involved in her two albums, he has, amongst other things, been a regular member of Jimi Tenor’s band and has collaborated with a number of Scandinavian artists over the years, while Nykänen regularly played with jazz bass player Pekka Pohjola, and Leppanen was an active member of avant-pop outfit Aavikko. Continue Reading »

DISKJOKKE
En Fin Tid
STS184CD
Smalltown Supersound 2010
08 Tracks. 60mins11secs

Amazon UK: CD | DLD US: CD | DLD Norman Records: CD

Time for another round of Norwegian space disco! This year has already seen major releases from Lindstrøm & Christabelle (Real Life Is No Cool, Smalltown Supersound) and Prins Thomas (Prins Thomas, Full Pupp), and it is now the turn of Joachim ‘DiskJokke’ Dyrdahl to deliver another fine slice of stellar electronic prog disco grooves. Follow up to his superb 2007 debut Staying In, also published on Smalltown Supersound, En Fin Tid feeds on the same cosmic electro bleepy sounds, but while the tracks on Staying In followed very definite paths and often adopted a traditional verse/bridge/chorus structure, the templates are here much looser and fluid, and the melodies much more subtle.

Unlike its predecessor, which collected tracks recorded during a long period of time, En Fin Tid was written and recorded as a complete piece, and this is undeniably very much reflected in the overall consistency of the record. Continue Reading »

One-Armed Bandit is the first release from Norwegian supergroup Jaga Jazzist in over five years. A constantly changing formation, the band has been around for fifteen years, with at its core brothers Lars and Martin Horntveth and their sister Line. While their sound has always encompassed a variety of genres, it relies primarily on a driven form of power jazz. With their last record to date, the band took to more rock structures and abandoned the electronic textures that had characterised previous releases. With this latest offering, they once again bring electronics into the fold and swap heavy rock forms for more cosmic prog rock. Here, band composer in chief Lars Horntveth talks about the five year break, how working on external projects benefit the band as a whole, working with Tortoise’s John McEntire and spending over half his life with the band. Continue Reading »

LARS HORNTVETH
Kaleidoscopic
STS097CD
Smalltown Supersound 2009
01 Track. 36mins47secs

One of the founding members of the all-out bopping Jaga Jazzist ensemble, Lars Horntveth surprised some years ago with a refined and mature debut solo output. On Pooka, Horntveth was seemingly applying some of the same concept he had helped develop with Jaga, but, he also hinted at much more elaborated music processes and showed a taste for orchestral forms. With his second effort, delivered five years on, he steps up the pace and takes on the challenge of working with a full classical formation, the Latvian National Orchestra, on a single piece. Continue Reading »

DISKJOKKE
Staying In
STS145CD
Smalltown Supersound 2008
10 Tracks. 56mins05secs

If staying in is the new going out, DiskJokke is the shiny banner that advertises it. Hailing from Oslo where, alongside like-minded characters like Prins Thomas and Lindstrom, he is at the forefront of the new Swedish dance scene, Joachim Dyrdahl has spent the last few years honing his dance floor potential at Sunkissed, one of Norway’s most notorious clubs, where he is a regular behind the decks. First spotted by Prins Thomas, who released three of his tracks, Dyrdahl has since, under the DiskJokke banner, had tracks featured on a handful of compilations, released a couple of EPs and is fast becoming a sought-after remixer. He is now signed to Norwegian imprint Smalltown Supersound.

Staying In, Dyrdahl’s debut album, incorporates elements of classic disco and house, sprinkled with hints of electro and Detroit techno to give his sound a slightly more angular form. Dyrdahl also pays much attention to his melodies and to the mood of each of his creations, which ranges from atmospheric to playful moments. Continue Reading »