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Jazz Articles about Eivind Aarset
Guitar Gods & Goddesses: An Alternative Top Ten Albums
by Chris May
Although it has been present in jazz since the 1920s, when it was routinely used in rhythm sections, as a solo instrument the guitar struggled to make itself heard--literally--until the second half of the 1930s, when reliable pick-ups and portable amplifiers became available. Foremost among the pioneers of the electrified instrument was Charlie Christian, a member of the Benny Goodman Sextet and Orchestra from 1939 to 1941, when he was hospitalized with tuberculosis (he passed the following year). Christian famously ...
Continue ReadingBendik Hofseth: Trunks
by Friedrich Kunzmann
The first from a run of four albums, collectively titled Forest, Norwegian saxophonist Bendik Hofseth's Trunks sets a cozy tone which pairs minimal interplay with echoing acoustics in a modern mainstream jazz light. His sidemen all belong to the Norwegian jazz elite, most of whom have been recording together for years, prominently so for ECM. Hofseth partially dedicates the songs on the record to them. From subtle throw-back fusion to more contemplative aesthetics, the saxophonist's always through-designed compositions are given ...
Continue ReadingEivind Aarset & Jan Bang: Snow Catches on her Eyelashes
by John Eyles
Although they had been collaborating since the early 90s, the first recording on which the Norwegian guitarist Eivind Aarset and American-born, Norway-resident Jan Bang appeared together was Bang's Pop Killer (Virgin, 1998). In the years since, Aarset and Bang have collaborated on many more albums, but this is the first to credit them as a duo. Particular high spots in their collaborations have included Bang's album on David Sylvian's label ...and Poppies from Kandahar (Samishadsound, 2010), Aarset's Dream Logic (ECM, ...
Continue ReadingEivind Aarset: The Edge Between Intimacy and Courage
by Adriana Carcu
Guitarist and composer Eivind Aarset is one of the most imaginative exponents of the spirit of open diversity that defines and differentiates the Nordic Jazz soundscape. Coming along a progressive-rock line of influence enriched by a world music heritage and refined by electronics, his music emanates the radiant energy of an unfolding white lotus flower that gradually reveals its self-contained complexity. His guitar tones explore spheres of pure lyricism paired with a vibrant force of expression, and reaches resonant peaks ...
Continue ReadingEivind Aarset: Dream Logic
by AAJ Italy Staff
Dopo oltre 15 anni dal debutto su ECM al fianco del trombettista Nils Petter Molvaer nel suo folgorante Khmer, seguito da diverse collaborazioni di prestigio in album di Marilyn Mazur, Arild Andersen, Jon Hassell, Andy Sheppard e Food, arriva finalmente il momento dell'esordio da titolare sull'etichetta bavarese per il chitarrista norvegese Eivind Aarset, che segue i cinque CD a suo nome già pubblicati da Jazzland. Questo lavoro si distacca in parte dai precedenti, risultando meno immediato, e concentrandosi maggiormente su ...
Continue ReadingEivind Aarset: Dream Logic
by Dan McClenaghan
The ingredients are all electric on guitarist Eivind Aarset's Dream Logic: plugged-in guitar and bass; programming; samples; dictophone; and electronics. The resulting atmospheric layering of sound with subtle dynamics and inorganic drones could be described as sterile, but what a beautiful, mysterious sterility it is.The Norwegian guitarist has contributed to several ECM Records recordings, including trumpeter Jon Hassell's Last Night the Moon Came Came Dropping Its Clothes on the Street (2009) and trumpeter Arve Henriksen's Cartography (2008), to ...
Continue ReadingEivind Aarset: Dream Logic
by John Kelman
With the exception of trumpeter Nils Petter Molvær and singer Sidsel Endresen--who each left the label after contributing two fine albums as leaders--there seems to be an increasing number of Norwegian artists who, after establishing themselves on smaller labels, are gaining greater international exposure by moving to the venerable ECM label. Trumpeter Arve Henriksen and Cartography (2008) is one; Food, featuring percussionist Thomas Strønen, is another, with Quiet Inlet (2010); and The Source's eponymous 2006 release, yet another.Now ...
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