Erik Blennow Calälv, Lisa Ullén, Finn Loxbo, Ryan Packard: Bi, In yo & Iwato

The three pieces here, each with a duration between twelve and thirteen minutes, are compositions by Swedish bass clarinetist Erik Blennow Calälv who is a member of the quartet The Schematics. No other members of that group join him here, but Swedish guitarist Finn Loxbo, who recorded Snow Country (Creative Sources, 2017) in a duo with Calälv, is part of the unnamed quartet. In turn, so is percussionist Ryan Packard who recorded Magnus Granberg's Night Will Fade And Fall Apart (thanatosis production, 2022) alongside Loxbo, in the six-member TYA Ensemble.

The fourth member here is the renowned Swedish pianist Lisa Ullén who in 2018 was awarded the Jazz Composer of the Year prize by Swedish Radio, the year her excellent three-disc solo album Piano Works (Disorder) was released. Although she has not previously recorded with Calälv, Loxbo or Packard, in 2012 Ullén recorded Lisboa (Creative Sources) in a quintet which included INSUB proprietors Cyril Bondi and d'incise, which may be why this album is on their label.

All three compositions here are based on traditional Japanese scales; listeners who are more familiar with occidental scales need not panic or switch off because of that, as the music here is engagingly easy on the ear and impressively harmonious. The bass clarinet, electronics and percussion, which can each produce sustained sounds, combine to create a background accompaniment over which piano and guitar play occasional notes which complement rather than obscure the backing. Throughout each piece, the soundscape slowly and subtly evolves so that there is enough going on to be both absorbing and relaxing. This is music which handsomely repays repeated listening.

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