E. Normus Trio

E. Normus Trio: Love and Barbiturates

by Glenn Astarita
August 26, 2013

These Asheville, NC musicians started collaborating in 2007, leading to this debut release that skirts the boundaries of jazz-rock, free-jazz and progressive metal-jazz. The jazz and improvisational elements accentuate most of these works, fueled by adrenaline rushes amid the trio's broad arsenal.Excitable but largely cohesive, lead soloist and clarinetist Steve Alsford bridges torrid breakdowns with wily phrasings and wistfully melodic sentiment. Meanwhile, Jay Sanders uses a N/S Stick, an 8-string multipurpose instrument that affords him the ability to ...