Articles

Daily articles carefully curated by the All About Jazz staff. Read our popular and future articles.

MULTIPLE REVIEWS February 6, 2020

A World of Piano Trios II

Several parts of the world heard from in this installment: Sweden, Norway, France, and the United States. Esbjorn Svensson Trio (E.S.T.) e.s.t. live in Gothenburg ACT Music 2019 Before Swedish jazz pianist Esbjörn Svensson's untimely death in 2008, e.s.t. was a sensation. They brought an eclecticism and rock-like energy to piano trio music that continues to reverberate today in the music of groups like GoGo Penguin. This 2001 concert recording comes from ...

ALBUM REVIEW January 5, 2020

Esbjörn Svensson Trio: e.s.t. live in Gothenburg

By Phillip Woolever

More than a decade after a tragic diving accident ended Swedish pianist Esbjorn Svensson's life and thus dissolved his renowned trio, the group remains a potent force in the world of popular jazz recordings. This digital document from a 2001 concert in Gothenburg seems certain to perpetuate that legacy. While much of this album is comprised of fairly standard piano-based aesthetics, the remarkable skills displayed by Svensson, drummer Magnus Ostrom and bassist Dan Berglund, in technical prowess and ...

MULTIPLE REVIEWS October 31, 2019

3x3: Piano Trios: October 2019

By Geno Thackara

Esbjörn Svensson Trio Live in Gothenburg ACT Music 2019 At the time, it was a marvel. The Esbjorn Svensson Trio had already come a long way since their early-'90s beginnings in reshaping the already-skewed traditions of Monk-ian jazz. Their audiences back in 2001 would have been continually thrilled at discovering this fresh slant on the classic piano trio, bridging bop flair with hooks and grooves drawn from the modern rock and electronica scenes. Looking back ...

ALBUM REVIEW August 5, 2018

Esbjorn Svensson Trio: e.s.t. live in london

By Ian Patterson

Ten years on from the tragic death of Esbjörn Svensson, it's easy to forget just how ground-breaking e.s.t. was. Its seamless embrace of jazz, pop, rock and electronics aesthetics brought CD sales and a following more typical of successful pop acts. It was also the first European jazz band on the cover of Downbeat. Easy to forget, too, how influential the trio remains. Countless times, when a new a piano trio presents itself, the back-handed compliment is offered: 'Oh, they ...

ALBUM REVIEW May 4, 2018

Esbjorn Svensson Trio: e.s.t. live in london

By Geno Thackara

Let's get the obligatory background recap out of the way first. The Esbjorn Svensson Trio was a one-of-a-kind outfit, their DNA encompassing an amorphous pop-classical-jazz-tronica mix that made all those things co-exist so naturally it was almost unnatural. For all their bold experimentalism in disregarding genres, sculpting song structures and often integrating processed sounds into the piano-trio format, e.s.t. stayed eminently approachable to listeners of vastly different stripes. The distinct alchemy helped them build a remarkable degree of acclaim through ...

ALBUM REVIEW May 1, 2018

Esbjorn Svensson Trio: e.s.t. live in london

By Karl Ackermann

In the ten years since the Esbjörn Svensson Trio came to a tragic end, a handful of piano trios have shown a trace of promise in becoming successors to the eclectic pianist's group. Capturing the raw energy that coalesced jazz, classical, rock, and technique in their unique way has been elusive. Since Svensson's accidental death in 2008 ACT Music has released Leucocyte (2008) and 301 (2012). The latter of the two consists of tracks that were recorded during the Leucocyte ...

CATCHING UP WITH May 9, 2012

Catching Up With e.s.t.'s Dan Berglund and Magnus Ostrom

By Renato Wardle

The tragic death of pianist Esbjörn Svensson in the summer of 2008 brought to a close the 12-year run of one of the most prolific and brilliant piano trios in recent years. The enigmatically hypnotic tapestries that the Esbjörn Svensson Trio (which came to be known as e.s.t.) wove simultaneously eschewed and venerated the jazz tradition. This magnificent juxtaposition resulted in a unique musical world dealing as much with the piano trio lineage of Keith Jarrett as with the intoxicating ...