All sorts of jazz, free jazz and improv. Never for money, always for love.
An important release is not necessarily a great release, and while this
rare recording of legendary Swedish saxophonist and clarinetist Bengt Frippe
Nordström is a significant contribution to the discography of Swedish
jazz, Nordstrom's lengthy improvisations remind the listener of Albert Ayler
on an off-day, which when you think about it is a complement of sorts.
Nordström squeezes a primitive sound from his horns, his tenor sounding
precisely how drummer Peeter Uuskyla describes it in his liners: "It's
fresh; like children playing a new game." There is an attractive simplicity
about it too, with its unornamented quotes of other tunes, and its implicit
rejection of bop phrasing and technique. Uuskyla describes the session as
typical for Frippe: "Anything was possible and nothing was forbidden…"
Yet listening to it decades later it does not sound quite so radical, perhaps
because the saxophonist does not use advanced techniques but relies on a
pre-bop style transposed to Free Jazz. He does rely on repetitive phrases,
a slow gait, a full-bodied sound, and a confident demeanor. Moreover, Uuskyla's
powerful drumming keeps the saxophonist and everyone else on track.
Violinist Lars Svanteson improvises more than capably but sometimes he is
somewhat tame (intimidated?) in a supporting role.
This recording captures the last time this quartet performed together, and
while Nordström passed away in 2000, he will not be forgotten, in part
thanks to the fine restorative work of the Swedish label Ayler Records,
which has meticulously prepared this recording for release many years after
it was put to wax.
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