Young Norwegian accordionist Kalle Moberg, known from Paal Nilssen-Love’s Large Unit and Honest John, presents his debut album as «unlike anything you have ever heard before!». This presumptuous statement ignores the innovative work of American accordionists Pauline Oliveros and Guy Klucevsek, even his fellow-countryman Frode Haltli or the eccentric Finnish Kimmo Pohjonen. Moberg follows these pioneers and does succeed to expand the accordion’s organic potential with his own extended techniques and his composite musicality.

«The Tokyo Sessions Volume 1: Unheard-of» was recorded at Jim O’Rourke’s Steamroom studio in Tokyo, Japan, in February 2019. O’Rourke, the mastermind of numerous classic albums by Sonic Youth, Stereolab, Joanna Newsom, and Wilco, is also an accordionist. He saw the classically-trained Moberg perform with the Large Unit at Tokyo’s Pit Inn club in November 2017 and immediately afterward invited Moberg to record with him. O’Rourke also advised Moberg to release this album in his newly founded KAMO Records label and recorded Moberg with his close associates -Japanese pianist-singer-songwriter Eiko Ishibashi, drummer  Tatsuhisa
Yamamoto, Australian bass player Marty Holoubek and percussionist Joe Talia and O’Rourke himself.

«Unheard-of» was recorded in one day with Moberg playing live on a standard Scandalli C Extreme accordion, newly tuned in equal temperament at 442 Hz at the time of the recording, with no electronics or overdubbing. His technique is indeed immaculate, especially when it comes to extreme bending techniques and producing multiphonics and microtonal sounds. But the impressive technique is only a means to express a bold musical vision, and Moberg is a composer and improviser who knows how to weave a complex musical drama, with a great sense for imaginative detail and a clear affinity for sudden surprises (check «Skinned Alive By A Blunt Spoon»), all delivered with elegance and grace.

Eyal Hareuveni  

Kalle Moberg (acc)