Maranata is the Norwegian free improvising, noise duo of alto and baritone sax player Dag Stiberg and electronics player Jon Wesseltoft, known for his ongoing collaboration with noise and sound artist Lasse Marhaug (including the Tongues Of Mount Meru duo and the now-defunct duo Cock Of Corpse) that has been working in Oslo’s underground scene for over 20 years, often inviting like-minded improvisers to the core duo.
Ugly Euphoria documents Maranata’s collaboration with the prolific, exceptional Mexican and Los Angeles-based, alto saxophone player Martín Escalante (who is also a photographer, and filmmaker and runs the Sploosh Records and collaborated with Guro Moe and Marhaug), recorded in Oslo in April 2022. Marhaug mastered this album. Escalante’s long-time collaborator, Peruvian bassist Teté Legía designed the cover artwork.
Escalante integrates immediately with the manic and brutal aesthetics of Maratana, and his ecstatic, fiery sax playing ignites the volatile blend of the Norwegian duo. The two saxes bleed into each other in an unstoppable, merciless, and frantic stream, blend into one crushing entity, and keep feeding Wesseltoft’s layered and explosive electronics with wild and intense shouts that call for help from the «Ambulance Riot», as one of the pieces is titled.
An oxymoronic terrifying sonic bliss that runs on invigorating doses of coca leaves, bad beer, and too much coffee. You can take it as a sonic representation of our crazy and getting crazier global politics, but, naturally, it is not recommended for the faint of heart.
Eyal Hareuveni
Jon Wesseltoft (electronics), Dag Stiberg (baritone saxophone, alto saxophone), Martín Escalante (alto saxophone)
