«Different Shapes / Immersion» is a live recording from 2014 of an ad-hoc Norwegian-British free-improv trio. This performance was captured live at London’s Cafe OTO, home base of double bass player John Edwards, one of the most prolific and in-demand musicians in the British free jazz and free-improv scene. Edwards teams with like-minded Norwegians – powerhouse reeds player Kjetil Møster, known for his flirts with art rock, noise and electronics, and hyperactive drummer Dag Erik Knedal Andersen, known from the local free jazz groups Saka and Akode.

The first extended improvisation, «Different Shapes», begins with minimalist, searching impressions by all three musicians, still attempting to establish the right mode. Both Møster and Knedal Andersen sound as already energized for an intense, explosive set of high-velocity improvisation but Edwards opts for a patient, more introspective interplay that evolves organically. But even Edwards can not hold for long the two Norwegians and mid-piece the trio erupts with a powerful, massive pulse but soon resumes its open, slow-burning searching mode.

The second extended improvisation, «Immersion», enjoys the already established rapport between these resourceful improvisers, and again, does not surrender easily to the familiar take-no-prisoners approach. Møster leads the trio with his clarinet playing, introducing a gentle, lyrical vein, colored cleverly by Edwards and the still restless Knedal Andersen. This time the trio builds the tension and its power methodically and reaches its an explosive, cathartic mode mid-piece. But then, suddenly, alternates to another searching mode, this time more quiet and sparse than previous times. This slow and patient mode highlights the delicate, nuanced rhythmic patterns explored by this trio.

Eyal Hareuveni

Kjetil Møster (s, cl), John Edwards (b), Dag Erik Knedal Andersen (dr, perc)