The young Norwegian TEIP Trio came from the vibrant free-improv scene of Trondheim and suggested an unconventional lineup and a distinct sound – two guitarists – Arne Bredesen and Nicolas Leirtrø (on baritone guitar, who play with Bredesen in the earth moon transit quintet, and a member of I Like to Sleep and Amalie Dahl’s Dafnie) plus the clarinetist Jens-Jonas Francis Roberts.

II, obviously, is TEIP Trio’s sophomore effort. It was made of hours of recordings at «various places at various times» and sound engineer Kyrre Laastad added to the raw material cassette work and tape manipulation. The sound is rougher, layered and more textured and offers a coherent nine-part, dramatic and often soulful journey that is mysterious and strange but also captivating in its eccentric beauty, revolving around the loose theme of awakening to the light. This journey reaches an emotional climax in its last pieces – the explosive and unsettling  «Moon» and «Those are pearls that were his eyes».

TEIP Trio still likes experimenting with contrasting and blending electric and acoustic timbres, extended bowing, percussive and breathing techniques, but now all serve the narrative. The dynamics are still raw and uncompromising, but TEIP Trio now sounds like a mature band that has found its own voice and not relying on seminal influences like Mats Gustafsson, Stian Westerhus, Supersilent and even the early seminal ECM albums of Jan Garbarek and Terje Rypdal that defined its debut album.

Eyal Hareuveni

Arne Bredesen (guitar), Jens-Jonas Francis Roberts (clarinet), Nicolas Leirtrø (baritone guitar)