Browse by Label: HUBRO (NORWAY)

Artist:	SPLASHGIRL
Title:	Arbor
Label:	HUBRO (NORWAY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$17.00
Catalog #:	HUBRO 2500CD

The second album from young Norwegians Splashgirl see them re-inventing themselves from a piano trio in the European jazz tradition to a "band" in a more boundary-less musical landscape someplace between ambient, experimental rock, jazz, and contemporary music. It is still improvised acoustic music, but it definitely sounds quite different. The music on Arbor takes a more minimalistic and defined collective approach where the use of long, sustained sounds binds together a broad palette of string and percussion instruments. The band mentions Eric Satie, Earth, Morton Feldman, and Oren Ambarchi as important references. Repetition and duration play a major role on Arbor as the music unfolds slowly and leaves a lot of room for a focus on details. Splashgirl play improvised music that doesn't sound improvised. This time they wanted to have a more collective approach to the music, and by improvising, they have found sounds and song-ideas that they have developed further during the recording sessions. Arbor also features contributions by pedal steel guitarist Anders Hofstad Sørås, and singer/songwriter/sound artist Lasse Passage, two musicians with whom Splashgirl have been working closely with for some time now. Splashgirl was formed in 2004 on an initiative from pianist Andreas Stensland Løwe. He, Jo Berger Myhre and Andreas Lønmo Knudsrød had known each other since high school, and had played together in several other bands. Arbor was recorded in an old tree house called Biermannsgården in Oslo, and mixed by Ingar Hunskaar before pre-mastered to analog tape by Lasse Passage.

Artist:	EILERTSEN, MATS
Title:	Radio Yonder
Label:	HUBRO (NORWAY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$17.00
Catalog #:	HUBRO 2501CD

This is an exciting new album from Norwegian bass player Mats Eilertsen's new quartet featuring a superb cast of musicians. Radio Yonder is his best and maybe most accessible album to-date. The title takes as its subject the dichotomy of "here" and "there," and the space in between, or "yonder." Yonder is between "here" and "there." Yonder is a state of mind of a place neither here nor there or in-between, and is as hard to grasp as the location of the rainbow. Radio Yonder is the muse the creative artist searches to find and tune into, never truly knowing if his artistic antennas will be able pick up the tender signals flowing around out in the ether. The new quartet Mats has put together for this album comprises some of the greatest voices on the Scandinavian and international jazz scene today, with the wonderful, mesmerizing sound of sax maestro Tore Brunborg stirred into guitarist Thomas Dahl's electric brew, combusted by the dazzling and inspiring supportive rhythm-works and percussive sounds from young Finnish drum wizard Olavi Louhivuori, all firmly rooted and wheeled by composer and bandleader bassist Mats Eilertsen. The quartet is both dynamic and playful. All members are equal and shine through the whole album. The music is melodic, energetic and has a strong lyrical vein. Radio Yonder also showcases Mats Eilertsen as a solid and inventive songwriter. All the material on the disc is written by Eilertsen except "Hunting High And Low" by Norwegian pop group A-ha. Members include: Tore Brunborg (saxophone), Thomas Dahl (guitar), Olavi Louhivuori (drums), Mats Eilertsen (double bass).

Artist:	LABFIELD
Title:	Collab
Label:	HUBRO (NORWAY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$17.00
Catalog #:	HUBRO 2502CD

Slow-floating improvised acoustic drone rich in details performed live by the masterly duo Labfield and guests Ståle Storløkken (Supersilent), Mariam Wallentin (Wildbirds & Peacedrums) and Giuseppe Ielasi. The two powerful tracks that make up Labfield's second album were recorded at Kongsberg Jazz Festival and at Musikkhögskolan in Stockholm in 2008. Swedish guitarist David Stackenäs and Norwegian percussionist Ingar Zach are well-known names in the European improvisation scene. Ingar Zach, now based in Spain, has been a key figure in Norwegian improvised music for the last 10 years. Together with guitar player Ivar Grydeland, he founded the prolific improvised music label, Sofa. Zach has played with Derek Bailey, Jon Balke's Magnetic North Orchestra, Huntsville and Sidsel Endresen, among others. Stackenäs is one of Sweden's most merited guitarists with an impressive body of work behind him. Stackenäs and Zach previously worked together in the now-defunct three-piece Tri-Dim, with saxophonist Håkon Kornstad. Stackenäs and Zach decided to work on as a duo, but now with a radically different musical agenda. The musicians themselves describe Labfield as a musical laboratory. Labfield are: David Stackenäs (acoustic guitars, preparations and low budget electronics) and Ingar Zach (prepared bass drum, gongs, percussion, sruti boxes and drone commander).

Artist:	APELAND, SIGBJORN
Title:	Glossolalia
Label:	HUBRO (NORWAY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$17.00
Catalog #:	HUBRO 2503CD

Glossolalia is the first-ever solo album by the innovative musician Sigbjørn Apeland, a courageous and challenging recording of improvised music for the harmonium. The term "glossolalia" comes from the Greek "glossa" meaning "tongue" and "lalia" meaning "to speak." To speak in tongues is to talk in unintelligible sounds in a state of religious ecstasy. The title of the album is a play on the instrument's association with low-church traditions, that the music "came to" Apeland in an inspired moment, and that the harmonium, unlike the church organ, has metal tongues instead of pipes. The harmonium had its heyday between 1880 and 1960; its technical limitations resist all types of virtuosic performance. "Most harmoniums are old and poorly maintained, and often out of tune -- and sometimes they are more or less defect," says Apeland. "Although this is a problem for trained musicians, I have instead attempted to exploit the potential of these defects to create a new and previously-unheard kind of music. I grew up with the instrument, but changed to piano and organ -- right up until I rediscovered the harmonium as a very versatile instrument in my collaborations with Norwegian folk musicians. I gradually began to discover the potential of the instrument in improvised and experimental music settings." Apeland describes the music on the album as his "attempt to create a form of ambient acoustic music." Sigbjørn Apeland is a Norwegian record producer, musician (organ, harmonium) and the only Norwegian to have obtained a doctorate in ethnomusicology. He is known for his distinctive mix of folk music, church music and improvised music. He works as an organist, and specialized in free jazz with the legendary British drummer John Stevens; he has contributed to numerous recordings with Nils Økland and Sigrid Moldestad, folk singers Åsne Valland Nordli, Berit Opheim Versto and Agnes Buen Garnås, jazz musicians Øyvind Skarbø, Per Jørgensen and Bjørn Kjellemyr, electronica innovators Alog and noise duo Golden Serenades, in addition to many others.

Artist:	EILERTSEN TRIO, MATS
Title:	Elegy
Label:	HUBRO (NORWAY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$17.00
Catalog #:	HUBRO 2504CD

Elegy is Norwegian bass player Mats Eilertsen's fifth album under his own name, presenting a brand new trio with pianist Harmen Fraanje and drummer Thomas Strønen. Recorded at Galleri Festiviteten in Eidsvoll Verk, Norway, in October 2009, Elegy emerged as the result of a fantastic first meeting of three musicians who share their love of playing music with no boundaries, but with enthusiasm, drive and a sense of humour. Bass player, composer and bandleader Mats Eilertsen has toured extensively with the Tord Gustavsen Ensemble, played at festivals all over Norway with his own Radio Yonder (HUBRO 2501CD) quartet, and found time to perform at concerts in Europe and South America with artists such as Wolfert Brederode and Yuri Honing. The exciting pianist Harmen Fraanje plays in several of the most popular Dutch jazz groups, including Fugimundi, and is beginning to make a solid name for himself internationally. His piano style combines the lyrical, the virtuoso and the intuitive in a masterful way. There is no doubt about the contagious enthusiasm that Harmen's playing generates. The inventive drummer Thomas Strønen has performed with Humcrush and the Espen Eriksen Trio, and his chemistry with Eilertsen is evident, having previously performed together in groups such as the Maria Kannegaard Trio, FOOD, and the Anders Aarum Trio. It is difficult to spot the dividing line between composed material and free improvisation here, and the sparks really fly when the three musicians get going. Their scope is broad, ranging from lyrical passages to improvised sections, but a spirit of playfulness permeates the album. Mixed by Jan Erik Kongshaug at Rainbow Studios.

Artist:	HUNTSVILLE
Title:	For Flowers, Cars And Merry Wars
Label:	HUBRO (NORWAY)
Format:	LP+CD
Price:	$23.50
Catalog #:	HUBRO 2505LP

On Huntsville's very first release on vinyl, the group is heading in a heavier, darker, more rock-flavored and electric direction. Huntsville, an improvisational trio with a distinctive sound, has already released two unique, critically-acclaimed albums on the Norwegian label Rune Grammofon. The group has toured in Europe and the USA several times, has collaborated with Sidsel Endresen, Wilco's Nels Cline and Glenn Kotche, and held a concert in Spain with Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth. Like so much other good music, Huntsville's music is difficult to categorize. Music journalists have tried calling it "yoga country" and "abstract drone Americana," and this time around it is not improbable that there will be comparisons with both "Krautrock" and bands such as Black Dice. But this is primarily Huntsville music. Nobody sounds like them. On the monumental track that fills the entire A-side, they are joined by the superb alternative pop vocalist Hanne Hukkelberg. The album was mixed at Propeller Studios with Kåre Chr. Vestrheim (Motorpsycho, Jaga Jazzist) at the board. This is clearly the most cohesive album the trio has made so far. Hypnotic and energetic music that deserves to be played at a high volume. Members include: Ivar Grydeland, Tonny Kluften and Ingar Zach. Limited edition LP in white vinyl with a printed inner sleeve. Free CD version included.

Artist:	BJORNSTAD, KETIL
Title:	Early Piano Music
Label:	HUBRO (NORWAY)
Format:	2CD
Price:	$18.00
Catalog #:	HUBRO 2506CD

With Ketil Bjørnstad's Early Piano Music, the albums Preludes Vols. 1 & 2 and Pianology from the mid-1980s are once again becoming available. These recordings have been unavailable since the mid-'90s, and have been very much in demand. Ketil Bjørnstad: "People have been asking me for many years why these recordings are not being re-released. It is very gratifying that Hubro is releasing them now, and this also serves as a reminder that even if you develop and change throughout the years, there are some central concepts which can be pursued throughout life and which are closer to you than any others. For me, these are mainly melody, harmony and structure. And the amazing possibilities inherent in improvisation." These three albums are from the middle period of Ketil Bjørnstad's career, and were recorded in 1984 and 1987. The music evokes imagery, and like so much of Bjørnstad's music, it straddles the border between classical and jazz. All the music on the records has been composed, but there is plenty of space for improvisation. In the 1970s and '80s, Ketil Bjørnstad enjoyed considerable success with several large-scale, ambitious recording projects for the Norwegian market, including Leve Patagonia, Tidevann and Aniara. His collaboration with Manfred Eicher and ECM, which would bring his music to a large, international audience, did not begin until 1993 with the album Water Stories. "My decision to produce both Preludes 1 & 2 and Pianology myself was probably due to the fact that I was in the process of developing a new artistic idiom," says Bjørnstad in the liner notes. "All of the major projects in which I had been involved had demanded a great deal of time and energy, and I began to focus on a more minimalist idiom. I rediscovered the pleasure of exploring the grand piano, and was once again reminded of the extraordinary richness of the instrument's sound, especially in a small and naked format." He finds a close interconnection between these two recordings and the music he later recorded for ECM. Several of the preludes are found in a larger format on later recordings such as The Sea (1995). The 24 compositions in total that constitute Preludes 1 & 2 were written by Bjørnstad in 1984. They were first released on two LPs by the Norwegian underground label Uniton, which is most renowned for its releases with Holy Toy, Conrad Schnitzler, Fra Lippo Lippi and Harold Budd. "I recorded them in two different studios a few months apart. The first twelve were recorded in the summer of 1984 at the newly opened Rainbow Studio, which had not yet gone digital, with sound technician Espen Dahl. I recorded the next twelve at Rosenborg Studio in February 1985, with my old friend Hans Petter Danielsen. This was our last project together after years of collaboration." Preludes 1 & 2 were later released as a CD set on Bjørnstad's own label, Hermitage, and the Japanese label September, in 1993. Pianology was first released by the Norwegian label Hete Blikk in 1987, and re-issued on Hermitage and September in 1994. "I recorded Pianology in 1987, and as far as I recall it was one of the first digital recordings made by Jan Erik Kongshaug in his already-famous Rainbow Studio. The Steinway Model C in the studio, which I really loved, enabled me to work in an even more minimalist idiom." Liner notes by Ketil Bjørnstad in the booklet insert.

Artist:	EILERTSEN, MATS
Title:	SkyDive
Label:	HUBRO (NORWAY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$17.00
Catalog #:	HUBRO 2507CD

SkyDive is the sixth album from bass player, composer and band-leader Mats Eilertsen, released under his own name. His quartet has been expanded and grown into a quintet since the release of the highly-praised 2009 album Radio Yonder (HUBRO 2501CD). The members of the original quartet are still present: saxophonist Tore Brunborg, who also plays together with Eilertsen in Tord Gustavsen's band, the exciting guitarist Thomas T. Dahl, and the creative Finnish drummer Olavi Louhivuori, who is known from the Ilmiliekki Quartet and Tomasz Stanko's band. The new member of the team is the extraordinarily sophisticated Finnish pianist Alexi Tuomarila. Like Louhivuori, Tuomarila plays in Tomasz Stanko's band. He released the album Constellation together with Eilertsen and Louhivuori in 2006. Mats has found the perfect quintet to play his melodious, intricate and organic music. Intense beauty and fluid virtuosity. In this band, the members are all equals and are all superlative players. The album was recorded at the legendary Rainbow Studio by Jan Erik Kongshaug, and was produced by Eilertsen himself. The material also has a broader scope this time, ranging from the robust to the ethereal and esoteric, from the hymn-like "Parachute Psalm" to the energetic riffs of "The Old Oak." All the material was composed by Eilertsen. As always, his music is melodic, dynamic and richly lyrical.

Artist:	JAE
Title:	Balls And Kittens, Draught And Strangling Rain
Label:	HUBRO (NORWAY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$17.00
Catalog #:	HUBRO 2508CD

The Hubro label presents JAE's stunning debut album Balls And Kittens, Draught And Strangling Rain. JAE is a solo project from the talented Dutch musician, songwriter and singer Jessica Sligter, who has divided her time between Oslo and Amsterdam in recent years. JAE's music is an eclectic mix of influences from folk, pre-war blues, jazz, classical music, free improvisation and more. Ragged and windblown, seductive and captivating, always with something unexpected lurking right around the corner. Sligter is originally from Utrecht, The Netherlands, and was trained at the music conservatories in Utrecht and Amsterdam. She found a group of musicians who suited her project perfectly in Oslo's young jazz and improvisation community. "When I studied music in Amsterdam I found myself moving more and more in an experimental direction. I didn't see any possibility of doing what I wanted to do musically in Amsterdam, and couldn't find a milieu that suited me. But I did find one in Norway! When I arrived in Oslo I booked a room at a hostel, took the underground up to the Norwegian Academy of Music, and asked people coming out of the building if they were studying jazz! It was fun, but I wouldn't do the same thing now," she says. "But that's how I got to know some people from the young improv community, and then it was easy to make contact with many more." She has a versatile group of musicians joining her on the record. They come from bands that include Splashgirl, Streifenjunko, the Christian Wallumrød Ensemble and Rockettothesky. Musicians include: Jan Martin Smørdal, Daniel Meyer Grønvold, Kyrre Laastad, Eivind Lønning, Martin Taxt, Ole Henrik Moe Jr., Kari Rønnekleiv, Juhani Silvola, Andreas Løwe, Andreas Lønmo Knudsrød, Espen Reinertsen, Viljam Nybacka, Jo Berger Myhre, and Håvard Skaset. Mixed by Mark Nevers (Lambchop, Bonnie Prince Billy) in Nashville.

Artist:	SPLASHGIRL
Title:	Pressure
Label:	HUBRO (NORWAY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$17.00
Catalog #:	HUBRO 2509CD

Splashgirl is one of the most exciting young instrumental bands to come out of Norway in recent years. With Pressure, their third album and certainly their strongest to date, the band is taking yet another giant step forward. Here, the musicians are opening the doors to several new musical rooms -- to the dark, dank cellar as well as to the attic -- where all their forgotten memories are stored away. Splashgirl's second album, Arbor (HUBRO 2500CD), was Hubro's very first release in 2009. The group's course of development from its 2007 debut, Doors. Keys derived inspiration from Paul Bley's jazz piano recordings. The band's foundation remains acoustic: Andreas Stensland Løwe, piano (Thelma & Clyde, Lama, Jæ), Jo Berger Myhre (Ingrid Olava, Solveig Slettahjell), double bass and Andreas Lønmo Knudsrød (Sacred Harp, Lama), drums. On this album there are some outstanding guest appearances by guitarist Juhani Silvola (Sacred Harp), vocalist Mari Kvien Brunvoll, tuba player Martin Taxt (Jæ, Hanne Hukkelberg), trombonist Erik Johannesen (Jaga Jazzist) and Lasse Passage with field recordings and tape feedback. The musical dynamics on Pressure have a broad scope, but as on Arbor, the members of the trio also work with some simple analog electronics. Modest and lyrical, the album ranges from gloomy prophecies of doom that flow onwards like hot tar to ethereal minimalism. The opening track, "Devata," would have been perfect as film music for a Western based in the Antarctic. In any case, what is most striking this time is the enormous sense of concentration and the impressive focus on subtle details that are an integral part of Splashgirl's music. The album was recorded by Alex Kloster-Jensen at Malabar Studio in Oslo, and was mixed by Randall Dunn (Earth, Sunn O))), Jesse Sykes) at Aleph Studios, Seattle.

Artist:	1982
Title:	Pintura
Label:	HUBRO (NORWAY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$17.00
Catalog #:	HUBRO 2510CD

This is the second album by Norwegian trio 1982. On Pintura, they lift their interaction and experimentation to a new level. 1982 must be designated as a super-group within the genre of modern, improvised chamber music. The group's instrumentation is unusual. As far as anyone can tell, there is no other ensemble playing improvised music using the combination of harmonium, drums and Hardanger fiddle. This gives 1982 a distinctive sound, but in a purely musical sense, too, the group follows their own path. Fiddler Nils Økland has a background as a folk musician, and is renowned internationally for his innovative playing style. His solo albums on the ECM and Rune Grammofon labels have received glowing reviews. Økland was a member of the Christian Wallumrød Ensemble for several years. Sigbjørn Apeland plays church organ and harmonium, and holds Norway's only doctorate in ethnomusicology. He is known for operating at the point where folk music, church music and improvisational music intersect. While studying organ, he became involved in learning from and playing free jazz with the legendary British drummer John Stevens. Sigbjørn Apeland and Nils Økland have also collaborated as a duo for decades, releasing a critically-acclaimed record on ECM inspired by Norwegian violinist Ole Bull and his home at Lysøen. Drummer Øyvind Skarbø has studied with Terje Isungset. He plays with BMX, Kresten Osgood, Per Jørgensen and the Icelandic guitarist Hilmar Jensson, in addition to working with a solo project under the name of DIE, Allroundhandwerker!. Skarbø found the inspiration for the name of the album when he visited the Joan Miró museum in Barcelona. "When you see the picture with the same name, the first thing that grabs your attention is a rough, monochromatic figure, which must have been painted with a broad brush. Then, when you get closer, you notice that the background, in contrast, is very detailed and nuanced. I don't know if this can function as a description of our music, but I did think it was significant." The album was recorded at Grieg Hall studio in Bergen with technician Davide Bertolini.

Artist:	DAHLEN, ERLAND
Title:	Rolling Bomber
Label:	HUBRO (NORWAY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$17.00
Catalog #:	HUBRO 2512CD

Rolling Bomber is the solo debut of drummer Erland Dahlen. He has played on over 130 records since the mid-1990s, and has toured with an impressive list of top-ranking Norwegian artists in a variety of genres: Kiruna, Mike Patton/Kaada, Ingrid Olava, Eivind Aarset Sonic Codex Orchestra, Mathias Eick, Serena Maneesh, Arve Henriksen, Hanne Hukkelberg and Marit Larsen, to name just a few. He is probably best known as the drummer in the successful band Madrugada for the last years of the band's life, and as the drummer in Nils Petter Molvær's explosive new trio. The idea of doing a solo project had to mature for ten years before Erland finally went into the studio for three days in February and April 2011. The album is named after the special drum set Erland plays on the album, a Slingerland Rolling Bomber kit from World War II, which he bought from free-jazz drummer and collector Roger Turner. The mechanical parts of this set are made of rosewood, as the arms industry appropriated all available metal during the war. "When a drum has so much wood in it, it gets a very warm sound, which appeals to me a lot," says Erland. In addition, he uses an instrumentarium consisting of a variety of percussion instruments, electronic instruments and specially-constructed instruments. Erland has played the saw for many years, and the saw is an important melodic instrument on Rolling Bomber. The album has a playful, richly visual mood, but is also quite dark and menacing in places. Elements of Krautrock, drone music, ambient music and contemporary music are woven together with rock-inspired energy. Erland produced the record himself along with Jens Petter Nilsen and Hallvard W. Hagen, who form the electronica duo Xploding Plastix. Erland has worked with them for nine years. The dark second cut on the album, "Funeral," is a remix by Hallvard W. Hagen. The album was recorded in an abandoned coffee factory that Erland rents in central Oslo. It was mixed by Jens Petter Nilsen at tinfoilaudio and mastered by Helge Sten at Audio Virus Lab.

Artist:	SCENT OF SOIL
Title:	Scent Of Soil
Label:	HUBRO (NORWAY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$17.00
Catalog #:	HUBRO 2513CD

The band Scent Of Soil is fronted by vocalist Kirsti Huke and saxophonist Tore Brunborg. On this, their first album, they make use of material from a critically-acclaimed commissioned work they wrote together for the Vossa Jazz Festival in 2010. The nine powerful and visually rich songs they present here are all related to nature, each in its own way. Most of the lyrics were written by Huke, while the texts for two of the songs come from two of America's most prominent poets: Robert Frost wrote "Breeze" and Emily Dickinson was the author of "Necklaces." Kirsti Huke has worked in both rock and jazz genres, and has released two highly-praised albums under her own name. Her voice has been described as both "a honey jar" and "a powerhouse," which indicates the breadth of her approach to jazz standards, pop and rock. Tore Brunborg is undoubtedly one of the most important Norwegian saxophonists in the generation that followed Jan Garbarek. He had his breakthrough in the 1980s with the group Masqualero, which also featured Nils Petter Molvær, Arild Andersen and Jon Christensen. During the past few years, he has worked with Mathias Eick, Manu Katché, the Tord Gustavsen Ensemble and Ketil Bjørnstad. He also plays a key role on two of Mats Eilertsen's records on the HUBRO label: Radio Yonder and Sky Dive. Scent Of Soil's music ranges from energetic rock to tender ballads in which the group's jazz roots emerge more distinctly. Huke and Brunborg have put together an exciting band with musicians who have all worked extensively with boundary-defying music, and their references to the alternative rock scene are very much in evidence. Guitarist Petter Vågan is also known as a member of Marvel Machine, Eyewaterlilies, Vertex and Petter O Hanna. Bassist Rune Nergaard and drummer Gard Nilssen have performed together in several different bands, but are perhaps best known from the free rock band Bushman's Revenge. Nilssen also plays with Susanne Sundfør, Puma and Mathias Eick. Scent Of Soil's debut album is both exciting and accessible -- a record abounding in musical high points.

Artist:	CAKEWALK
Title:	Wired
Label:	HUBRO (NORWAY)
Format:	CD
Price:	$17.00
Catalog #:	HUBRO 2514CD

Hubro is proud to present the recording debut of the rocking improvisational trio Cakewalk, a relatively new band whose members hail from the groups Sacred Harp, Highasakite, The Sweetest Thrill and the Hedvig Mollestad Trio. With synths, cymbals, strings and effect boxes, the members of Cakewalk improvise intense and captivating drones and riffs. The musicians have an impressive, nearly telepathic form of interplay as well as a strong sense of structure in their improvisations. Their music spans a wide range of styles, and gives the listener associations to motorik Krautrock, industrial electronic music, noise-rock rock and the Bowie/Eno Berlin Trilogy. It is hectic and energetic, and the three musicians push each idea and every riff to the boiling point, and then cool our ears off with more introspective sound improvisation. Recorded and mixed by Juhani Silvola and mastered by Jørgen Træen at Duper Studio.

Artist:	EILERTSEN, MATS
Title:	SkyDive
Label:	HUBRO (NORWAY)
Format:	2LP
Price:	$26.50
Catalog #:	HUBRO 3507LP

Gatefold 2LP version. SkyDive is the sixth album from bass player, composer and band-leader Mats Eilertsen, released under his own name. His quartet has been expanded and grown into a quintet since the release of the highly-praised 2009 album Radio Yonder (HUBRO 2501CD). The members of the original quartet are still present: saxophonist Tore Brunborg, who also plays together with Eilertsen in Tord Gustavsen's band, the exciting guitarist Thomas T. Dahl, and the creative Finnish drummer Olavi Louhivuori, who is known from the Ilmiliekki Quartet and Tomasz Stanko's band. The new member of the team is the extraordinarily sophisticated Finnish pianist Alexi Tuomarila. Like Louhivuori, Tuomarila plays in Tomasz Stanko's band. He released the album Constellation together with Eilertsen and Louhivuori in 2006. Mats has found the perfect quintet to play his melodious, intricate and organic music. Intense beauty and fluid virtuosity. In this band, the members are all equals and are all superlative players. The album was recorded at the legendary Rainbow Studio by Jan Erik Kongshaug, and was produced by Eilertsen himself. The material also has a broader scope this time, ranging from the robust to the ethereal and esoteric, from the hymn-like "Parachute Psalm" to the energetic riffs of "The Old Oak." All the material was composed by Eilertsen. As always, his music is melodic, dynamic and richly lyrical.

Artist:	SPLASHGIRL
Title:	Pressure
Label:	HUBRO (NORWAY)
Format:	LP
Price:	$22.00
Catalog #:	HUBRO 3509LP

LP version. Splashgirl is one of the most exciting young instrumental bands to come out of Norway in recent years. With Pressure, their third album and certainly their strongest to date, the band is taking yet another giant step forward. Here, the musicians are opening the doors to several new musical rooms -- to the dark, dank cellar as well as to the attic -- where all their forgotten memories are stored away. Splashgirl's second album, Arbor (HUBRO 2500CD), was Hubro's very first release in 2009. The group's course of development from its 2007 debut, Doors. Keys derived inspiration from Paul Bley's jazz piano recordings. The band's foundation remains acoustic: Andreas Stensland Løwe, piano (Thelma & Clyde, Lama, Jæ), Jo Berger Myhre (Ingrid Olava, Solveig Slettahjell), double bass and Andreas Lønmo Knudsrød (Sacred Harp, Lama), drums. On this album there are some outstanding guest appearances by guitarist Juhani Silvola (Sacred Harp), vocalist Mari Kvien Brunvoll, tuba player Martin Taxt (Jæ, Hanne Hukkelberg), trombonist Erik Johannesen (Jaga Jazzist) and Lasse Passage with field recordings and tape feedback. The musical dynamics on Pressure have a broad scope, but as on Arbor, the members of the trio also work with some simple analog electronics. Modest and lyrical, the album ranges from gloomy prophecies of doom that flow onwards like hot tar to ethereal minimalism. The opening track, "Devata," would have been perfect as film music for a Western based in the Antarctic. In any case, what is most striking this time is the enormous sense of concentration and the impressive focus on subtle details that are an integral part of Splashgirl's music. The album was recorded by Alex Kloster-Jensen at Malabar Studio in Oslo, and was mixed by Randall Dunn (Earth, Sunn O))), Jesse Sykes) at Aleph Studios, Seattle.

Artist:	1982
Title:	Pintura
Label:	HUBRO (NORWAY)
Format:	LP
Price:	$22.00
Catalog #:	HUBRO 3510LP

LP version. This is the second album by Norwegian trio 1982. On Pintura, they lift their interaction and experimentation to a new level. 1982 must be designated as a super-group within the genre of modern, improvised chamber music. The group's instrumentation is unusual. As far as anyone can tell, there is no other ensemble playing improvised music using the combination of harmonium, drums and Hardanger fiddle. This gives 1982 a distinctive sound, but in a purely musical sense, too, the group follows their own path. Fiddler Nils Økland has a background as a folk musician, and is renowned internationally for his innovative playing style. His solo albums on the ECM and Rune Grammofon labels have received glowing reviews. Økland was a member of the Christian Wallumrød Ensemble for several years. Sigbjørn Apeland plays church organ and harmonium, and holds Norway's only doctorate in ethnomusicology. He is known for operating at the point where folk music, church music and improvisational music intersect. While studying organ, he became involved in learning from and playing free jazz with the legendary British drummer John Stevens. Sigbjørn Apeland and Nils Økland have also collaborated as a duo for decades, releasing a critically-acclaimed record on ECM inspired by Norwegian violinist Ole Bull and his home at Lysøen. Drummer Øyvind Skarbø has studied with Terje Isungset. He plays with BMX, Kresten Osgood, Per Jørgensen and the Icelandic guitarist Hilmar Jensson, in addition to working with a solo project under the name of DIE, Allroundhandwerker!. Skarbø found the inspiration for the name of the album when he visited the Joan Miró museum in Barcelona. "When you see the picture with the same name, the first thing that grabs your attention is a rough, monochromatic figure, which must have been painted with a broad brush. Then, when you get closer, you notice that the background, in contrast, is very detailed and nuanced. I don't know if this can function as a description of our music, but I did think it was significant." The album was recorded at Grieg Hall studio in Bergen with technician Davide Bertolini.

Artist:	DAHLEN, ERLAND
Title:	Rolling Bomber
Label:	HUBRO (NORWAY)
Format:	LP
Price:	$22.00
Catalog #:	HUBRO 3512LP

LP version. Rolling Bomber is the solo debut of drummer Erland Dahlen. He has played on over 130 records since the mid-1990s, and has toured with an impressive list of top-ranking Norwegian artists in a variety of genres: Kiruna, Mike Patton/Kaada, Ingrid Olava, Eivind Aarset Sonic Codex Orchestra, Mathias Eick, Serena Maneesh, Arve Henriksen, Hanne Hukkelberg and Marit Larsen, to name just a few. He is probably best known as the drummer in the successful band Madrugada for the last years of the band's life, and as the drummer in Nils Petter Molvær's explosive new trio. The idea of doing a solo project had to mature for ten years before Erland finally went into the studio for three days in February and April 2011. The album is named after the special drum set Erland plays on the album, a Slingerland Rolling Bomber kit from World War II, which he bought from free-jazz drummer and collector Roger Turner. The mechanical parts of this set are made of rosewood, as the arms industry appropriated all available metal during the war. "When a drum has so much wood in it, it gets a very warm sound, which appeals to me a lot," says Erland. In addition, he uses an instrumentarium consisting of a variety of percussion instruments, electronic instruments and specially-constructed instruments. Erland has played the saw for many years, and the saw is an important melodic instrument on Rolling Bomber. The album has a playful, richly visual mood, but is also quite dark and menacing in places. Elements of Krautrock, drone music, ambient music and contemporary music are woven together with rock-inspired energy. Erland produced the record himself along with Jens Petter Nilsen and Hallvard W. Hagen, who form the electronica duo Xploding Plastix. Erland has worked with them for nine years. The dark second cut on the album, "Funeral," is a remix by Hallvard W. Hagen. The album was recorded in an abandoned coffee factory that Erland rents in central Oslo. It was mixed by Jens Petter Nilsen at tinfoilaudio and mastered by Helge Sten at Audio Virus Lab.

Artist:	SCENT OF SOIL
Title:	Scent Of Soil
Label:	HUBRO (NORWAY)
Format:	LP
Price:	$22.00
Catalog #:	HUBRO 3513LP

LP version. The band Scent Of Soil is fronted by vocalist Kirsti Huke and saxophonist Tore Brunborg. On this, their first album, they make use of material from a critically-acclaimed commissioned work they wrote together for the Vossa Jazz Festival in 2010. The nine powerful and visually rich songs they present here are all related to nature, each in its own way. Most of the lyrics were written by Huke, while the texts for two of the songs come from two of America's most prominent poets: Robert Frost wrote "Breeze" and Emily Dickinson was the author of "Necklaces." Kirsti Huke has worked in both rock and jazz genres, and has released two highly-praised albums under her own name. Her voice has been described as both "a honey jar" and "a powerhouse," which indicates the breadth of her approach to jazz standards, pop and rock. Tore Brunborg is undoubtedly one of the most important Norwegian saxophonists in the generation that followed Jan Garbarek. He had his breakthrough in the 1980s with the group Masqualero, which also featured Nils Petter Molvær, Arild Andersen and Jon Christensen. During the past few years, he has worked with Mathias Eick, Manu Katché, the Tord Gustavsen Ensemble and Ketil Bjørnstad. He also plays a key role on two of Mats Eilertsen's records on the HUBRO label: Radio Yonder and Sky Dive. Scent Of Soil's music ranges from energetic rock to tender ballads in which the group's jazz roots emerge more distinctly. Huke and Brunborg have put together an exciting band with musicians who have all worked extensively with boundary-defying music, and their references to the alternative rock scene are very much in evidence. Guitarist Petter Vågan is also known as a member of Marvel Machine, Eyewaterlilies, Vertex and Petter O Hanna. Bassist Rune Nergaard and drummer Gard Nilssen have performed together in several different bands, but are perhaps best known from the free rock band Bushman's Revenge. Nilssen also plays with Susanne Sundfør, Puma and Mathias Eick. Scent Of Soil's debut album is both exciting and accessible -- a record abounding in musical high points.

Artist:	CAKEWALK
Title:	Wired
Label:	HUBRO (NORWAY)
Format:	LP
Price:	$22.00
Catalog #:	HUBRO 3514LP

LP version. Hubro is proud to present the recording debut of the rocking improvisational trio Cakewalk, a relatively new band whose members hail from the groups Sacred Harp, Highasakite, The Sweetest Thrill and the Hedvig Mollestad Trio. With synths, cymbals, strings and effect boxes, the members of Cakewalk improvise intense and captivating drones and riffs. The musicians have an impressive, nearly telepathic form of interplay as well as a strong sense of structure in their improvisations. Their music spans a wide range of styles, and gives the listener associations to motorik Krautrock, industrial electronic music, noise-rock rock and the Bowie/Eno Berlin Trilogy. It is hectic and energetic, and the three musicians push each idea and every riff to the boiling point, and then cool our ears off with more introspective sound improvisation. Recorded and mixed by Juhani Silvola and mastered by Jørgen Træen at Duper Studio.

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